I went to Scooter Scoop today and read a number of postings in that blog, I do that once every few months, just to make sure I catch the newest posting. This blog is about the Grays: Scott, Michele, their daughter Josephine, and their son True. The blog has not have new posting since December 8, 2005, six months after Scott's death, he died of brain cancer, he had just graduated with a Master of Divinity at TEDS. Scott was a father of 2 year old Josephine, and their son, True, who was still in his mommy Michele's tummy when Scott went to heaven.
I still go read the post, because I want to celebrate his life. He is one of the few people I have met whom have truly shown the joy of being a Christian.
I was the Field Education Coordinator at TEDS. While grading papers, I realized that Scott Gray has not turned in his paper, and it has been one week after the deadline. I wrote him an email, gave him a call, no reply to either. A week had past, a student walked into my office with a great big smile and a piece of paper in his hand, it was Scott Gray. He said, 'I am so sorry that my paper is so late, I just became a father, but that is no excuse for being late. I am willing to take any penalty, even if I have to do the Field Ed course again, I will do so.'
I deducted points from him, but he passed. However, what I cannot forget was Scott beaming with joy, showing me the photos of his beautiful wife and their new born daughter, Josephine. I was pregnant with Kioni at that time, he shared with me a few books on parenting.
A while later, he came into my office again, just to see if I am doing OK with my pregnancy.
A few months later, I saw him in the hallway outside of my office. He was wearing a baseball cap that was a bit too big for his head. I jokingly said, "that's a cool hat". He said, "It is cool, but I would much rather not wear it. I have cancer, I just had an operation two weeks ago." He took off his hat and showed me his hairless head. He was undergoing chemotherapy and had lost his hair.
That was the last time I saw him. On June 12, 2005, he died.
He is one of those special people that I will not forget, not because he died young, not because he left behind a beautiful wife and a young daughter, not because he didn't get to meet his son before he was born. But because he is a true Christian. He had true joy in his heart, that I know comes from his radical obedience to God. Even when his life was fading away, he never once doubted God.
Scott Gray, if I were to die a death that would make me suffer the way you did, you will be my hero, you will be someone that I will remember and look up to.
Ta-ta for now, will see you in heaven, Scott.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
Sharing the gospel in Kumon
Every Monday morning I took Kioni to the Kumon center for her Kumon class. We have been going there for three months. The receptionist lady Josephine is always welcoming and kind. I always wanted to talk to her more, but the center is always busy, it is hard to talk at a more personal level.
Today, since the center is not busy, I started a conversation with her. I asked about her family, one thing led to another, we were talking about her being a Catholic. She said she actually went to a Christian church for over a year when she was in college, but her parents scolded her, telling her she is born as Catholic and should stay that way.
She was very open to me, it is obvious that God has put this young lady in my path. We talked about the differences between the Catholic church and the Christian church. She was attentive and was interested.
Josephine said she loved the Christian church she attended, and has tried other churches since she came to Cebu to work, but 'it is easier to go to the Catholic church, less pressure.' 'I have little faith to stand up to my parents.'
I am trying to find a church for her here in Cebu, she said she will go. She said she is old enough and not be afraid of upsetting her parents.
We talked for over an hour, surprisingly, only one person came in who needed her attention, even the phone was quiet.
Today, since the center is not busy, I started a conversation with her. I asked about her family, one thing led to another, we were talking about her being a Catholic. She said she actually went to a Christian church for over a year when she was in college, but her parents scolded her, telling her she is born as Catholic and should stay that way.
She was very open to me, it is obvious that God has put this young lady in my path. We talked about the differences between the Catholic church and the Christian church. She was attentive and was interested.
Josephine said she loved the Christian church she attended, and has tried other churches since she came to Cebu to work, but 'it is easier to go to the Catholic church, less pressure.' 'I have little faith to stand up to my parents.'
I am trying to find a church for her here in Cebu, she said she will go. She said she is old enough and not be afraid of upsetting her parents.
We talked for over an hour, surprisingly, only one person came in who needed her attention, even the phone was quiet.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Smelly fingers and stainless steel
Wonderful news for home chefs who loves to use garlic but hate to have fingers that smell like garlic after you smesh 10 cloves of the super strong smelling bulbs, or for those who loves to clean their own fish.
Rub your hands with stainless steel. No kidding. I have been doing this for over a year now. There are cataglogs where they sell blocks of stainless steel for this purpose.
After you smesh garlic, clean fish, or anything that is smelly, just rub your hands on any stainless steel you can find in the kitchen. I have tried rubbing my hands on the sink, the handle of a knife, a spoon, faucets, etc. Anything that is stainless steel will work. Just make sure you rub all sides of your fingers and hands that are smelly.
Now if the only stainless steel thing you own is a knife, I will not recommend you rubbing your hand on the blade. it is much better to have smelly fingers than bleeding ones.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Making culture
Dan and I have quite a few conversations about "making culture" these days. By that, I don't mean changing a certain culture of a country or an ethnic group, it has nothing to do with that fact that we are living in a different culture right now.
A professor at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS) once told us in person that he was invited to preach and teach in South Korea. In one of his sermons, he told the hundreds of Korean church leaders to "stop acting like Koreans, start acting like Christians." Surprisingly, his 'suggestion' was well received by the Korean church leaders. The professor saw that many cultures, especially the Asia culture, has a lot of negative effects on God's church.
A very common phenomenon is that certain person or certain group of people is 'in charge of the church', no matter they have a title at church or not. If you have been in the church for a long time and are influential, you will stay that way until you die. You don't need an official position to be influential, you just are. The 'I am the parent, you are my son, therefore, whatever I say, you listen' type of mentality is quite common. That's the culture in a lot of the Chinese or Asia churches.
It is important to instill in the congregation a cultural of being Christians, instead of a Christian of a certain ethnic group. That said, I didn't mean that ethnic churches should not exist. However, if an ethnic church governs the church using their own ethnic "rules and regulations" than what are taught in the Bible, the church will be more likely to be sickly than not.
In the past weeks, we experienced some sad incidents at the church we are attending. We now see how being more Chinese than Christian has affected negatively on the health of the church.
We don't know how the situation in the church in Cebu will fan out, we just pray that whatever happens, God will be glorified, not shamed. I also hope that as time goes on with the leadership of the church involve in leadership training and bible study, a Christian culture will replace the more dominant Chinese culture in the church.
A professor at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS) once told us in person that he was invited to preach and teach in South Korea. In one of his sermons, he told the hundreds of Korean church leaders to "stop acting like Koreans, start acting like Christians." Surprisingly, his 'suggestion' was well received by the Korean church leaders. The professor saw that many cultures, especially the Asia culture, has a lot of negative effects on God's church.
A very common phenomenon is that certain person or certain group of people is 'in charge of the church', no matter they have a title at church or not. If you have been in the church for a long time and are influential, you will stay that way until you die. You don't need an official position to be influential, you just are. The 'I am the parent, you are my son, therefore, whatever I say, you listen' type of mentality is quite common. That's the culture in a lot of the Chinese or Asia churches.
It is important to instill in the congregation a cultural of being Christians, instead of a Christian of a certain ethnic group. That said, I didn't mean that ethnic churches should not exist. However, if an ethnic church governs the church using their own ethnic "rules and regulations" than what are taught in the Bible, the church will be more likely to be sickly than not.
In the past weeks, we experienced some sad incidents at the church we are attending. We now see how being more Chinese than Christian has affected negatively on the health of the church.
We don't know how the situation in the church in Cebu will fan out, we just pray that whatever happens, God will be glorified, not shamed. I also hope that as time goes on with the leadership of the church involve in leadership training and bible study, a Christian culture will replace the more dominant Chinese culture in the church.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
We're back
Got an email from Grace, asking if we are OK, my blogs have not been updated for a while.
Yes, we are OK. Several factors, really, for not updating the blogs:
1) sickly internet connections, when I need to use it, it doesn't work, when it works, Kioni needs my attention. Often when I would get on and start blogging, by the time I finished writing and hit the 'publish' button, the internet connection would be dead, oh well, c'est la vie.
2) Christmas and all that, i.e., we just came back from a conference two days ago.
3) not feeling that great physically for the past few weeks.
I am going to catch up with some blogging in the next few days, so look backwards and read some of the events over Christmas and beyond.
It is good to be back home, however, the ReachGlobal (former EFCA-IM) Asia conference spoiled me. Buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner means I didn't need to bother with grocery shopping and cooking, there were more food that we ever would need. What a wonderful treat for moms! I was a bit depressed when I got home when I think about groceries and cooking again.
Another depressing thing was that it took us over 12 hours and three connections to fly from Chiang Mai, Thailand to Cebu, Philippines. When we arrive at the Cebu airport, we couldn't get a taxi to take us home because we insisted that they used the meters. No taxi driver would use the meter at the airport at the arrival area. We eventually had to walk up a flight of stairs with Kioni and all our bags in the rain to the departure area, flaged down a taxi and told the driver if he used the meter, we will give him a big tip. Thank God for sending this driver, we got home and the driver got a good tip.
One good thing is that the weather in Cebu is cloudy and rainy. Oh... How I love rainy weather! I have always loved the rain, it doesn't matter to me if I didn't see the sun for two weeks. Cloud and rain look especially nice in a hot place like Cebu. While I am rejoicing the cooler weather (about 80F), yesterday when Kioni and I took a taxi, the taxi driver was wearing a wool sweater! It must be 'winter' for Cebuanos.
Here are some photos from the ReachGlobal Asia conference. The brownish looking things are deep fried bugs: grasshoppers, silk worms and such. No, they didn't serve these in the buffet, they were sold in the night market.
Friday, December 22, 2006
Christmas
It is almost Christmas. It sounds hard to believe that Dan and I are never big on celebrating anything. Yes, we put up Christmas trees and put some lights out in the bushes in front of our house before, give each other a few gifts, that's about it. Having Kioni makes a bit of a difference. Since we didn't bring the 7-foot Christmas tree to Cebu, we spent $2.5 USD to buy a 3-foot Christmas tree, a single string of lights and some angel ornaments. Kioni drew a couple of paper angels. On top of that, we received wonderful gifts from Dan's family. I think Kioni got the idea, though there still is no snow, no matter how much she asks for it.
We are anticipating a loud Christmas night firework display, 'smoke from the firework will come into your house', the old-timers said to us. This will be a new experience for us. We thought we will try it once, if we can't take it, we will go hide somewhere on an island next Christmas.
This is the hottest Christmas I have ever had, even in Hong Kong, the weather is nice and cool. And in the past 10 years, living mostly in the North American mid-west, Christmases were always cold. It is a bit hard to believe that it is Christmas, but the Good News does not come with how low the temperature gets, it does not come with the inches of snow that falls, it does not come with the many Christmas gifts, it does not come with festive foods, cookies, pies, etc., it does not come with Christmas tree, it does not even come with families and friends being together sharing our love.
The Good News comes with the fact that Jesus indeed was born as a true human being while he is still true God, and He came for one purpose and one purpose only -- to bring salvation to a bunch of 'losers' who cannot possibly save themselves. That is something quite fascinating, quite spectacular, quite difficult to fathom. More fascinating and spectacular than all the firework displays and 30-foot Christmas tree, more difficult to fathom than the love of families and friends. Snow or no snow, cold or hot, Jesus' birth is the only truth that matters during Christmas.
We are anticipating a loud Christmas night firework display, 'smoke from the firework will come into your house', the old-timers said to us. This will be a new experience for us. We thought we will try it once, if we can't take it, we will go hide somewhere on an island next Christmas.
This is the hottest Christmas I have ever had, even in Hong Kong, the weather is nice and cool. And in the past 10 years, living mostly in the North American mid-west, Christmases were always cold. It is a bit hard to believe that it is Christmas, but the Good News does not come with how low the temperature gets, it does not come with the inches of snow that falls, it does not come with the many Christmas gifts, it does not come with festive foods, cookies, pies, etc., it does not come with Christmas tree, it does not even come with families and friends being together sharing our love.
The Good News comes with the fact that Jesus indeed was born as a true human being while he is still true God, and He came for one purpose and one purpose only -- to bring salvation to a bunch of 'losers' who cannot possibly save themselves. That is something quite fascinating, quite spectacular, quite difficult to fathom. More fascinating and spectacular than all the firework displays and 30-foot Christmas tree, more difficult to fathom than the love of families and friends. Snow or no snow, cold or hot, Jesus' birth is the only truth that matters during Christmas.
A sad day
We were awaken by a text message on Dan's cell phone this morning:
"Eric resigned. We are leaving Sunday. Please stop by."
Eric and Susan Rosenberg are the American friends we met in Bo's Coffee two months ago, they had just arrived in Cebu for two weeks at the time we met. The two families just spend a weekend vacationing in Bantayan island. Eric resigned from the organization he was working with last night because of complicated personnel issues.
We were surprised by the news, to say the least. I was unable to fall back asleep. We always knew the situation at Eric's work was bad, but didn't know it was so bad. He wrote a three-page memo and send it to the "top" before we went on vacation, someone in the leadership did not like what he wrote, Eric felt that he had to resign, and they accepted his resignation.
We dropped by their house this morning. It was a saddness filled the air. While we were there, their helper Dolor whom they love dearly arrived. Susan broke the news to her, both Susan and Dolor were in tears.
They gave us some wonderful books from their twin girls' collection, and some clothes. We left after an hour or so because Kioni had to eat lunch and take a nap.
When we arrived home, I checked my email. My sister Annie couldn't find plane tickets to come. So the anticipated family visit is not going to happen.
We will surely miss the Rosenbergs. It will be hard to help Kioni understand that the Rosenberg girls, Alex and Isabelle are not going to be around anymore.
What a sad day.
"Eric resigned. We are leaving Sunday. Please stop by."
Eric and Susan Rosenberg are the American friends we met in Bo's Coffee two months ago, they had just arrived in Cebu for two weeks at the time we met. The two families just spend a weekend vacationing in Bantayan island. Eric resigned from the organization he was working with last night because of complicated personnel issues.
We were surprised by the news, to say the least. I was unable to fall back asleep. We always knew the situation at Eric's work was bad, but didn't know it was so bad. He wrote a three-page memo and send it to the "top" before we went on vacation, someone in the leadership did not like what he wrote, Eric felt that he had to resign, and they accepted his resignation.
We dropped by their house this morning. It was a saddness filled the air. While we were there, their helper Dolor whom they love dearly arrived. Susan broke the news to her, both Susan and Dolor were in tears.
They gave us some wonderful books from their twin girls' collection, and some clothes. We left after an hour or so because Kioni had to eat lunch and take a nap.
When we arrived home, I checked my email. My sister Annie couldn't find plane tickets to come. So the anticipated family visit is not going to happen.
We will surely miss the Rosenbergs. It will be hard to help Kioni understand that the Rosenberg girls, Alex and Isabelle are not going to be around anymore.
What a sad day.
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
The beach
We finally get to touch the ocean and white sandy beachs. Our trip to Bantayan island was wonderful. The beach is almost magical. The sea breeze, the white sand, the salty sea water, all contributed to a great vacation.
We stayed at Santa Fe Beach Club and visited Ogtong Cave Resort (as seen in photos), and since the people whom run these places go to our church, we received a 50% discount! Plus a VIP treatment by not having to pay transportation to go use the factilities in Ogtong Cave Resort, and we got to use the "registered guest only" pool in the resort. We were also provided with a room where we can all change and took showers. Kioni even took a two hour nap in that room. Then we were invited to dinner back in Santa Fe Beach Club, it was the best Chinese food that I have had so far in Cebu, and the quantity was huge.
We don't expect to have the same kind of treatment next time around, but it was good to be treated in such a special way. Dan thought it was because one of the owners Peter invited him to talk, and eventually telling Dan quite a bit about his dreams about the end times. Daniel and Dreams, eh?
Anyway, we had a great time. The beach and the water is so theraputic.
Friday, December 15, 2006
What happens when your last name is Bush?
Having the last name Bush is quite an interesting thing, especially in the past 8 years or so. In the 3 years or so when we lived in Washington, D.C., George W. Bush has just won his first term as the president. Dan and I were asked many times when we were meeting people for the first time if we were related to the president, it is a normal question provided we were living in D.C. and have this last name. However, I find it strange when it was just me and people still ask me if I am related to President Bush, I always said to them, "Do I LOOK like I am related to him?" Maybe next time I should say, "I am his adopted sister from China whom nobody knows of."
Let me tell you a few incidents that we encounter having the last name Bush:
A few months after I became a U.S. citizen, I went to the voting booth to vote for the president of the United States, that was voting for either George Bush or Al Gore . When I presented my driver's license, the lady at the voting center looked at me with disbelief, " Your last name is Bush?" "Yes," I replied. I was grumbbling inside, thinking, "I know I don't look like George Bush, but what's wrong with that?" "You won't believe this," the lady continued while pointing towards a voting booth on the side, "the gentleman in front of you who just went into the voting booth, his last name is Gore."
Two days ago we went to the dentist here in Cebu. When she heard us walked in, she came out to the reception counter and held her hand out to shake our hands. "Mr. Bush, Mrs. Bush, nice to meet you." "That's quite a reception," I thought. Dan said to her, "You came highly recommended." The dentist was beaming, smiling from ear to ear. She then asked, "Are you two related to eh... President Bush." "No, we just have the same last name." She said, "When the receptionist told me you are coming, I thought she was joking. I said to myself could she be someone related to President Bush, you know, it would not be too far-fetched, with the Asian Summits being held here in Cebu and all."
The third incident is the FedEx/Customs asking for sky high tax and tariff incident. I am pretty sure the last name Bush has something to do with it.
We always know this last name will generate curiosity, but never thought it would also make people greedy. What a name!
Let me tell you a few incidents that we encounter having the last name Bush:
A few months after I became a U.S. citizen, I went to the voting booth to vote for the president of the United States, that was voting for either George Bush or Al Gore . When I presented my driver's license, the lady at the voting center looked at me with disbelief, " Your last name is Bush?" "Yes," I replied. I was grumbbling inside, thinking, "I know I don't look like George Bush, but what's wrong with that?" "You won't believe this," the lady continued while pointing towards a voting booth on the side, "the gentleman in front of you who just went into the voting booth, his last name is Gore."
Two days ago we went to the dentist here in Cebu. When she heard us walked in, she came out to the reception counter and held her hand out to shake our hands. "Mr. Bush, Mrs. Bush, nice to meet you." "That's quite a reception," I thought. Dan said to her, "You came highly recommended." The dentist was beaming, smiling from ear to ear. She then asked, "Are you two related to eh... President Bush." "No, we just have the same last name." She said, "When the receptionist told me you are coming, I thought she was joking. I said to myself could she be someone related to President Bush, you know, it would not be too far-fetched, with the Asian Summits being held here in Cebu and all."
The third incident is the FedEx/Customs asking for sky high tax and tariff incident. I am pretty sure the last name Bush has something to do with it.
We always know this last name will generate curiosity, but never thought it would also make people greedy. What a name!
To lie or not to lie
I have been wanting to write this down, but found myself too emotional to do so. We encounter bribery first hand this past week. Dan's mother sent us a Christmas gift package through US postal priority mail, and the carrier is FedEx. It was supposed to arrive in just a few days. However, the package got sent back to Dan's mother by the U.S. post office, stating she must complete a form for "commercial" goods. Dan's mother explained the things inside are just Christmas gifts, they were not for sale.
About a week later, we got a call from FedEx in Lapu-Lapu city (a city next to us) stating that our package has arrived. When Dan asked why it was not delivered, they said we needed to pay tariff and tax on it, and the amount is 6500 peso ($130 USD!) Dan didn't understand what that was at first, then FedEx people explained that a large chunk of it was "freight charges". Freight charges? Why do we have to pay that? Didn't my mother-in-law pay for that already back in the US postal office? And it was not cheap either, it was $200 USD.
Dan told them this was ridiculous, they explained that the tax and tariff were calculated using a certain formula. Dan refused to pay and the FedEx people said Dan could sign an affidavit stating that the true value of the gifts were actually much lesser, the amount that Dan's mother put down ($150 US) was for insurance purpose only. Then hopefully, the Customs Office would recalculate the tax and tariff. The affidavit cost 50 peso ($1 USD). The FedEx guy said, "We'll see if the Customs Office will give you a discount." A discount?!!! from tax and tariff, which they calculated out with a formula?
After Dan signed the affidavit, we waited for a couple more days so that the FedEx people could talk with the Customs Office. A few days later, FedEx showed up with a piece of paper itemizing each charge, claiming that was from the Customs Office. However, next to the charges, were just an alphabet, like F, P, L, things like that, without clearly showing what those charges were. Dan looked at the paper and was perplexed by what they shadiness of it. The FedEx people said it is the Customs Office that was charging us, not FedEx, they in fact had went to them and ask them to recalculate, the Custom Office gave them a negative answer. No recalculating. The FedEx people called again, "Mr. Bush, if you would sign another affidavit, stating that ...." (I forgot what it was for, Dan's not around as I write this, I will ask him and complete this.) Dan signed another affidavit, another 50 peso. Still no package.
Our helper Maris was very helpful to us the whole time, she would talk in Cebuano with the FedEx people, she actually said to them, "That is corruption, isn't it. You see that my boss is an American and he lives in a nice area, and he also happened to have the last name Bush, you are taking advantage of him, aren't you?" Maris was clearly upset about the whole situation. She couldn't believe her friend, Dolor, whom has a sister living in Florida, received packages delivered by FedEx to her home without paying anything at all.
Upon knowing we didn't have any choice, we were going to pay the sky high $130 USD tax and tariff, get the package and considered a lesson learned.
Then Maris happened to be at a 'fiesta' (party) in the Guadalupe barangay (district) she lives in. There in the fiesta, she saw a long time family friend, they haven't seen each other for a long time. When that friend asked about how Maris was lately, she mentioned the fact that she was working for us. She then proceeded to tell this family friend our encounter with the Customs Office and FedEx. Her friend said, "I'll call the manager of FedEx tomorrow, and see what I can do."
The next morning, our home phone rang, it was FedEx, "Mr. Bush, we are ready to deliever your package, the tax and tariff will be $3000 peso."
I couldn't believe my ears when I heard Dan telling me about the "discount" price. We got the package, finally!
This FedEx guy whom delivered the package gave us a few tips:
1) Make sure you write down the value of the things inside the box is lower than $100 USD, regardless what the true value is.
2) Make sure you write old, used items on the box. Christmas gifts mean new things, and they are subject to high taxes.
I added afterwards to this list:
3) Make sure you don't send it to our address, rather, our helper Maris' address. Since they know those who live in this address can't pay them the sky high tax and tariff, there will not be one imposed.
4) Make sure the name on the address is not Bush. Well, that's another story for another entry.
OK, what that say is that whoever send us packages will have to hmmmm...... LIE! If not, we will have to pay whatever amount of money the Customs Office and the FedEx people want.
Or simply don't send us any packages.
So what do you think? To lie or not to lie?
About a week later, we got a call from FedEx in Lapu-Lapu city (a city next to us) stating that our package has arrived. When Dan asked why it was not delivered, they said we needed to pay tariff and tax on it, and the amount is 6500 peso ($130 USD!) Dan didn't understand what that was at first, then FedEx people explained that a large chunk of it was "freight charges". Freight charges? Why do we have to pay that? Didn't my mother-in-law pay for that already back in the US postal office? And it was not cheap either, it was $200 USD.
Dan told them this was ridiculous, they explained that the tax and tariff were calculated using a certain formula. Dan refused to pay and the FedEx people said Dan could sign an affidavit stating that the true value of the gifts were actually much lesser, the amount that Dan's mother put down ($150 US) was for insurance purpose only. Then hopefully, the Customs Office would recalculate the tax and tariff. The affidavit cost 50 peso ($1 USD). The FedEx guy said, "We'll see if the Customs Office will give you a discount." A discount?!!! from tax and tariff, which they calculated out with a formula?
After Dan signed the affidavit, we waited for a couple more days so that the FedEx people could talk with the Customs Office. A few days later, FedEx showed up with a piece of paper itemizing each charge, claiming that was from the Customs Office. However, next to the charges, were just an alphabet, like F, P, L, things like that, without clearly showing what those charges were. Dan looked at the paper and was perplexed by what they shadiness of it. The FedEx people said it is the Customs Office that was charging us, not FedEx, they in fact had went to them and ask them to recalculate, the Custom Office gave them a negative answer. No recalculating. The FedEx people called again, "Mr. Bush, if you would sign another affidavit, stating that ...." (I forgot what it was for, Dan's not around as I write this, I will ask him and complete this.) Dan signed another affidavit, another 50 peso. Still no package.
Our helper Maris was very helpful to us the whole time, she would talk in Cebuano with the FedEx people, she actually said to them, "That is corruption, isn't it. You see that my boss is an American and he lives in a nice area, and he also happened to have the last name Bush, you are taking advantage of him, aren't you?" Maris was clearly upset about the whole situation. She couldn't believe her friend, Dolor, whom has a sister living in Florida, received packages delivered by FedEx to her home without paying anything at all.
Upon knowing we didn't have any choice, we were going to pay the sky high $130 USD tax and tariff, get the package and considered a lesson learned.
Then Maris happened to be at a 'fiesta' (party) in the Guadalupe barangay (district) she lives in. There in the fiesta, she saw a long time family friend, they haven't seen each other for a long time. When that friend asked about how Maris was lately, she mentioned the fact that she was working for us. She then proceeded to tell this family friend our encounter with the Customs Office and FedEx. Her friend said, "I'll call the manager of FedEx tomorrow, and see what I can do."
The next morning, our home phone rang, it was FedEx, "Mr. Bush, we are ready to deliever your package, the tax and tariff will be $3000 peso."
I couldn't believe my ears when I heard Dan telling me about the "discount" price. We got the package, finally!
This FedEx guy whom delivered the package gave us a few tips:
1) Make sure you write down the value of the things inside the box is lower than $100 USD, regardless what the true value is.
2) Make sure you write old, used items on the box. Christmas gifts mean new things, and they are subject to high taxes.
I added afterwards to this list:
3) Make sure you don't send it to our address, rather, our helper Maris' address. Since they know those who live in this address can't pay them the sky high tax and tariff, there will not be one imposed.
4) Make sure the name on the address is not Bush. Well, that's another story for another entry.
OK, what that say is that whoever send us packages will have to hmmmm...... LIE! If not, we will have to pay whatever amount of money the Customs Office and the FedEx people want.
Or simply don't send us any packages.
So what do you think? To lie or not to lie?
Saturday, December 09, 2006
Usual hangouts of the Bushes
Leona is our lifeline, a Chinese Christian owned bakery, it sells authentic banana nut bread, blueberry crumples, a varieties of cakes (not that authentic), and pastries.
Banilad Town Center is my favourite little escape from the crowd and dirt of Cebu. We go to the Bo's Coffee Club every Friday morning to have pancake breakfast.
Robinsons Supermarket is where we go and get imported groceries, it is also in Banilad Town Center, we usually get our supplies after our Bo's Coffee stop.
Banilad Town Center is my favourite little escape from the crowd and dirt of Cebu. We go to the Bo's Coffee Club every Friday morning to have pancake breakfast.
Robinsons Supermarket is where we go and get imported groceries, it is also in Banilad Town Center, we usually get our supplies after our Bo's Coffee stop.
Upcoming trips
We will have a busy few months ahead of us:
January 3-9 Chiang Mai - EFCA-IM conference
Feburary 15-? Hong Kong - Chinese New Year, i.e., good food
April 16-27 Xiamen, China - Dan teaching (still pending, hope it will work since April is the hottest month of the year in Cebu.)
We hope to make it through all these travelling without too much trouble, mainly, having Kioni losing pounds on us. Each time she travels to a new place, she simply won't eat. This is quite difficult for me to handle, since I feel responsible for her physical well-being. She will always sleep well though.
January 3-9 Chiang Mai - EFCA-IM conference
Feburary 15-? Hong Kong - Chinese New Year, i.e., good food
April 16-27 Xiamen, China - Dan teaching (still pending, hope it will work since April is the hottest month of the year in Cebu.)
We hope to make it through all these travelling without too much trouble, mainly, having Kioni losing pounds on us. Each time she travels to a new place, she simply won't eat. This is quite difficult for me to handle, since I feel responsible for her physical well-being. She will always sleep well though.
Terrorists? Typhoon?
The Filipino government yesterday (December 8th) decided single-handedly to postpone the Asean Summits due to the threat of a tropical typhoon. As a resident in Cebu, I found it ridiculous. It did start to get cloudy last night, and it did start raining in the middle of the night. The rain continued on all day today. But it has no wind, yep, no wind at all, other than a much needed breeze that is, in fact, quite refreshing after weeks of brutal heat.
Our helper Maris said Cebu rarely is affected by strong typhoons. As someone whom has lived in a typhoon affected area for 33 years, I know what it is like when an area is hit by a strong typhoon, but what we have experienced here in the past 24 hours has none of those characteristics, i.e., pouring rain, strong, gusty wind, and black clouds. If you know anything about typhoon at all, you will know that typhoon cannot survive without feeding on water. Cebu is in the middle of a bunch of islands, there is practically nothing for the typhoon to feed on. I can see how northern Cebu island could be affected, but the Asean Summits are going to be held in Cebu city, which is located in the middle lower part of Cebu island, well shelter by neighbouring islands, how is it possible that the weather will be so bad that they have to postponed the summits?
So the only other reason will be terrorists threats, which is a lot more probable than the typhoon threat. Anytime when there are heads of states gathering, there always will be terrorists threatening to do something, thankfully, those threats rarely come into fruitation. Maybe it is due to the terrorists not carrying it through, or the prevention measures are carried out so good that they were able to stop it from happening. Either way, it is good that terrorists threats rarely affect any major meetings.
I suspect that the Filipino government, i.e., the president, Arroyo, made this decision because she knows full well that her military is unable to provide this kind of protection to the heads of states who are coming to the summits. Even after only live here for about three months, I can already tell corruption in this country has penetrated to the smallest sect of the society. I will not be surprised if I see a coup during the time of the Asean Summit, this is how unstable the government is.
Strangely, the citizens seem not to be affected by any of the above. Coup or a change of government does not seem to affect their daily life. Politicians who are not corrupt seldom get elected, because those who are corrupt will pay the poor to vote for them, and the poor is happy to receive the money and vote for these guys. It is a vicious cycle, yet, it continues on.
Anyway, those who don't live here might see that we are in in big trouble, terrorist threats, typhoon so severe that make the government has to postpone the summits. In fact, we feel quite calm and normal here, typhoon, terrorists, don't feel a thing at all.
Our helper Maris said Cebu rarely is affected by strong typhoons. As someone whom has lived in a typhoon affected area for 33 years, I know what it is like when an area is hit by a strong typhoon, but what we have experienced here in the past 24 hours has none of those characteristics, i.e., pouring rain, strong, gusty wind, and black clouds. If you know anything about typhoon at all, you will know that typhoon cannot survive without feeding on water. Cebu is in the middle of a bunch of islands, there is practically nothing for the typhoon to feed on. I can see how northern Cebu island could be affected, but the Asean Summits are going to be held in Cebu city, which is located in the middle lower part of Cebu island, well shelter by neighbouring islands, how is it possible that the weather will be so bad that they have to postponed the summits?
So the only other reason will be terrorists threats, which is a lot more probable than the typhoon threat. Anytime when there are heads of states gathering, there always will be terrorists threatening to do something, thankfully, those threats rarely come into fruitation. Maybe it is due to the terrorists not carrying it through, or the prevention measures are carried out so good that they were able to stop it from happening. Either way, it is good that terrorists threats rarely affect any major meetings.
I suspect that the Filipino government, i.e., the president, Arroyo, made this decision because she knows full well that her military is unable to provide this kind of protection to the heads of states who are coming to the summits. Even after only live here for about three months, I can already tell corruption in this country has penetrated to the smallest sect of the society. I will not be surprised if I see a coup during the time of the Asean Summit, this is how unstable the government is.
Strangely, the citizens seem not to be affected by any of the above. Coup or a change of government does not seem to affect their daily life. Politicians who are not corrupt seldom get elected, because those who are corrupt will pay the poor to vote for them, and the poor is happy to receive the money and vote for these guys. It is a vicious cycle, yet, it continues on.
Anyway, those who don't live here might see that we are in in big trouble, terrorist threats, typhoon so severe that make the government has to postpone the summits. In fact, we feel quite calm and normal here, typhoon, terrorists, don't feel a thing at all.
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Another cultural learning trip
We are planning another cultural learning trip with another missionary family, the Rosenbergs. They are Americans and came only a few weeks after our arrival. We call it a cultural learning trip because though we are going to a beach resort (Santa Fe Beach Club), things we will experience during our travel and our stay in the resort will be a lot for us to learn.Both families are bringing our helpers, since we are relatively new to the area, with someone who is native will help us out a lot if we need anything on the road. Especially if there is any unforseen things that need to be dealt with. Our helper, Mariss and their helper are childhood friends, so it will be a nice get away for the two ladies also, though they will be 'working', so to speak.
Our trip will be from December 16th to December 18 (Saturday to Monday), but we have not planned anything concrete yet. The Rosenbergs have two 6 year old girls, so hopefully, we will all have some fun even though the driving could be stressful.
Friday, December 01, 2006
A call to suffer
Just received the December 2006 Asia Harvest newsletter, it titles "A Biblical View of Persecution', there are a few things in there written by Glenn Penner that I would like to share.
1) Many believers have been falsely taught that following Jesus only brings blessings and happiness.
2) To be called to follow Christ was to receive a call to suffer.
"I will show him how much he must suffer for my name." (Acts 9:16)
"strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. "We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God," they said. (Acts 14:22)
"so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them." (1Thessalonians 3:3)
"To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps." (1Peter 2:21)
3) It was this understanding that sacrifice, suffering, and even death were the normal cost of discipleship that fueled the evangelistic efforsts of the first century church.
4) They knew that in order to bring life to others, they must die; to see others experience peace with God, they would have to suffer the violence of the world; to bring the love of God to a dying world, they would have to face the hatred of those whom they were seeking to reach. It is in this context that they described spiritual warfare; not freedom over bad habits or psychological problems, but the brutal reality of witnessing.
5) Yes, there may be fear, but by God's grace it need not control us. Yes, there may be terrible suffering, but suffering is not the worst thing that can happen to the child of God; disobedience to the Father is.
6) We might be justified in saying that from the world's perspective, those who endure persecution are heroic, but from God's perspective they are recipients of grace. Peter stresses that enduring suffering is evidence that God is at work in one's life.
7) There is no glory for the sufferer. No hero worship. No merit for those who are able to endure hardship, no boasting of one's achievements. It is evidence of God's grace. It is all a work of God, from beginning to end.
It makes me feels as small as a pea after I read this. What are all those talks about the heat and filth in Cebu? We might have sacrificed some, but we are far from suffering. We have so much here, though much less in comparison to what most Americans have, we are blessed beyond compare. Or you can say, we are not blessed, because we are not in fact suffering, if you look at it from God's perspective.
However, I also recognize that God does not send every single one of his followers to be a martyr, there are some who, like us, would be training church leaders through teaching. We do have to be ready to say
YES', if God puts us in places that are uncomfortable, where sacrifices are needed, we have to be obedient and pick up our tents and go.
1) Many believers have been falsely taught that following Jesus only brings blessings and happiness.
2) To be called to follow Christ was to receive a call to suffer.
"I will show him how much he must suffer for my name." (Acts 9:16)
"strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. "We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God," they said. (Acts 14:22)
"so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them." (1Thessalonians 3:3)
"To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps." (1Peter 2:21)
3) It was this understanding that sacrifice, suffering, and even death were the normal cost of discipleship that fueled the evangelistic efforsts of the first century church.
4) They knew that in order to bring life to others, they must die; to see others experience peace with God, they would have to suffer the violence of the world; to bring the love of God to a dying world, they would have to face the hatred of those whom they were seeking to reach. It is in this context that they described spiritual warfare; not freedom over bad habits or psychological problems, but the brutal reality of witnessing.
5) Yes, there may be fear, but by God's grace it need not control us. Yes, there may be terrible suffering, but suffering is not the worst thing that can happen to the child of God; disobedience to the Father is.
6) We might be justified in saying that from the world's perspective, those who endure persecution are heroic, but from God's perspective they are recipients of grace. Peter stresses that enduring suffering is evidence that God is at work in one's life.
7) There is no glory for the sufferer. No hero worship. No merit for those who are able to endure hardship, no boasting of one's achievements. It is evidence of God's grace. It is all a work of God, from beginning to end.
It makes me feels as small as a pea after I read this. What are all those talks about the heat and filth in Cebu? We might have sacrificed some, but we are far from suffering. We have so much here, though much less in comparison to what most Americans have, we are blessed beyond compare. Or you can say, we are not blessed, because we are not in fact suffering, if you look at it from God's perspective.
However, I also recognize that God does not send every single one of his followers to be a martyr, there are some who, like us, would be training church leaders through teaching. We do have to be ready to say
YES', if God puts us in places that are uncomfortable, where sacrifices are needed, we have to be obedient and pick up our tents and go.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Where are the beaches?
I thought we will be surrounding by beaches, I thought when Dan is busy with his work, Kioni and I will go and play on the beach for a while, then go home for dinner, I thought it will take us 15 minutes to go to a beach. All the above assumptions were wrong. We found out the nice beaches are owned by the various hotels and resorts on Mactan Island, about an 45 minute drive from where we live, and you will have to, of course, pay for the using their nice white sandy beaches. There are other beaches all over the islands, however, it takes much longer than 15 minutes to go to, like the Santa Fe Beach Club, which owner goes to the same church as we go to. While Dan gets talking to the owner, he offered us 50% off for staying at the place. However, it will take a 2 to 3 hour drive to get to a ferry pier and another hour of boat ride before we will get there.
Monday, November 20, 2006
Helplessness
We have been here for over two months, though we are still struggling with the heat and other issues, we are better than when we first arrived in many ways, for one thing, I have ventured into the local vegetables, which are quite tasty, and much cheaper than broccoli and romaine lettuce.
The helplessness starts to sink in, there are so much poverty and deadends in this country, that it seems like only God can change anything at all, if there is any change at all, in this country.
People who have dark skin have a hard time finding a job (believe it or not, this country is obessed with having white skin, that will be another entry at a later time), people from the province with no education are doomed to have a hard life, people can get away from traffice violation, drug trafficking, anything, even murder (literally) by paying off the judges.
It seems like there are so little we can do, yet, God sent us here for a purpose, to train the local leaders so that the gospel can reach the multitude in this country, so that their basic outlook for life will change, so that they won't feel helpless, hopeless and pointless living.
While we were driving home after Sunday service yesterday, we saw a guy totally drunk, walking by the side of the street, but was swaying in and out of traffic. That is the kind of hopelessness I am talking about. In a supposedly Catholic country, where most people still are 'religious', this guy got drunk in the middle of the day on a Sunday.
What can we do? How can we help? I don't know, but God knows, it is a matter of finding out what small part we have in the next two years.
The helplessness starts to sink in, there are so much poverty and deadends in this country, that it seems like only God can change anything at all, if there is any change at all, in this country.
People who have dark skin have a hard time finding a job (believe it or not, this country is obessed with having white skin, that will be another entry at a later time), people from the province with no education are doomed to have a hard life, people can get away from traffice violation, drug trafficking, anything, even murder (literally) by paying off the judges.
It seems like there are so little we can do, yet, God sent us here for a purpose, to train the local leaders so that the gospel can reach the multitude in this country, so that their basic outlook for life will change, so that they won't feel helpless, hopeless and pointless living.
While we were driving home after Sunday service yesterday, we saw a guy totally drunk, walking by the side of the street, but was swaying in and out of traffic. That is the kind of hopelessness I am talking about. In a supposedly Catholic country, where most people still are 'religious', this guy got drunk in the middle of the day on a Sunday.
What can we do? How can we help? I don't know, but God knows, it is a matter of finding out what small part we have in the next two years.
Saturday, November 18, 2006
More than a hotel
Today we went to the 'first world' in Cebu, that is the Shangri-La Hotel, that's where the 12th Asean Summit is going to be held in a month. We went for a Christmas Bazaar, they have export items in which they sold for a bit over wholesale price. Both Kioni and I couldn't deal with the heat much, after just checking out a few stalls, we were soaked. And just like I said before, when Kioni feels bad, she hung on to me even tighter, and it doesn't matter how I explain to her that it will only make both of us hotter, she just wouldn't walk by herself. After a half hour out in the heat, we were about to pass out.So we went into a buffet restaurant for some A/C and food. I was concerned about how much we were going to pay, but Dan said, 'Do you care at this point?' I guess I I didn't care how much we were paying, because I was about to pass out from the heat. It turns out, we have a 25% off of the $30US dollar/person lunch buffet, because we purchased a few US dollar worth of things at the bazaar. I was almost moved to tears when I saw raw fish and shushi! And of course, there are other 'first world' foods, including a chocolate fountain and strawberries! I didn't go for the chocolate, but Dan went nuts over it. Kioni ate a great deal of strawberries. It feels good to see landscaping around buildings again, and it is particulary good to sit down at a table without feeling the stickiness of the table and the chairs. Some missionaries here told us it is just fine to use money this way, because this is one of the ways to make sure you can stay and keep your sanity. I do feel a bit guilty over this, but I am starting to realize what they said is absolute truth.
Since we are not house guests, we cannot check out the pool or the beach, we just ate and left. It was a nice outing, and it does help us to know that if we need some break from the chaos around us, we have a nice place to go.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Lost cell phone
Just when I get settled down after lunch to do some work on the computer, the phone rang, it was Dan in a bit of a frantic voice, “I left my cell phone in the taxi, please ask Mariss to call my cell phone to see if anyone answers. They said it is rare that lost cell phones would be returned to the owner, but at least we can try.” I hung up the phone in disbelief! It was the first time Dan took a taxi to school to teach, in fact, this is his first day of teaching! Absent-minded professor?
Every Wednesday this semester, Dan teaches both at Cebu Graduate School of Theology CGST (from 8:00am to 11:00am), and at Evangelical Theological College of the Philippines ETCP (from 2:00pm to 5:00pm) which is across town from us. He was off to school this morning before Kioni and I woke up at 6:30am driving his own car, he came home for a short lunch, and then took a taxi to ETCP because it will be rush hour when he comes home, and the traffic is horrendous driving across town.
Mariss uses her own cell phone to call Dan’s cell phone, she attempted several times, and no one answered. On the fourth attempt, a lady answered the phone, Mariss asked if she is the driver of the taxi, no, she said, she is a passenger. Then She turned the phone over to the driver, Mariss asked if he would please return the cell phone to Dan, the driver said he would have to take the passengers to their destination first before returning to ETCP. Mariss also told her that Dan would give him a nice tip.
Five minutes later, Mariss’ cell phone rang, this time a man spoke. He told Mariss not to worry; the taxi driver will return the phone to Dan. He identifies himself to be the chief of security of a Filipino military colonel; he said the taxi driver does not know how to operate the cell phone, so he was calling for him. He reassured Mariss several times that the cell phone will be returned, emphasizing that he is the chief of security of a military colonel, a man of authority. He also asked Mariss to tell Dan to give the driver a nice tip for gas and for the time it will take him to return the phone.
Mariss and I put all these together, it seems like there are two passengers in the car, a lady and a man. Nobody knows a cell phone was left in the seat until it rang. That’s why when it rang for the first couple of times, no one answered. In fact, if the taxi driver did not have these passengers, he would not have answered the phone even if he heard it rang, because he didn’t know how to. Having the chief of security of a colonel as a passenger helped tremendously in the return of the cell phone also. A man in such position has too much honour and authority to take Dan’s cell phone and resell it.
A series of events and people put together at the right time and right place, and Dan is getting his cell phone back. Who puts all these together, well, I believe God is watching over Dan and his cell phone, what do you think?
Every Wednesday this semester, Dan teaches both at Cebu Graduate School of Theology CGST (from 8:00am to 11:00am), and at Evangelical Theological College of the Philippines ETCP (from 2:00pm to 5:00pm) which is across town from us. He was off to school this morning before Kioni and I woke up at 6:30am driving his own car, he came home for a short lunch, and then took a taxi to ETCP because it will be rush hour when he comes home, and the traffic is horrendous driving across town.
Mariss uses her own cell phone to call Dan’s cell phone, she attempted several times, and no one answered. On the fourth attempt, a lady answered the phone, Mariss asked if she is the driver of the taxi, no, she said, she is a passenger. Then She turned the phone over to the driver, Mariss asked if he would please return the cell phone to Dan, the driver said he would have to take the passengers to their destination first before returning to ETCP. Mariss also told her that Dan would give him a nice tip.
Five minutes later, Mariss’ cell phone rang, this time a man spoke. He told Mariss not to worry; the taxi driver will return the phone to Dan. He identifies himself to be the chief of security of a Filipino military colonel; he said the taxi driver does not know how to operate the cell phone, so he was calling for him. He reassured Mariss several times that the cell phone will be returned, emphasizing that he is the chief of security of a military colonel, a man of authority. He also asked Mariss to tell Dan to give the driver a nice tip for gas and for the time it will take him to return the phone.
Mariss and I put all these together, it seems like there are two passengers in the car, a lady and a man. Nobody knows a cell phone was left in the seat until it rang. That’s why when it rang for the first couple of times, no one answered. In fact, if the taxi driver did not have these passengers, he would not have answered the phone even if he heard it rang, because he didn’t know how to. Having the chief of security of a colonel as a passenger helped tremendously in the return of the cell phone also. A man in such position has too much honour and authority to take Dan’s cell phone and resell it.
A series of events and people put together at the right time and right place, and Dan is getting his cell phone back. Who puts all these together, well, I believe God is watching over Dan and his cell phone, what do you think?
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Security Guards
Many stores hire security guards; some will carry guns, if the stores sell jewelry or more expensive items. Other than guarding the store, they also open the door for customers, greet them, help them park their cars, or help them get out of the parking lot (the parking spaces are quite tight sometimes). If you don’t have an umbrella during a downpour, they will even take you to your car with a big umbrella.
Why hurry?
We already know before we came that the clock runs differently here, so to speak. Event is what is important. Groceries usually have long lines, because if there is nobody to bag your goods, you are not supposed to do it yourself, wait till the cashier scans everything, and she will bag your goods. Buying an electronic item takes about 15 minutes just for getting the multiple receipts. No one is in a hurry, because there is no reason to do so, it is 90 degrees all the time anyway, rushing will only ‘heat things up’, both physically and emotionally, so why hurry?When we took a trip to Dumaguete, we went to a restaurant along the way, it took about 45 minutes for the food to come, but we were enjoying beautiful scenery,it made the 45 minutes go by much faster.
Friday, November 03, 2006
Coping better
The rain is pouring with loud thunderclaps. The streets get flooded in this kind of downpours. And I am sure if we go out to the street right now, we will see little kids running naked to take their showers.
Kioni is down in her bed trying to take a nap, but I don’t know how long will it take her with the thunders so loud. We were out in Bo’s Coffee again this morning; Susan Rosenberg was there also. We have a relaxing morning, thanks to Kioni, content to colour and read by herself the whole time. We shared some frustrations and new experience after living here for a couple of months. It was good to have someone ‘new’ to talk to. We also saw Melody Nordine, wife of the Dean of CGST, walked by. She came in to say hi and chatted for a bit. She did mention that after being here for 25 years, sometimes she would forget how is it like to be new in a country.
I have learned how to deal with the heat a little bit better now, maybe because it is the cool season here, or I just cope with it better now. Bare in mind, cool season means it is still 90 degrees during the day. At night, with the fan on, Dan and I are able to sit in the living room to read a book or watch some TV without sweating, which is great news.
Kioni is still quite irritated by the heat, like just now when we first arrived home from Bo’s, she felt so hot and sticky that she threw a tantrum. But as soon as I put her in her room and turn the A/C on, she immediately has a ‘personality change’; it was quite amazing to see.
Kioni is down in her bed trying to take a nap, but I don’t know how long will it take her with the thunders so loud. We were out in Bo’s Coffee again this morning; Susan Rosenberg was there also. We have a relaxing morning, thanks to Kioni, content to colour and read by herself the whole time. We shared some frustrations and new experience after living here for a couple of months. It was good to have someone ‘new’ to talk to. We also saw Melody Nordine, wife of the Dean of CGST, walked by. She came in to say hi and chatted for a bit. She did mention that after being here for 25 years, sometimes she would forget how is it like to be new in a country.
I have learned how to deal with the heat a little bit better now, maybe because it is the cool season here, or I just cope with it better now. Bare in mind, cool season means it is still 90 degrees during the day. At night, with the fan on, Dan and I are able to sit in the living room to read a book or watch some TV without sweating, which is great news.
Kioni is still quite irritated by the heat, like just now when we first arrived home from Bo’s, she felt so hot and sticky that she threw a tantrum. But as soon as I put her in her room and turn the A/C on, she immediately has a ‘personality change’; it was quite amazing to see.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Bleach your eggs
Yep, that's what Mariss, our helper told me. I bought eggs from the supermarket and started using them. Mariss said, no, you need to wash them with bleach water before storing them in the fridge. Which makes perfect sense when I think about it. I have seen chicken poop still attached to the eggs before, I washed that one, but why didn't I think I should be washing all of them?
By the way, none of the eggs sold in the supermarkets are refrigerated, and we have not had any poisioning from the eggs yet.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Can't even fight
Our helper, Mariss and I were talking about the 'real' rich people in the Philippines. She then told me what happened to her 50 some year old aunt (her father's sister) about 8 years ago (1998). Her aunt, a single woman, was told by one of their distant relatives that a prominent rich Spanish family was hiring a helper, she got the job. She had to from Cebu to Manila for this job though, that was fine with her, since she needed a job.
Two weeks after she started working there, Mariss' family received a phone call telling them that her aunt had died of a high fever. They were shocked, they shipped the body back to Cebu for burial, but upon looking at the body, they all realized that she did not die of a high fever, because there were bruises all over her body and there were rings of purple and blue lines across her neck. They knew she was beaten, and probably strangled to death.
Since that happened, this rich Spanish family has moved to Cebu and live in North Townhomes, a subdivision just across the street from where we live, we are down the hill, they are up the hill. We were told when you enter the subdivision, there is not one hint of the Philippines that you can see in this subdivision, you can't even see any houses from the bottom of the hill.
Mariss' father and brother went to North Townhomes to try to talk to this family, hoping to find out what really happened to her aunt. You have to understand that for them to have the gut to go was difficult, because the rich and poor just don't 'talk'. In fact, the poor people in the remote provinces won't even look at you when you talk to them. You probably figure out what happened to Mariss' father and brother, they couldn't even get past the front gate, the guards stopped them, they were not allowed to step foot on the ground of North Townhomes.
They talked to a lawyer of some sort (at least that's what I understood), but was told that a poor family like them cannot possibily fight the rich, and they better be prepared for the financial and emotional strain that a lawsuit would bring to the family if they indeed proceed to sue. Mariss' father thought about it and decided not to sue, because they don't have any money, and they didn't think they would win the lawsuit anyway, the rich always wins. They are leaving it to God to do the justice, whenever it will happen and whatever form it might take.
I ask Mariss if this Spanish family still lives in North Townhomes, she said as far as she knows, they still live there, in fact, that distant relative who told her aunt about this job probably still works for them. It changes my heart everytime we go home, because we always drive pass North Townhomes, because I now know someone who have committed gross injustice lives there.
Mariss said her father, and the whole family, is very hurt by the loss of her aunt, but also felt helpess, because they are poor and powerless.
I am very disturbed by what happened to Mariss' aunt. I guess I am too naive to think that things like this does not happen in the 21st in the Philippines.
Two weeks after she started working there, Mariss' family received a phone call telling them that her aunt had died of a high fever. They were shocked, they shipped the body back to Cebu for burial, but upon looking at the body, they all realized that she did not die of a high fever, because there were bruises all over her body and there were rings of purple and blue lines across her neck. They knew she was beaten, and probably strangled to death.
Since that happened, this rich Spanish family has moved to Cebu and live in North Townhomes, a subdivision just across the street from where we live, we are down the hill, they are up the hill. We were told when you enter the subdivision, there is not one hint of the Philippines that you can see in this subdivision, you can't even see any houses from the bottom of the hill.
Mariss' father and brother went to North Townhomes to try to talk to this family, hoping to find out what really happened to her aunt. You have to understand that for them to have the gut to go was difficult, because the rich and poor just don't 'talk'. In fact, the poor people in the remote provinces won't even look at you when you talk to them. You probably figure out what happened to Mariss' father and brother, they couldn't even get past the front gate, the guards stopped them, they were not allowed to step foot on the ground of North Townhomes.
They talked to a lawyer of some sort (at least that's what I understood), but was told that a poor family like them cannot possibily fight the rich, and they better be prepared for the financial and emotional strain that a lawsuit would bring to the family if they indeed proceed to sue. Mariss' father thought about it and decided not to sue, because they don't have any money, and they didn't think they would win the lawsuit anyway, the rich always wins. They are leaving it to God to do the justice, whenever it will happen and whatever form it might take.
I ask Mariss if this Spanish family still lives in North Townhomes, she said as far as she knows, they still live there, in fact, that distant relative who told her aunt about this job probably still works for them. It changes my heart everytime we go home, because we always drive pass North Townhomes, because I now know someone who have committed gross injustice lives there.
Mariss said her father, and the whole family, is very hurt by the loss of her aunt, but also felt helpess, because they are poor and powerless.
I am very disturbed by what happened to Mariss' aunt. I guess I am too naive to think that things like this does not happen in the 21st in the Philippines.
Monday, October 30, 2006
Dumagete
We were invited by John and Jannet Baxter, fellow missionaries, to go to visit Dumagete, the major city on the island of Negros Oriental, right across the Tanon Strait from the southern tip of Cebu island. They have never been there, but heard that there was a nice hotel, clean and tidy, so they wanted to go take a look. Since we are so new here, they invited us to go outside of Cebu city to travel a bit.
We were glad to get away for a while, so we jumped on the opportunity, not knowing what to expect.
I have to say I was a bit rush to make this decision, I was hoping for a beach, if not, maybe a pool in the hotel. But when we arrive, I realized that the city is not quite what we thought it was.
However, this trip has offered us some amazing things to see and experience. The following photos show what we saw in our three day trip.
After a about a two hour drive from Cebu city, we arrive at the pier, where we took a boat over to Dumaguete. The car rode on the deck and people up on top.
Kioni was exhausted after the car ride, hot and sweaty also, hanging onto daddy while mommy took some photos.
Dumaguete from the ferry
What a creative way for seating customers, four pots and a table, though I suspect the temperature of the 'seats' would be quite high after a few hours of baking under the hot sun.
Our first tricycle ride, Kioni was hot, she was not in the mood of anything while we were out and about, neither was mommy Amy. The lady on the right is Jannet Baxter.
We were surprised by a parade celebrating the Buglasan (bamboo) festival. We were able to watch the whole parade on the fifth floor balcony of the hotel we were staying in. There was sea breeze blowing and it was cool the whole time. The following few photos are some highlights of the parade.
Pay attention to what they wore, yep, flip-flops! All of the dancers in the parade wear flip-flops, brand new ones, all matching their costumes. They danced for hours making unbelievable movements, quite a interesting sight.
Acacia trees lined the seaside boardwalk.
Our hotel is on the boardwalk, therefore, we had perfect view of the parade. However, since there was a conference being held in the hotel, we could only rent the remaining two rooms, which has no view of anything but the windows of the room opposite to us.
A street in Dumagete with festival flags.
A fishing boat off the shore of Dumaguete ferry pier, the island in the background is the southern tip of Cebu island.
The beautiful blue water of Tanon Strait.
Eating at a restaurant by the sea on our way back to Cebu.
The restaurant server asked us if we would like to eat in the gazebo, why not? Well, for me it is a bit tough, the sun is setting, and it is shinning right on the gazebo, there was no wind, that means bugs were present. It looks pretty though, isn't it?
Watching Kioni like a hawk so she won't fall from the gazebo into the sea, though no harm will be done because it was mostly wet sand down there with just a tiny bit of water.
We were glad to get away for a while, so we jumped on the opportunity, not knowing what to expect.
I have to say I was a bit rush to make this decision, I was hoping for a beach, if not, maybe a pool in the hotel. But when we arrive, I realized that the city is not quite what we thought it was.
However, this trip has offered us some amazing things to see and experience. The following photos show what we saw in our three day trip.
After a about a two hour drive from Cebu city, we arrive at the pier, where we took a boat over to Dumaguete. The car rode on the deck and people up on top.
Kioni was exhausted after the car ride, hot and sweaty also, hanging onto daddy while mommy took some photos.
Dumaguete from the ferry
What a creative way for seating customers, four pots and a table, though I suspect the temperature of the 'seats' would be quite high after a few hours of baking under the hot sun.
Our first tricycle ride, Kioni was hot, she was not in the mood of anything while we were out and about, neither was mommy Amy. The lady on the right is Jannet Baxter.
We were surprised by a parade celebrating the Buglasan (bamboo) festival. We were able to watch the whole parade on the fifth floor balcony of the hotel we were staying in. There was sea breeze blowing and it was cool the whole time. The following few photos are some highlights of the parade.
Pay attention to what they wore, yep, flip-flops! All of the dancers in the parade wear flip-flops, brand new ones, all matching their costumes. They danced for hours making unbelievable movements, quite a interesting sight.
Acacia trees lined the seaside boardwalk.
Our hotel is on the boardwalk, therefore, we had perfect view of the parade. However, since there was a conference being held in the hotel, we could only rent the remaining two rooms, which has no view of anything but the windows of the room opposite to us.
A street in Dumagete with festival flags.
A fishing boat off the shore of Dumaguete ferry pier, the island in the background is the southern tip of Cebu island.
The beautiful blue water of Tanon Strait.
Eating at a restaurant by the sea on our way back to Cebu.
The restaurant server asked us if we would like to eat in the gazebo, why not? Well, for me it is a bit tough, the sun is setting, and it is shinning right on the gazebo, there was no wind, that means bugs were present. It looks pretty though, isn't it?
Watching Kioni like a hawk so she won't fall from the gazebo into the sea, though no harm will be done because it was mostly wet sand down there with just a tiny bit of water.
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Handymen with no tools
It is quite interesting to see all the workers who come to our house to fix things carry very little tools. They do carry a back-pack, maybe with a newspaper and some basic tools, but every job seem to be able to be done by hand. Sanding the whole second floor using sandpapers only, no power sander. Putting putties on with their fingers, painting polyurphene with a paint brush. Everything does take longer, but they get things done eventually. With Dan being the civil engineer, it was hard for him to just stand back and let them do their work the Filipino way, but I could see him interferring as little as possible, other than a few times when the guys was creating more problems than we originally have, or not doing the job right at all.It also seems like only the foreman has some knowledge of handy work, the other guys 4-5 of them, are much younger and are learning things on the job, which we don't mind, since we know next time they do the same job, they will be much better at it.
I don't know how much they are paid each day for their work, (they get paid by the day), but we are sure not very much. One time the painter guy came a few hours earlier because of miscommunication between his boss and the painter, Dan gave him 50 pesos ($1 U.S.) and told him to go get some lunch and come back. He had the biggest smile on his face, and ever since then, he always come on time and always smile at us and is doing a wonderful job.
We need wisdom to know what to do with the extreme poverty in this country.
Monday, October 16, 2006
Being Rich
It has been four full weeks since we arrived in Cebu, we are still adjusting to the sound and smell, the poverty and crowd, the heat and humidity. Today I wanted to save some electricity, so I sat in our room with our door to the balcony wide open and work on the computer a bit, but after about 15 minutes, I was soaked in sweat, it was running down my neck. Eventually, Kioni woke up and I went into her air-conditioned room to cool down. I felt so blessed to be able to have A/C while we sleep, or else, I cannot imagine what kind of impact it might have on our family life and ministry if everyone in the family cannot sleep due to the heat.We are learning about the Philippines everyday, what to do, what to say, what is culturally appropriate, what are we 'rich' people supposed to do and not do. It feels awkward to be in the 'rich' category, it doesn't feel that great because we know we are not rich. However, when you can afford to spend $20US dollar on a meal, you are 'rich'.
Let me give you an example: We were at the mall buying some dishes that were on sale, I was picking out several plates that's worth about 50 US cents each. I was maneuvering the stroller through the narrow isles, (our US size stroller is way too big for most places), in the mean time, Kioni was trying to touch everything that she could reach. I also had a shopping basket with me with several plates in it, and I was trying very hard not to break them, and trying not the run into other dishes that were on the shelf with the stroller. A sales person appeared from nowhere and started speaking in Cebuano. By the way, he spoke Cebuano to me because he might think I was a rich Filipino-Chinese. I replied in English and told him I didn't understand Cebuano, he then repeated what he said in English, "Ma'am, I will be at your service to carry your shopping basket for you while you shop." What!? Carrying my shopping basket for me while I shop? He is going to follow me around while I am shopping?
This incident immediately reminded me of what happened one time when I was flying United Airlines back to Hong Kong. I only had a small carry-on suitcase with me. It was heavy because I packed it good. I was having a hard time putting it in the overhead bin because of the weight and because of my height (I should say, lack of). The bag was mostly shuffled inside the bin, but I did need another push for it to go all the way in. A flight attendant stood three feet away from me watching me the whole time while I was 'weight-lifting' the bag into the bin. After a while, she said this to me while looking at her beautifully manicured fingernails, "If you can't put the bag in there, don't pack it so heavy." She did not attempt to help me at all. By the way, she was taller than me at least by a head, it would not be hard for her to give my bag a little push.
OK, you can say it is only the difference between being in the Philippines, a service-oriented country, and being in the U.S., not a service-oriented country. But in my gut, I know there are more that. You don't suppose Bill Gates would get the same treatment, do you?
It feels strange to be 'rich' when you are not, in fact, before we came here, Dan and I were in the 'on a budget' category. We have exhausted our savings on Dan's education, and we have to watch every penny we spent. So it is a big change now that we are here.
People do treat you differently when you are 'rich', don't know why, but they do give us instant respect. What does money do to people's head, mind and heart? It is so sad to see this happen. I am not saying this only happens in the Philippines, it is a problem since mankind was created.
Living like a supposedly rich person will definitely help me put things in perspective in the future, now that I am on the other side of the world , i.e., the rich people's world, I know how better to think of the rich. It is a very interesting place to be, I mean to be 'rich'.
Thursday, October 12, 2006
God sends little friends
This morning, Dan got up early to pick up Earnie, a fellow missionary, at the airport. After he came home at around 7:30am, he asked if I would like to go to Bo's Coffee for breakfast, they have big (American size) pancakes, eggs, ham and coffee for about $2.00U.S. As soon as we walked into the coffee shop, we saw an American looking couple with two little girls. We said hi to each other, and sure enough, Susan, Eric, Alexandra and Isabelle are from Ohio, they are here for work purpose for about 3-4 years. We found some commonalities during the course of our conversation, and surprisingly, they are the 'newbies' comparing to us, they have been here for only about two weeks, half of the time we've been here.
Then came Sally with her two year old girl Lily. Sally and her husband are Anglican missionaries from London. All of a sudden, we are surrounding with little friends for Kioni.
Kioni was not ready to say hi to anyone yet at the beginning, because she just woke up and has not eaten. But after breakfast, she was playing with Lily just fine.
Isn't God amazing? Sometimes when we asked, He answers amazingly quickly.
Then came Sally with her two year old girl Lily. Sally and her husband are Anglican missionaries from London. All of a sudden, we are surrounding with little friends for Kioni.
Kioni was not ready to say hi to anyone yet at the beginning, because she just woke up and has not eaten. But after breakfast, she was playing with Lily just fine.
Isn't God amazing? Sometimes when we asked, He answers amazingly quickly.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Party Crashing and the traffic police...
Incident 1: No food in the fridge
Incident 2: Dan met with the Dean of the seminary and he happened to tell Dan a good place to eat, a chain chicken restaurant called Sunburst. The one that is close to the seminary just had a renovation, added some American style food to the menu.
Incident 3: We wanted to treat our helper, Mariss, for dinner
So we went to Sunburst. There were ballons and flowers everywhere outside of the restaurant, the place looks new, nice and bright. Two ladies opened the door for us and welcomed us, so did a guy in a light green shirt. We walked in and found the restaurant packed! Strangely, they were mostly Filipino-Chinese, and they looked well-to-do. A guitarist dressed like a cowboy was strumming on the guitar and singing songs from the Beatles and American folk songs from Jim Taylor and such, he was, in fact, fairly good. Mariss asked a waiter if we just found a place to sit down, we got no reply, since the music was loud and everyone was busy serving. Dan was waiting to be seated. However, no one came to seat us.
After a few moments, the guy in the green shirt came over to Mariss and tell her to sit anywhere and go ahead to the buffet table, today, the food is free! What!? Mariss told that guy that she is with us, the guy in green shirt walked over to Dan and told him today is the grand opening of the restaurant, we are welcome to seat ourselves and have all the food we wanted.
So we cramped into a long table with people already seated on both sides. We couldn't hear each other very well even when we yelled at the top of our lungs, because the music was going, the people were talking and the glasses are clinking.
We went out to get their signature dish, fried chicken, and some other yummy dishes. When we started to eat, Mariss got talking to a gentleman sitting next to her. That gentleman said to Mariss, "Today is the grand opening of the restaurant, the owner (the guy in the light green shirt) is having a private party for his friends and family to come and celebrate."
A private party!? How in the world did we get in? We were puzzled. Mariss said probably it was because Dan is an American and I am a Chinese. The owner is a Filipino-Chinese, that's why there were so many Chinese in there. And by me being Chinese, I was welcomed, and Dan, an American of course, was welcomed.
We had some very good chicken, some traditional Filipino dishes, and drinks, all for free! Mariss had half a glass of red wine for the first time in her life! We enjoyed the time, and the unique experience. Kioni danced to the music, ate a couple bites of some bright red hot dog, fresh pineapples, watermelons, a lemon square, a bite of a very moist chocolate brownie and a purple sticky rice dessert.
Since it was getting late, we took Mariss to Ayala Mall so she can catch a jeepney to go home, right after a turn by the mall, we got pulled over by a traffic police! Yep, our first experience in getting pulled over in Cebu. He asked for Dan's driver's license and papers, after he took a look, he came back and told Dan what the violation was: He turned left without a green arrow, although he did have a green light to go straight and there was no traffice coming in the opposite direction.
The police officer then told Dan he was going to impound his license, he had to go somewhere else to pay a ticket, take a class, and after all that, he would be able to retrieve his license.
Dan pleaded with the officer and told him it was our first violation. Well, nothing mattered, he was determined to carry out what he told Dan to do, until . . . we rolled down the window and Mariss began to talk in Cebuano and some English to the officer. We caught a few English words here and there, and it seemed like she was pleading to him also that we were new here and this was our first violation, however, we also heard her mentioning some other people's names and telling the officer her last name. After a while, the officer walked back and forth and then walked up to Dan and gave the license back to him, all he gave was a verbal warning, no tickets!
We both looked at Mariss wondering what could she has said that made such a difference. Mariss replied with an smile:
"I had to use my connection. My cousin is in the Filipino Army, and is the head of the Criminal Investigation Department in the Cebu Police Force and he is named one of the top 10 policeman in the Philippines. The traffic police was stunned to hear that, but he did not believe me, he asked for my ID, but I didn't carry one. I told him if he didn't believe me, we can all drive to Guadalupe and have him talk to Pablo Labra. I also told him that this was only your first offense and you let Filipino's get away with a first offense. Moreover, you have only been in the Philippines for three weeks. I also said to him, 'Do I need to go and report this to Pablo Larbra, come on.'"
What a night!
Incident 2: Dan met with the Dean of the seminary and he happened to tell Dan a good place to eat, a chain chicken restaurant called Sunburst. The one that is close to the seminary just had a renovation, added some American style food to the menu.
Incident 3: We wanted to treat our helper, Mariss, for dinner
So we went to Sunburst. There were ballons and flowers everywhere outside of the restaurant, the place looks new, nice and bright. Two ladies opened the door for us and welcomed us, so did a guy in a light green shirt. We walked in and found the restaurant packed! Strangely, they were mostly Filipino-Chinese, and they looked well-to-do. A guitarist dressed like a cowboy was strumming on the guitar and singing songs from the Beatles and American folk songs from Jim Taylor and such, he was, in fact, fairly good. Mariss asked a waiter if we just found a place to sit down, we got no reply, since the music was loud and everyone was busy serving. Dan was waiting to be seated. However, no one came to seat us.
After a few moments, the guy in the green shirt came over to Mariss and tell her to sit anywhere and go ahead to the buffet table, today, the food is free! What!? Mariss told that guy that she is with us, the guy in green shirt walked over to Dan and told him today is the grand opening of the restaurant, we are welcome to seat ourselves and have all the food we wanted.
So we cramped into a long table with people already seated on both sides. We couldn't hear each other very well even when we yelled at the top of our lungs, because the music was going, the people were talking and the glasses are clinking.
We went out to get their signature dish, fried chicken, and some other yummy dishes. When we started to eat, Mariss got talking to a gentleman sitting next to her. That gentleman said to Mariss, "Today is the grand opening of the restaurant, the owner (the guy in the light green shirt) is having a private party for his friends and family to come and celebrate."
A private party!? How in the world did we get in? We were puzzled. Mariss said probably it was because Dan is an American and I am a Chinese. The owner is a Filipino-Chinese, that's why there were so many Chinese in there. And by me being Chinese, I was welcomed, and Dan, an American of course, was welcomed.
We had some very good chicken, some traditional Filipino dishes, and drinks, all for free! Mariss had half a glass of red wine for the first time in her life! We enjoyed the time, and the unique experience. Kioni danced to the music, ate a couple bites of some bright red hot dog, fresh pineapples, watermelons, a lemon square, a bite of a very moist chocolate brownie and a purple sticky rice dessert.
Since it was getting late, we took Mariss to Ayala Mall so she can catch a jeepney to go home, right after a turn by the mall, we got pulled over by a traffic police! Yep, our first experience in getting pulled over in Cebu. He asked for Dan's driver's license and papers, after he took a look, he came back and told Dan what the violation was: He turned left without a green arrow, although he did have a green light to go straight and there was no traffice coming in the opposite direction.
The police officer then told Dan he was going to impound his license, he had to go somewhere else to pay a ticket, take a class, and after all that, he would be able to retrieve his license.
Dan pleaded with the officer and told him it was our first violation. Well, nothing mattered, he was determined to carry out what he told Dan to do, until . . . we rolled down the window and Mariss began to talk in Cebuano and some English to the officer. We caught a few English words here and there, and it seemed like she was pleading to him also that we were new here and this was our first violation, however, we also heard her mentioning some other people's names and telling the officer her last name. After a while, the officer walked back and forth and then walked up to Dan and gave the license back to him, all he gave was a verbal warning, no tickets!
We both looked at Mariss wondering what could she has said that made such a difference. Mariss replied with an smile:
"I had to use my connection. My cousin is in the Filipino Army, and is the head of the Criminal Investigation Department in the Cebu Police Force and he is named one of the top 10 policeman in the Philippines. The traffic police was stunned to hear that, but he did not believe me, he asked for my ID, but I didn't carry one. I told him if he didn't believe me, we can all drive to Guadalupe and have him talk to Pablo Labra. I also told him that this was only your first offense and you let Filipino's get away with a first offense. Moreover, you have only been in the Philippines for three weeks. I also said to him, 'Do I need to go and report this to Pablo Larbra, come on.'"
What a night!
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Chinese church experience
We have visited two Filipino-Chinese churches in the past two Sundays, they are very different from the Filipino church we visited the first Sunday when we first arrived. We were told that Filipino-Chinese are much more well to do, they own lots of businesses and are considered wealthy here in the Philippines. I am convinced after visiting two Chinese churches. Both churches are clean and have air-conditioning. The people are obviously richer, from the way the walk and dress, you can just tell.
However, I can also see how they love the Lord just the same, it does not matter if they are richer.
The EFCA-IM missionaries currently has no presence in the church of the largest minority group in the Philippines, making up 2% of the population, that's about 1.5 million. "The Chinese Filipinos are unique in Southeast Asia in being overwhelmingly Christian. " With myself being Chinese, both Dan and I thought it might not be a bad idea if we keep our minds open for attending a Chinese church here in Cebu, they need missionary presence just as much as Filipino churches.
To show you how different it is in a Chinese church, let me tell you this story. We were at the first church we visited. I was asking some of the people there where can I find good Chinese food. Several places were suggested to us, but since we have only been here for such a short period of time, we didn't really know the names of the roads they were talking about. A very humble looking gentleman walked us out of the door, and said to us, "Let me talk to your driver and tell him where to go for those chinese restaurants." Dan smiled and said, "I am the driver." Yes, they all have drivers, and several maids at home. Their kids attended Sunday School earlier in the morning, then they were taken back home for the maids to take care of while the parents come to the Sunday Service. I am not going to comment on this practise, but this is how it is like in this particular large Chinese church.
The second Chinese church we visited is smaller, but still neat and tidy and air-conditioned. They practically owns the whole hill up on Cebu, other than the church building, there is also a school, and they are also building a 4-story high seminary. It was quite a sight!
We are still in the process of finding our home church, it might take a while, and it might not take long at all.
However, I can also see how they love the Lord just the same, it does not matter if they are richer.
The EFCA-IM missionaries currently has no presence in the church of the largest minority group in the Philippines, making up 2% of the population, that's about 1.5 million. "The Chinese Filipinos are unique in Southeast Asia in being overwhelmingly Christian. " With myself being Chinese, both Dan and I thought it might not be a bad idea if we keep our minds open for attending a Chinese church here in Cebu, they need missionary presence just as much as Filipino churches.
To show you how different it is in a Chinese church, let me tell you this story. We were at the first church we visited. I was asking some of the people there where can I find good Chinese food. Several places were suggested to us, but since we have only been here for such a short period of time, we didn't really know the names of the roads they were talking about. A very humble looking gentleman walked us out of the door, and said to us, "Let me talk to your driver and tell him where to go for those chinese restaurants." Dan smiled and said, "I am the driver." Yes, they all have drivers, and several maids at home. Their kids attended Sunday School earlier in the morning, then they were taken back home for the maids to take care of while the parents come to the Sunday Service. I am not going to comment on this practise, but this is how it is like in this particular large Chinese church.
The second Chinese church we visited is smaller, but still neat and tidy and air-conditioned. They practically owns the whole hill up on Cebu, other than the church building, there is also a school, and they are also building a 4-story high seminary. It was quite a sight!
We are still in the process of finding our home church, it might take a while, and it might not take long at all.
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Almost three weeks
(Our rental house in Cebu is the one on the left, a three-story townhouse. The two people on the roof were installing a satellite dish.)
We are getting onto our third week in Cebu. Last Sunday we visited a Chinese church, it was quite impressive to see the big tall building with very familiar ways of conducting the service. What's more interesting about the church is the people. We were told that Chinese in the Philippines are rich, we had no idea what that is like until last Sunday.
First, we didn't see any children during the service, we asked them was there a Sunday School for the children, several people said, yes, at 8:00am, the service was at 9:30am, but we didn't see any children at the service? Where are the children? They were not at the service, but the Sunday school is over. Answer: they all went home. Only a couple remained at the service. They have maids at home to take care of the kids while the parents attend the service.
Secondly, I was asking some of the ladies where can I find good Chinese food, they were very helpful in pointing out places and how to get there. A gentleman asked Dan if he can tell our 'driver' the directions, so we can go there. Dan said, "I am the driver."
We are getting more use to this place now. The heat is still unbearable at times, but I have learned to hide in the air-conditioned room when I can't stand it anymore. Kioni is still very irritable when she is hot and sweaty. She can't even concentrate on her Kumon! She is much slower than normal in finishing her work. In the past 4 days, I have been working on the sound "oi" as in "soil", for some odd reason, this is very difficult for her, or maybe she is just too hot to concentrate. I don't know.
I know where to get meat, Mariss will get most veges for me. The wheat bread is pitiful here, it falls apart when touched, so it becomes impossible to spread anything on it. I am hoping to have the courage to deal with the heat and bake my own bread, we'll see how it goes. I will go to the supermarket next time and see if I can find all the necessary ingredients to bake whole wheat bread.
I have been coughing like crazy in the past two days, it interrupted my sleep, so got to go and get some sleep now.
Sunday, September 24, 2006
First church experience in Cebu
Roger and Lan took us to their church, the Mabolo Evangelical Free Church just right around the corner from where they live. Dan and I didn’t know what to wear, so we put on whatever we have that looked a bit more formal. Well, Dan was a whole lot more formal than I was and much hotter, since he has only one pair of lightweight wool pants that look decent. He wore a long-sleeve shirt with an under shirt and a tie. As you can imagine, he was boiling up in the church. I wore a lightweight skirt and a T-shirt. We both became overheated during the church service because the church is typical Filipino style – open windows and fans. Kioni did fine until she got overheated also. When her head started to sweat, she started to become extremely irritable. She wanted me to hold her once she was irritable, and it only made her hotter, and that turned me into a sweat-soaked mom.
The microphone was loud, and so was the music. We went down to the Sunday school classroom to see if Kioni would want to stay with the kids. I was surprised to see that in a 10’x10’ room, there were about 20 kids in there. I did not see windows opened in that room, there was a fan hanging on the ceiling, but it was not turned on. Most of the kids were standing, they gave us warm welcoming smiles. I asked Kioni if she would like to stay with the kids, she shook her head violently. I asked her a couple more times, still the answer was no. I took her back upstairs, thinking how bad those kids might feel with this foreign girl refusing to be with them. I hope they did not get offended.
The church service was Christ-centered, it was longer than what we are used to, but the message was good. It was about prayers. We did not stay long after the church service, Roger would like to treat us to Joe’s, a missionary hang-out place. However, all three of us were so overheated that we needed someplace to cool down. Joe’s does not have A/C, so Dan told Roger that we will take a rain check Joe’s, so we went to the Ayala Mall instead. Dan craved pizza, so we went to Pizza Hut. They served not only pizza, but also fried chicken.
After that, we went to Watson’s (Hong Kong based store) to get some cortisone, I have been cruelly bitten by mosquitoes since we arrived, I told Dan if there are any mosquitoes borne disease here, I will be the first one to be infected.
Busy Mall
We have been to the two biggest malls around here; both are busy and loud all the time. It seems like store crank up their speakers just to get the attention of customers, one can hardly hear oneself talking when you are in the mall. Cebu has more people than we thought, lots of people on the streets, in restaurants, in shops, there are just people everywhere.
I am more used to the heat now, but still not handling it very well. I might take me a long time before I won’t feel like fainting when I am in the heat. Yesterday was a better day. We stayed home and the sky was overcast, so it was not as hot. I have not yet started the romantic period that most people live cross-culturally will feel when they first arrived, I think I have moved strict into the being angry period. This is hard, but I am thankful that we don’t have the language problem, and we can also find whatever food we are used to eating. KFC, Pizza Hut, MacDonald’s, plus some very good local restaurants. I found that most food has some sort of spices in them, but the menu won’t indicate as such, so it becomes a challenge when order for Kioni, since spices is causing her stomach to feel bad.
This concludes the first week after our arrival. I have yet to figure out what to cook for Dan. It has been a challenge even when we were in the U.S., but now, it is even harder.
The microphone was loud, and so was the music. We went down to the Sunday school classroom to see if Kioni would want to stay with the kids. I was surprised to see that in a 10’x10’ room, there were about 20 kids in there. I did not see windows opened in that room, there was a fan hanging on the ceiling, but it was not turned on. Most of the kids were standing, they gave us warm welcoming smiles. I asked Kioni if she would like to stay with the kids, she shook her head violently. I asked her a couple more times, still the answer was no. I took her back upstairs, thinking how bad those kids might feel with this foreign girl refusing to be with them. I hope they did not get offended.
The church service was Christ-centered, it was longer than what we are used to, but the message was good. It was about prayers. We did not stay long after the church service, Roger would like to treat us to Joe’s, a missionary hang-out place. However, all three of us were so overheated that we needed someplace to cool down. Joe’s does not have A/C, so Dan told Roger that we will take a rain check Joe’s, so we went to the Ayala Mall instead. Dan craved pizza, so we went to Pizza Hut. They served not only pizza, but also fried chicken.
After that, we went to Watson’s (Hong Kong based store) to get some cortisone, I have been cruelly bitten by mosquitoes since we arrived, I told Dan if there are any mosquitoes borne disease here, I will be the first one to be infected.
Busy Mall
We have been to the two biggest malls around here; both are busy and loud all the time. It seems like store crank up their speakers just to get the attention of customers, one can hardly hear oneself talking when you are in the mall. Cebu has more people than we thought, lots of people on the streets, in restaurants, in shops, there are just people everywhere.
I am more used to the heat now, but still not handling it very well. I might take me a long time before I won’t feel like fainting when I am in the heat. Yesterday was a better day. We stayed home and the sky was overcast, so it was not as hot. I have not yet started the romantic period that most people live cross-culturally will feel when they first arrived, I think I have moved strict into the being angry period. This is hard, but I am thankful that we don’t have the language problem, and we can also find whatever food we are used to eating. KFC, Pizza Hut, MacDonald’s, plus some very good local restaurants. I found that most food has some sort of spices in them, but the menu won’t indicate as such, so it becomes a challenge when order for Kioni, since spices is causing her stomach to feel bad.
This concludes the first week after our arrival. I have yet to figure out what to cook for Dan. It has been a challenge even when we were in the U.S., but now, it is even harder.
Friday, September 22, 2006
Worms?!!
To rug or not to rug
Dan likes colours, the house we are staying in has a white theme. Dan cannot function well in whites. We have gone out today with Chuck and Maggie Guill to pick out some rugs in Ayala Mall. We bought three rugs; one of them is a bamboo rug, for the sala (front entrance sitting area). Then Maggie and I went to the department store to pick up a few kitchen items, like non-stick pans and can openers, while Dan and Chuck went to get a second cell-phone. Still they couldn’t get one because they want to see Dan to have a certain visa before they will give them the good deal Dan was looking for. So now Chuck will have to be the person on paper who owns the phone, while we will pay for it. But yet, there is another piece of paperwork that Chuck will have to complete before they will allow Dan to have to phone. So that means just getting a cell phone will take three trips to the store.
Inter-no-net
We have no Internet access still. Hopefully, tomorrow the phone company will come like they said and assess if we can have it or not, don’t know what they are looking for, but that’s the procedure. I need to pay credit card bills over the Internet, so I hope tomorrow they will say yes to our request.
Worms!
So far Kioni loved the food here, she ate a whole lot more than when she was in Vancouver and Hong Kong. I hope her loose poop problem will be resolved quickly. Maggie Guill also told me that I should ‘de-worm’ the whole family every six months, back when her kids were small, they passed worms after they took the de-worming medicine. That’s new to me, but I will ask the pediatrician when we have one. It sounds a bit gross and scary, but Maggie just said it as a matter of fact. So I guess it cannot be too bad.
Dan likes colours, the house we are staying in has a white theme. Dan cannot function well in whites. We have gone out today with Chuck and Maggie Guill to pick out some rugs in Ayala Mall. We bought three rugs; one of them is a bamboo rug, for the sala (front entrance sitting area). Then Maggie and I went to the department store to pick up a few kitchen items, like non-stick pans and can openers, while Dan and Chuck went to get a second cell-phone. Still they couldn’t get one because they want to see Dan to have a certain visa before they will give them the good deal Dan was looking for. So now Chuck will have to be the person on paper who owns the phone, while we will pay for it. But yet, there is another piece of paperwork that Chuck will have to complete before they will allow Dan to have to phone. So that means just getting a cell phone will take three trips to the store.
Inter-no-net
We have no Internet access still. Hopefully, tomorrow the phone company will come like they said and assess if we can have it or not, don’t know what they are looking for, but that’s the procedure. I need to pay credit card bills over the Internet, so I hope tomorrow they will say yes to our request.
Worms!
So far Kioni loved the food here, she ate a whole lot more than when she was in Vancouver and Hong Kong. I hope her loose poop problem will be resolved quickly. Maggie Guill also told me that I should ‘de-worm’ the whole family every six months, back when her kids were small, they passed worms after they took the de-worming medicine. That’s new to me, but I will ask the pediatrician when we have one. It sounds a bit gross and scary, but Maggie just said it as a matter of fact. So I guess it cannot be too bad.
Thursday, September 21, 2006
First day not soaked in sweat
We did not go out today during the day, we stayed home and unpack the remaining items in the suitcases, all the suitcases are now stored in a little storage room upstairs. Mariss also helped Dan moved four huge boxes of books up to the loft, where Dan’s office will be. Dan is grateful for Mariss’ help, without her help, he probably will let the four boxes sit there for another month or so. He is waiting for Jerry, a local carpenter to build him some bookcases in the loft.
We went out for dinner last night, to Krua Thai restaurant again. We love the food there, but Kioni is starting to have very loose poop, wonder if it has any thing to do with the weather or the food. Kioni did not eat much of the spicy food at all, and she always drinks mineral water, so I wonder if the heat is causing her problem.
I am less tired today, since I took a short nap in the afternoon with Kioni and I was not out in the heat all day long. Things start to look better now. I hate to talk about the heat everyday.
I feel guilty about how quickly we want air-conditioning. Are we still suiting to be missionaries if we need air-conditioning? Should we just tough it out just like the old-timers? What good does it do to our ministry if we simply cannot function? Kioni becomes so irritable when she is hot and sticky, and she switchs back to her sweet old self when she is in an A/C room. It hurts me to see her suffer. On the other hand, I have to be responsible for the resources that our supporters give to us. No doubt we are going to pay for the A/C out of our own pocket, not through the ministry expense, but I am still feel guilty about it. I guess it really is a matter of personal preference, what will others say about the fact that almost all missionaries that we know drink spring water instead of water from the tap? Is that extravagant to do so? I don't know, God will be our judge.
I have learned so much about living in a developing country in just a few days, I am sure there are much to learn still in the next two years. Mostly I see how unprepared I am and how different living in a developed country is from living here in Cebu. I certainly know I cannot be a missionary in the jungles, Cebu is far from being in the jungles, in fact, Chuck Guill said a Vietnamese would love to come and live in Cebu, it is paradise in comparison to Vietnam, but for me who comes from a developed country, it is not without challenge.
We went out for dinner last night, to Krua Thai restaurant again. We love the food there, but Kioni is starting to have very loose poop, wonder if it has any thing to do with the weather or the food. Kioni did not eat much of the spicy food at all, and she always drinks mineral water, so I wonder if the heat is causing her problem.
I am less tired today, since I took a short nap in the afternoon with Kioni and I was not out in the heat all day long. Things start to look better now. I hate to talk about the heat everyday.
I feel guilty about how quickly we want air-conditioning. Are we still suiting to be missionaries if we need air-conditioning? Should we just tough it out just like the old-timers? What good does it do to our ministry if we simply cannot function? Kioni becomes so irritable when she is hot and sticky, and she switchs back to her sweet old self when she is in an A/C room. It hurts me to see her suffer. On the other hand, I have to be responsible for the resources that our supporters give to us. No doubt we are going to pay for the A/C out of our own pocket, not through the ministry expense, but I am still feel guilty about it. I guess it really is a matter of personal preference, what will others say about the fact that almost all missionaries that we know drink spring water instead of water from the tap? Is that extravagant to do so? I don't know, God will be our judge.
I have learned so much about living in a developing country in just a few days, I am sure there are much to learn still in the next two years. Mostly I see how unprepared I am and how different living in a developed country is from living here in Cebu. I certainly know I cannot be a missionary in the jungles, Cebu is far from being in the jungles, in fact, Chuck Guill said a Vietnamese would love to come and live in Cebu, it is paradise in comparison to Vietnam, but for me who comes from a developed country, it is not without challenge.
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
It is still the heat
Heat continues to be the subject of the day. It will get to us so badly that Kioni will start to throw bad tantrums; I will not have the patience to deal with it, while Dan would just be sitting there sweating away. We get tired by 2:00pm, it is draining just to be in the heat, even without doing anything at all.
We are slowly getting what we need, we have the phone company come and connect the landline for us today. Our helper Mariss said it is record speed, well, it is because Chuck Guill has applied for the phone line two months ago for us. Now they will have to see if we can have DSL internet service, don’t know what they are looking for, but it will probably take another month or so before we can have internet service.
Garbage in the fridge
Yesterday when we ate at the Guills’, Maggie, a veteran missionary in Cebu, told me that she puts her garbage in the fridge if she is done going out of the house for the day, this way, she will keep the ants out. I thought that is a good idea, but question if that is a bit overkill. Today, Kioni asked for some cereal from the box, I pulled the box down, and here they are, ants all over and inside the box! Mariss said one never leaves an opened box of food in the cupboard, one will need to put everything in a tightly sealed box, or else, the ants will certainly get to them. She said even dry oatmeal has to be put in a box. Tonight, I started putting garbage in the fridge, tomorrow, I hope I can get some boxes for various things.
I cooked my first meal tonight without propane gas. Mariss bought some ground pork, I marinated it with some soy sauce, a little bit sugar, and some salt. Mariss also helped me cut up some Chinese cabbage, I just throw everything in with some rice into the rice cooker I bought yesterday. Half hour later, I got some wonderfully tasting rice with pork and cabbage. Kioni loved it, she ate a whole bowl. Dan ate a bowl of cereal. We ate dinner tonight in our bedroom, with air-conditioning; Kioni smiles and sings again.
Dan either has a bad cold or he has allergies so bad that he cannot breathe. I am just soaked in sweat when I am home at the ground floor of our house. The heat does one good thing, it is a constant reminder of why we are here. I thought about the cool dry weather in Michigan often, but now we are here, and the whole reason for being in the heat is because of what God has called us to do in the next two years.
We have decided to install an air-conditioner at the ground level of our house, so that we can actually use that room and won’t feel like we have to hide in our bedroom all the time. The owner of the house Howard Plucar is going to pay for half of the price of the air-conditioner, we are grateful for that. Tomorrow, the air-conditioning guy is going to come and give us an idea of how it will be installed.
This is an interesting place, they have a ‘guy’ for everything, and the missionaries here know just the right guy for the right thing.
來到宿霧己經有三天了，但是炎熱和潮濕的氣候仍然是難受極了。家中地下的那一層沒有冷氣，祺祺熱得十分容易發脾氣，我沒有耐心應付他，因為我也熱得要命。宿霧比我想像中貧窮，新式建築物隔壁是一大堆隨便撘起來的木屋。好多人的生計也似是靠勞力賺取的。
炎熱的天氣提醒我們來宿霧的原因，若不是神的帶領，我們是沒有甚麼理由來這?的。
We are slowly getting what we need, we have the phone company come and connect the landline for us today. Our helper Mariss said it is record speed, well, it is because Chuck Guill has applied for the phone line two months ago for us. Now they will have to see if we can have DSL internet service, don’t know what they are looking for, but it will probably take another month or so before we can have internet service.
Garbage in the fridge
Yesterday when we ate at the Guills’, Maggie, a veteran missionary in Cebu, told me that she puts her garbage in the fridge if she is done going out of the house for the day, this way, she will keep the ants out. I thought that is a good idea, but question if that is a bit overkill. Today, Kioni asked for some cereal from the box, I pulled the box down, and here they are, ants all over and inside the box! Mariss said one never leaves an opened box of food in the cupboard, one will need to put everything in a tightly sealed box, or else, the ants will certainly get to them. She said even dry oatmeal has to be put in a box. Tonight, I started putting garbage in the fridge, tomorrow, I hope I can get some boxes for various things.
I cooked my first meal tonight without propane gas. Mariss bought some ground pork, I marinated it with some soy sauce, a little bit sugar, and some salt. Mariss also helped me cut up some Chinese cabbage, I just throw everything in with some rice into the rice cooker I bought yesterday. Half hour later, I got some wonderfully tasting rice with pork and cabbage. Kioni loved it, she ate a whole bowl. Dan ate a bowl of cereal. We ate dinner tonight in our bedroom, with air-conditioning; Kioni smiles and sings again.
Dan either has a bad cold or he has allergies so bad that he cannot breathe. I am just soaked in sweat when I am home at the ground floor of our house. The heat does one good thing, it is a constant reminder of why we are here. I thought about the cool dry weather in Michigan often, but now we are here, and the whole reason for being in the heat is because of what God has called us to do in the next two years.
We have decided to install an air-conditioner at the ground level of our house, so that we can actually use that room and won’t feel like we have to hide in our bedroom all the time. The owner of the house Howard Plucar is going to pay for half of the price of the air-conditioner, we are grateful for that. Tomorrow, the air-conditioning guy is going to come and give us an idea of how it will be installed.
This is an interesting place, they have a ‘guy’ for everything, and the missionaries here know just the right guy for the right thing.
來到宿霧己經有三天了，但是炎熱和潮濕的氣候仍然是難受極了。家中地下的那一層沒有冷氣，祺祺熱得十分容易發脾氣，我沒有耐心應付他，因為我也熱得要命。宿霧比我想像中貧窮，新式建築物隔壁是一大堆隨便撘起來的木屋。好多人的生計也似是靠勞力賺取的。
炎熱的天氣提醒我們來宿霧的原因，若不是神的帶領，我們是沒有甚麼理由來這?的。
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Drive like water
Today, Dan drove for the first time. It is different driving here. No rule, just ‘make your presence’ known (quoting Chuck Guill). However, it is important to know that whenever another car is an inch in front you, they have the right of way. First rule that Chuck told us is that, “Forget about lanes.” First of all, many roads have no lines, so other cars can be in the ‘opposite’ direction driving right in your ‘lane’, so when you see another car coming towards you, you just ‘go with the flow’, either slow down and let the car pass or go in front of the other car. When there are lanes, the above rule still applies. Dan finds it quite ‘freeing’ to be able to drive like this; he describes it as driving like water, meaning you just have to go with the traffic.
We are millionaires
We went to the bank to open a bank account so we can have our salaries deposited directly from the Manila head office to us here in Cebu. There are boxes that we have to check asking us for our income level. Surprising, we have to check the highest bracket that the bank offers, and it daunted on us that we are in fact millionaires here. Chuck told us that we will now look upon as the rich, and there is no way we can get around it. It feels funny for me because I have never been rich, however, Chuck said we would have to get use to it because it is a fact in our lives now. He also said I, as a Chinese, would also be look upon as rich, since the Chinese in the Philippines are mostly rich. Moreover, they have expectations from me that they won’t have for Dan. Dan as a foreigner, can say stupid things and be forgiven quite quickly, but for me, being an ‘Asian’, more is expected from me as far as knowing the culture, though I am still learning about it at this point.
Kioni is doing very well with our helper Maris. She follows Maris around when Maris works, when Maris went upstairs, she wanted to be upstairs, when Maris washes the grapes, she wants to help also. It is obvious that Maris likes children, and I guess Kioni catch on to that pretty quickly.
Because of the heat and lack of air-conditioning in the ground level, we find it hard to utilize the main area of the house, where the kitchen and the living area is. We know we will only be here for a year, but we would like to install an air-conditioning unit so that we can actually live in the house normally, rather than hiding in our rooms all the time. Heat does slow down physical activities as well as brain activities. I found Dan missing on something that are obvious, like left and right, or counting, or asking for the date three times in a 15 minute duration.
We were invited to Chuck and Maggie Guill’s tonight for dinner. I was worried that we won’t be able to find our way home in the dark. But Dan is excellent in directions, we got home with no major problems, we did doubt a couple of times if we were on the right road, but it turned out that we were.
It was lightening quite a bit tonight, dark clouds was all over, maybe it will rain and cool down a bit tomorrow.
Oh, also, there is Bo’s coffee, Chuck introduces us to it. It was half the price as Starbucks, and it is also good. I still would like to grind my own coffee beans and make my own cup of industrial strength espresso with evaporated milk. Forgot to buy evaporated milk today, so I will have to use the Magnolia full cream milk tomorrow for my coffee, it should be OK, since the Magnolia milk is quite thick.
Kioni is doing very well with our helper Maris. She follows Maris around when Maris works, when Maris went upstairs, she wanted to be upstairs, when Maris washes the grapes, she wants to help also. It is obvious that Maris likes children, and I guess Kioni catch on to that pretty quickly.
Because of the heat and lack of air-conditioning in the ground level, we find it hard to utilize the main area of the house, where the kitchen and the living area is. We know we will only be here for a year, but we would like to install an air-conditioning unit so that we can actually live in the house normally, rather than hiding in our rooms all the time. Heat does slow down physical activities as well as brain activities. I found Dan missing on something that are obvious, like left and right, or counting, or asking for the date three times in a 15 minute duration.
We were invited to Chuck and Maggie Guill’s tonight for dinner. I was worried that we won’t be able to find our way home in the dark. But Dan is excellent in directions, we got home with no major problems, we did doubt a couple of times if we were on the right road, but it turned out that we were.
It was lightening quite a bit tonight, dark clouds was all over, maybe it will rain and cool down a bit tomorrow.
Oh, also, there is Bo’s coffee, Chuck introduces us to it. It was half the price as Starbucks, and it is also good. I still would like to grind my own coffee beans and make my own cup of industrial strength espresso with evaporated milk. Forgot to buy evaporated milk today, so I will have to use the Magnolia full cream milk tomorrow for my coffee, it should be OK, since the Magnolia milk is quite thick.
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