One year on

This week marks exactly one year since we moved to Forest Hill in Tai Po. I hope you've enjoyed reading about our many adventures and accounts of our day-to-day life in Hong Kong.

We have gotten used to relying on public transport to get around. The children enjoy travelling independently, and they like watching television on the trains. Our visitors can testify that we are very comfortable in our spacious apartment with its club house, swimming pool and playground. Craig is thankful that he never has to mow the lawn or weed the garden. With Celine now working for us, I am thankful that I don't have to wash the dishes or scrub the toilets. Craig and I both enjoy our jobs, with the challenges and personnel (and exhaustion!) that accompany them. Our children are receiving a good education in a Christian school with excellent resources and facilities.

Of course there are many things that we do miss from Australia, like our church and friends in Perth. I wrote above about using public transport, but we do miss the ease of just hopping into a car and getting to our destination quickly. In Australia we played a lot of music while driving places, and I regret that the children aren't hearing those CDs as often here. Just today the children spoke about having to leave our cat Bronte  behind in Australia. There are many other little things that we used to take for granted in Perth but now miss like fresh milk, child care centres, having a bathtub, getting take-away from "Chooks", etc.

A colleague at school gave me an article to read called After the Boxes Are Unpacked: Moving On After Moving In by Susan Miller. The author wrote about the differences between cherishing and clinging. To cherish means “to hold in the mind, to treasure, to hold dear, to value highly.” To cling means “to clutch, to cleave, to hold on to, to grab hold of.” Ms Miller wrote that while it is okay to cherish what was and what we left behind, we should be clinging to what we brought with us and what never changes. For example, we should:

Cherish — distant family, distant friends, past memories, our heritage, the jobs we left, the house we lived in, the city we left

Cling to — God, the Bible, our faith, prayer, God’s promises, positive not negative things, our values, each other

I think I have been clinging to the past, and my role in the WBC Deaf ministry in particular, rather than cherishing it, which is keeping me from moving forward. A year on, I still feel stuck and resigned to being in Hong Kong because I am clinging to that which I should be cherishing. I expect that it is a common mistake for MKs to make as they move from place to place and are always meeting new friends or farewelling old friends. But I owe it to myself, my husband, and my children to stop looking at our Australian life through rose coloured glasses. I can see God’s purpose in our move and that God is truly in charge of our nest in the skyscrapers. However, as I learn to discern between what to cherish and what to cling to, please pray for me to find peace and contentment living in Hong Kong. 

Keegan's school party

Although Keegan's birthday was two months ago, his Grade One class had a little combined party for all the birthdays that occurred in July or August. Another child's mother organised a fantastic cake to share, snacks, and little party treats for all the students in the class.

I had very little to do with organising the event, simply slipping out of my class for ten minutes to share the occasion with Keegan.

Here are some of the notes that students wrote to Keegan, following the party:

Dear Keegan, thank you for the kake.

You are so nice I like to play with you and I like you so much.

Dear Keegan, happy burthday.

Hi you Keegan. You are my best friend. I love you.

Thank you for the cake and the fish biscuits and gifts. I really want to be your friend. I will give only you a special gift. I wish you will never be absent any day.

Thank you and your mom for that cake. That cake was yummy and we all love it.

Happy birthday. I always sit with you.

Dear Keegan. I like you because you are so good at soccer but you had to pass the ball to me or Samuel but yesterday you do your best and me too and Samuel and I like you so much and I will be your team.

Eden

You may recall me blogging in November last year about a brief visit we enjoyed from  the Federwitz family passing through Hong Kong from Ghana, West Africa. Paul and Ali have two children, Hannah (age 4) and Levi (age 2) and on Friday, September 3rd, Ali gave birth to a full-term baby girl, Eden Selah.  She was 7lbs 2oz and 19in long.  The labour and delivery went the best of their three children, and Ali recovered quickly and was discharged from the hospital. 

At first Eden's oxygen levels were a bit erratic, so they took her to the neo-natal unit for observation.  Several hours after birth, they attempted to feed her and realised that she had a very serious problem.  She was found to have a diaphragmatic hernia, which meant that she had a hole in her diaphragm and her bowels had passed through into the area where her left lung and heart were supposed to be.  Because of this, her left lung was not fully developed and her heart had been pushed to the side.  Eden was transferred to the local children’s hospital to await a week or two of maturation before doctors could contemplate surgery.  Paul and Ali were told that children with this condition have a 50% chance of survival.   

Consider this email I received last week from Paul: "Pray for Eden that the Great Healer will place His hands upon her.  For the doctors that they will have the necessary wisdom and skill.  For us as we go through this emotional roller coaster and especially now for rest.We know that all things are in His hands.  Our Father caused this baby to be born [in America, not Ghana] where there was good medical treatment available.  I just finished a really tough semester of school, but the one I have just started is giving me more flexibility to deal with this. Our God is in control, and we praise Him for that."

Eden's doses of nitric oxide were gradually reduced until she reached the stage where surgery  was possible.Yesterday, September 10th, the surgeon worked to repair the hole in the diaphragm.  It was a small size, so he was able to sew it up.  He also adjusted how the intestines were ordered.  The bowels and colon had gone through the hole, but not the stomach.  The left lung was found to be about 1/3 the size that it should be. The doctor said the lung would continue to grow until Eden reached twelve years old or so. 

Please join with me in praising the Lord that this precious one-week-old baby remained stable throughout her serious surgery. 

Paul and Ali said that they "covet your prayers for Eden and especially those who are caring for her". 

If you wish to send a message of encouragement to the Federwitz family you can email them at pafederwitz@lbt.org

Pool fun

With the chilly Australian winter now coming to an end, I thought I would post some photos of us enjoying our sweltering Hong Kong summer at the pool.

Keegan, Joelle, Jemilla and Tirzah

Our estate, Forest Hill had a swimming carnival one afternoon which involved lots of fun pool activities. Tirzah loved this game of filling her basket with floating plastic balls.

Keegan and Jemilla both participated in this relay race, requiring them to run across floating airbeds across the pool to pump water with a water gun into a bucket on the other side.

On another Saturday we travelled to a swimming pool in Tai Wai to meet up with two other school families for a swim.

We especially liked  this pool because it had three fun waterslides.

Introducing the “Bridges” program

Following is an article I wrote for the first ICS parent newsletter of the school year:

 

At ICS we believe that as everyone is made in the image of God, everyone is equally valued. We know that regardless of their academic performance, each child is important and has something of significance to contribute to his or her family, friends, and community. Because of this conviction, we have commenced an exciting new program that aims to integrate students with more significant special needs into the ICS community.

Known as “Bridges”, the self-contained classroom can be found in Room 410 on the elementary side. A group of seven students aged between five and eleven years old will be based in this classroom with integration into mainstream classes whenever possible. These students have diagnosed disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder which affect their learning to such a degree that they require a non-standard course of study. 

Their adapted curriculum will be based on individualised education objectives set by their parents and the Bridges teacher. Integration subjects and durations will vary for each student according to their abilities. It is natural for staff and families to have concerns about the Bridges program. Perhaps you have had little exposure in the past to these types of disabilities and the behaviour problems associated with them. We have plans to inform students, staff and families about specific issues relating to the Bridges class in order to promote a smoother integration for these students into the school community. Some questions have also been raised about whether funding for this class will be deducted from tuition of the general student population, and the answer is no. These students pay separate fees to cover the costs for their special resources and staff salaries. As mentioned earlier, the Bridges students are on a non-standard course of study; therefore, their progress will not be included in the academic data of ICS.

Because of their disabilities we or our children may be unsure of how to engage with the Bridges students. With the exception of their disabilities, the Bridges students are just like our mainstream population. They are children who can learn and grow with the right help, and who respond positively when treated with kindness.If you or your child happen to see a group of students walking through the school, remember to treat them with the respect you would give any other class. We want them to feel safe and welcome at ICS, so wave and smile. If the opportunity presents itself, talk to these children and get to know them. We hope and pray that ICS will be the right setting for them to maximise their own unique gifts and talents.

I have taught in numerous special education settings in Australia, but I am extra thrilled to be in a Christian international school at the time when it is opening its doors to these students. I can’t wait to see the positive outcomes for the Bridges students, their families, ICS staff, the mainstream classes, and the wider school community as we begin this integration program and ultimately gain a richer and more diverse student body.

 

Many of you have asked how my new job is going. Obviously due to confidentiality reasons I can't share much about my individual students or the staff with whom I work. I will say, however, that I love my class; they are a great group of kids. This is my first teaching position  in a mainstream school which, needless to say, has been a learning experience, and I have had to deal with a few intolerant attitudes. I am feeling a bit isolated, unlike my previous school settings where all the staff were special needs trained and supported each other well. On the other hand, I love speaking openly to my students about the Lord and teaching them Biblical truths and Christian songs. We are already planning for a second Bridges class in the middle school. Please pray for that and about HR issues in the special education department at ICS.

Carousel

If you are a long-time reader of Nesting in Skyscrapers, you may remember one outing we did as a family to a Ma On Shan shopping centre famous for its free carousel. On that particular day we were unable to have a ride, due to other activities happening there.

 

However, the route that the children and I now take to and from our new school, ICS, happens to pass right through this same shopping centre. Jemilla and Keegan can ride on the animal merry-go-round any day they please after school. 

How many children can say they took a ride on a deer or bear on their way home from school?

Eyres

Here are David and Donna Eyres with their nine year old daughter, Joelle. Donna is a good friend of mine from Perth, and our daughters are also best buddies and pen pals.

We were so thrilled when they planned a trip to Hong Kong this month. Donna and Joelle flew over and had one week here before David joined them after attending a conference in the States. They brought many special treats from Australia, including cheese, of course! I was disappointed that I had to work instead of being free to show them around, but Donna surprised us all by bravely venturing out into the unknown, quickly figuring out our public transport system, and exploring most of the popular tourist attractions offered in Hong Kong. Joelle also adapted quickly to the heat and humidity, learned to stand on the right while on an escalator, scan her Octopus card, tolerate the locals wanting to touch her hair or take a photo with her, and generally go with the flow regarding the day's agenda. We were very impressed!

Here the children discuss what the Chinese symbols mean.

Donna, Jemilla, Joelle and Keegan pose outside our estate.

Joelle was totally unconcerned where her mother was as she walked with Jemilla up the main street of Tai Po.

We introduced Joelle to the neighbourhood cat in the chemist shop.

Then we visited the Tai Po meat market.

Joelle took this great photo outside a local butcher's stall.

Lunch after church

A display in a shopping centre

An excursion to the History Museum with Tirzah

Fairwood Restaurant

Mong Kok Goldfish Market

Baking star fairy wand cookies together

MX restaurant (I love the heart prints on the wall)

Shopping at Mong Kok

David and Donna at the Peak

Craig's work colleagues took the Eyres to a local Chinese restaurant with no English on the menu.

How was the goose?

At the Forest Hill pool

Playing Candyland

Playing Pictionary

What a special thing it was for Jemilla to have a friend visit her in Hong Kong. And I will treasure the short time I could spend with Donna. Thank you for blessing us and encouraging us with your visit, Eyres!