How are you? Is everything good with you? I do hope that you are doing well and enjoying your weekend.

Today is the 291st day that I have been in the US. This week, I had my new lesson ? Management Information System by Dr. Randall S. Sexton and attended the first 2 quizzes. In the coming 3 weeks, I will face another 7 quizzes, one examination and one paper and one presentation. If this situation happened 9 months ago when I just came to the US I would “be dead” and I would not do anything else except the lesson itself. But now, I have been used of this studying style and the quick speed already -- My first quiz scored 10/10 and Dr. Randall S. Sexton said that I had done “a good job” on my second quiz.

So, except professional course studying, I am keeping working on my art of painting, music and language learning.

From last Sunday until this Saturday, I have created 6 Chinese Xieyi Paintings with the size of 50cm x 100cm ( about 20 inches x 40 inches), even though when I was in China, the same amount had only appeared once in July, 2003. Then, I was copying from the others' works with the size of 1/4 of current paintings; right now, I am creating my own works.

My Chinese art professor was so surprise and proud of my progress. So, he has given me the highest scores in my 6.5 years'art learning. My Chinese Xieyi - 0224: Enthusiasm -Peonies -03got 98 scores; and my My Chinese Xieyi -0217: Affection got 96 scores.

Meanwhile, I have gotten a formal invitation to visit Dr. D. Booth in Kentucky and to get his direction soon.

I feel lucky that and I have found art as one of my most important Spiritual Food and best friend. It has not only brought me a peaceful heart, wide chest, balance life and tolerant psychology, but also, it has helped me near the great nature, to observe, feel and learn something beautiful from all kinds of everything.

Like a little bee, every day, I am flying over the grassland, among the beautiful flowers and between the sky and land, to see, to think and to absorb the nutrition from the great nature things, to produce something sweet as honey, to return the great nature and all of the kind people in the human world…

So, Friday afternoon, when my religion teachers asked me whether I have known where is the God? My answer was, God is just in the great nature, God is just in our hearts. God is just the embodiment of the justice, kindness, the beautiful and the peaceful…

Therefore, even though my landlord told me that or lease can not be continued until September as I wished and I have to find another place to live Friday noon -- I moved out of my first apartment and lived into the current place last Nov for the Internet Connecting Problem , I still completed a new picture, attended my religion lesson, then I started to find a house.

Even though it is very difficult for me to find a new and suitable place to live within the short 10 days as a foreigner in the US, I am still smiling to work on everything. I am thinking, if I can not find a suitable place to live soon, I will live in some hotel for a couple of days while to paint in the university's library as holding an art exhibion... Just a joke. :- )

I am sure, a new apartment will be found, a more beautiful painting will be created, Shirley will grow up and get mature during the process...

How about you? Have you met the samilar things as I have met in a foreign country? Could you please help me or tell me how to find a suitable place with Internet Connecting? :- )

I am just a learner on art of painting, music, English and Chinese language, to work on the web site in my free time. I would really like to do a few things with what I have learned to make this little web site to be an Electronic Bridge of Culture Exchange, Chinese Language Learning & Friendship making. To help the others while to improve myself.

I would like to appreciate your understanding, directions, supports and hope to get your friendly direction and help.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, you are welcome to write to shirley@ebridge.cn or Yiping007@MissouriState.edu, or to publish your opinions in the forum.

Shirley Yiping Zhang
Sun, July 19, 2009 From USA