How are you? Have you started a good new week?
On my side, continuously, I attended classes of English, Bible and Sunday Service, had interviews, offered free Chinese poetry and painting lessons, meanwhile, I started the marketing work in person.
Spent whole of last Monday, I went to Missouri State Fruit Experiment Station to interview Dr. Wenping Qui who is a Clif & Gail Smart Professor/Director of Missouri State University in Mountain Grove. We started with Associate Professor Chi-Feng Hwang and another colleague of Dr. Hui at 6:15am and came back at about 6:00pm.
It was windy and cold, I kept taking photos and videos outside. I was impression on their Lab Building that has a history for more than 100 years, the grapes on the trellis, and the a lady staff’s beautiful office that was decorated as an art studio by the colored plants.
In their vineyard, a huge net covered the trellis to protect the grapes from the birds and two kinds of grapes were planted there: A part of grapes was dead because they had been infected by some virus , if people want to save them, they have to use farm chemical; nearby them, the other part of the grape was not only alive, but also full of vigour, and the latter, is called Missouri Grape and be used to make wine and jam.
Just for finding out why the latter could overcome the virus, Dr. Qui and his team have worked on it for 4 years.
Now, their research result and the technology of cleaning virus have been used in a small area as a test in America, and also be delivered to the new grape plant area in China. This research project in Missouri State University has not only helped American economy, but also has helped China’ s agriculture development, promoted the culture and education exchange and the friendship between America and China.
Then on Wednesday, I went to interview Dr. Elizabeth Rozell, who is a Kenneth E. Meyer Professor of Management and she taught me face to face 2008 – 2009. Right now, she has been the first lady associate Dean of Business College at Missouri State University.
Except I respected her for her achievement, appreciated her for her good direction, I was so surprised for the answered of her to one of my questions ( As a successful lady, how did you deal with the relationship between your life and career ) as same as my own choice years ago. She said, “ Family, my daughter and my husband are most importance in my life, if I must choose between my career and family, I will choose my family. Therefore, I listened to their opinions before I decided whether I should become the Associate Dean, if they did not want me to be, I would not be… ” Once more, I felt, even though we live on the two sides of the Ocean, we have different culture background, many things, traditionally, are same.
Thirty years ago, I chose to save 5kg. /17.5 kg. of my provisions monthly for 4 years, to support my boyfriend (now my son’s father ) to be full (since each Chinese university student had only 17.5kg. food monthly then), even though I knew it would certainly hurt my own health; then, 27 years ago, after knowing I was pregnant, I gave up my own opportunity to be a master student in Beijing but supported him to take his master degree in Beijing by working as a Chinese classical language and literature instructor, while praising our baby son alone since he was just 46 days for 3 years, even though my own career was delayed and my health got much worse. I do not regret until now.
During the past 22 interviews, I do have found an interesting and common phenomena. Almost all the successful people answered the question --Who is the most important one has impacted you on your career and successful road? with the same answers: My spouse. Then when I asked them to give me an example that was unforgettable , they could not speak out. This interesting phenomena really makes me think: maybe the true love among the family members is just in the daily things of fuel, rice, cooking oil and salt. Along with the time, these little things help the family relationship stronger and stronger.
Happiness of a family is just in the common life.
When I write here, I could not help smiling for I thought of how Bible teaches the family members love each other.
If saying, last week, I read Bible for I realized it is a classical book and the history of Western culture and civilization. This week, I read it for I felt it is a book of wisdom, full of the intelligence inside.
With much interesting, since Oct 5, I have read Mathew, Mark and Luke by myself and some the other parts by the directions of the pastors. I do wish that I can read-through whole of the Bible in Chinese before I leave for China.
During the study, also I have more understanding why people said a person who has a faith usually lives serious much more. Yes, after Dr. Qui Wenping and his wife Lisa led me to their church, every Friday I learned Bible in their or the other churches and every Sunday, I took part in the Sunday Services. In the study and event, not only has I learned Western culture, but also, it helped me know how Christians to fill their souls with the most classical Western civilizations, how they follow the teaching of Bible to check their own actions often. In each 7 days, there are twice studies, really, it is frequency, to help people fill their spirit, and to enhance the connection of the members. So that I cannot help thinking, maybe this is one of the reasons that America is a quite untied nation?
Except the study and interviews, by the good help of Mrs. Wanda Nova, the president of. the Southwest District Art teachers Association (SDATA) Mr. Riann Lubinski has arranged me to have a presentation in their Fall Workshop in Duruy University Nov 9, 2013.
Since my teaching job has been completed, the interviews have been working normally, I have started my own art works’ marketing job, I must think of how to make my researching project there are many people working on it alive continuously after working on it as volunteers for 11 years.
So, after reading and writing a lot, by the good help of my classmate Mr. Zhu Bin, I went to the members of the Springfield First Friday Art Walk one by one.
In the 6 of the member galleries I have been. Except two of their bosses were not in their offices; One of them is sponsor instead of the member. All of the other 3 members were interested in my different works and wished to hold an art exhibitions for me in 2014 or 2015.
Even though I did not meet any of them before I knocked on their gates, when I went out of their gates, we have been friends. What I have felt: in case we have truly good works, while we can work on the marketing job down to earth, the local American people, especially the artists, and art galleries are just around us.
Art is really the best bridge to connect people from the different nations and cultures. And since Oct 10, I have had 8 students, except 2 children, all of them are university students. With a big smile, I would really like you to share a record of
my 11 years old American girl student to recite a Chinese poem in Chinese. Later, I will let you see the videos.
In my heart, is full of the appreciations to my professors and tutors in China Centre Academy of Fine Arts and in Chinese National Academy of Arts in Beijing. Just because of their serious teaching and training, my art works could be improved. So, now, I am thinking whether I should go back Beijing earlier than my plan, to prepare for my new art exhibition in 2014 and 2015.
The bad news was: first time, I met a beggar who had no a half of her leg in Springfield, MO in the night. When she waved her hand to me opposite the street, I went to her and asked her whether she needed help. Because I thought she was a disable person who had lost her way since she sat on a wheelchair alone in the dark by the crossroad, I pushed her to the building there are many disable people live in.
On the road, I smelled some terrible smell from her clothes and the people in the building did not allow her enter in for she did not belong to it. Then I did not have an idea how to deal with her in the night. Then she asked money from me and wanted me to push her to her place far away 2 blocks. Oh, my God, suddenly I felt scare for I could not judge she was a poor person who needed help or she was a drugger or a bait as a lady by the gate of the building warmed me stealthily.
Anyway, still I gave her 5 dollars that were all of my changes in my purse and a box of food that I just bought back from a restaurant, and I told her: What I could do for her just these and I could only push her a bright part of the road, near by my building, then she had to go her road by herself. Then I run back to my home with a so scare heart…
And this thing really make me feel unsafe for a few days, and since then, I have not been going out of the door in the nights again.
How about you? How do you deal with this kind of things? Do you have anything special to share in the past week ?
Take care and thanks, have a good day.
Shirley Yiping ZhangOct 29, 2013
