Celebrating New Life

Sometimes you just want to pull the covers over your head and skip the whole day, especially when you've had a whole bunch of "bad language days" in a row and what we refer to as "bad China days." But, then there's days like today- days when my classes are active and excited about being here. Days when students' laughter floats around the classroom. Days when the sweet lady at the market welcomes you with a huge smile. Days when my freshmen come over and dye Easter eggs (see above) and hear the Story for the first time. This is my fifth year doing the Easter thing in China and I tell you, the wonder of the opportunity never grows old.

Yesterday (April 5) was also Qing Ming Jie (Ching Ming Jee-ay), otherwise known in English as "Tomb Sweeping Day". It's a day set aside by China to go and visit the graves of ancestors, bring offerings to them, burn paper money (the traditional belief is that when you die your soul is in some kind of purgatory and this helps pay for time there and also assists the ancestors in the afterlife in order to bring blessing to you and your family) Sometimes instead of going to the graves, they light fires outside their homes. I saw the most interesting sight the other day, something I've only seen in the North. At each intersection in town you can see about half a dozen people or so lighting small fires and burning paper money for the ancestors (apparently, if you light fires at any kind of crossroads it enables the spirits to go anywhere). It really is a time to remember and commemorate those who have died.
Being that Easter and Qing Ming Jie fall on the same week this year, in my classes I asked my students to compare Easter with Qing Ming Jie...to see that while both deal with death, and both commemorate someone important to us who died, there is talk of New Life at Easter. While we reflect on death on Friday, we can rejoice because there is Hope on Sunday.
Tonight, please say a word for us here- the weekend is packed full of activities and opportunities to Share this Hope inside.