When I Remember... August 3

 

Gentle Reader,

 

Saying good-bye is always a vile thing.  Over the past four weeks, I have come to know several teachers here in Guiyang, though this Summer Language Institute.  We have spent approximately five hours a day together...sharing teaching ideas, wondering outloud in the most audacious ways, laughing, commiserating, coming to know one another in ways that are truly quite remarkable.  And so I wanted to honor that knowing in a way that celebrates each student.  What follows is the poem that I will share with my students tomorrow, during our last full class period before the Closing Ceremony on Friday.  What a journey it has been with these special folks.  I thank them for their honesty, their genuineness, and their amazing generosity of spirit...

 

 

When I Remember, I Will Remember This…

                    For my Students in Guiyang, Summer 2011

Far from the downtown of Guiyang,

In this gated and locked community of the Number One High School,

We share a room together for four weeks. 

Chalk breaks between my fingers

As I clumsily try to write on the greenboard.

We begin most days with song and dance,

Energizing  spirits for a day of learning together.

There is melody and rhythm to our mornings,

And we move our bodies to the same lyric.

 

I had been told a saying about this place:

“In Guizhou, the sky is never three days clear,

The land does not have three feet that are flat,

And the people haven’t  three cents’ worth of money.”

But the saying did not take into account the knowing of you,

And the warmth of your welcome of me,

This foreigner, to your beloved home.

 

Lily…

The kindness woman,

Bringing gifts of water for everyone.

This beautiful woman who journeys on her bicycle,

Confident and sure-footed

She glides into class.

She is from the hometown of historic Zunyi,

And her name carries the power of “chance”

In the face of any uncertainty she might encounter.

She receives gifts from others with such gratitude,

Thankful that the sweater from her younger aunt

Transformed her from an “ugly duck”

Into a most lovely “white swan.”

 

Lydia…

Who borrows films and books

To share with her daughter.

Surrounded by music and calligraphy,

She dwells in an artistic home

That she opens to us for an afternoon.

She shares tea and fruit and an album of travels,

A world explorer, able to translate a shadowy world

Into something bright and beautiful.

 

Kaith…

Whose given names means “quiet”

But we learn of his liveliness and clever wit

As he takes on the role of the Country Father

In our class play. 

He is attentive and generous of spirit

Always erasing the boards for me at break,

Providing fresh, clean space for new lessons together.

 

Hatty…

A country girl

Whose nighttimes are filled

With dreams which reveal the future.

She longs for sweet words from her lover

But appreciates the actions that show his love.

A persevering spirit and an independent soul,

She is secure in the world,

Knowing her father is watching over her, in the bright sky above.

Knowing her mother takes away the coldness of a crude winter

With the gift of the homemade shoes.

And now she passes on that warmth to her foreign teacher,

Guaranteeing  that winter’s chill is conquered by the gift of her warmth.

 

Donna…

Collector of leaves

Which she weaves into bookmarks.

A celebrator of all that is natural in nature,

She smells the richness of the leaves she saves.

From a strict family, she becomes quiet

In the noise of conflict.

She is the mediator, always,

Creating peace wherever she lives and works.

 

Leslie…

Who always takes big bites

Out of this life.

Her questions reveal a curious mind,

And a longing to be accurate and precise.

She wants to know the why behind everything,

The pulses behind every word or phrase.

A generous woman,

She gives gifts of homemade bookmarks and cards,

Forever remembered for her artistic spirit.

 

Dion…

Our own Music Man,

Knower of singers and songs.

Always a song in his head,

He uses song to express his own story,

His own mood.

His name means “to find out the truth”

And he is forever on a journey to know and to understand.

His collections of books are like sweet songs ,too,

Filled with both Holmes and Christie,

He unravels their many mysteries.

 

Macy…

Daughter of a harmonious family

And collector of four hundred stamps.

Each stamp is a memory for her,

Each one telling its own unique story.

Her name means “beautiful swallow”

And she flies freely, a woman of little worries.

Hers is a smile given as a gift, without exception

She gathers people to her.

Her laughter rings like  silver bells, always.

 

Moon…

Our messenger,

The one who giggles softly behind her hand.

She is a dreamer of both Singapore and India,

But settles for Bollywood movies until the journey becomes a reality.

She is a writer of diaries since age ten,

A safe place where she records happiness and sorrow.

She, like her name which means “peace,”

Brings tranquility to all who know her.

 

Sophia…

Admirer of independent, confident woman,

She is the role model of the intrepid warrior.

She is the dreamer of sky dreams,

Dreams that even she finds funny at times.

She is the woman of elegant dresses

And self-assured strides.

Our narrator,

A strong and powerful voice,

She leads with both wisdom and knowledge.

Her smile always carries us to optimistic places.

 

Milli…

Mother of both lovely and naughty twin boys,

She is often an exhausted mother.

Reading is her hobby

When the demands of motherhood free her for a moment,

Believing reading opens the mind and the heart,

Offers wisdom and valuable lessons.

Her wish is that we all make friends with books,

That books are companions for a lifetime.

Born on a cold weather day,

Her name means “snow,”

But her pure and neat heart melts the frozen places

In all of us.

 

Ivy…

A most patient lady

Filled with questions.

Always thinking but quick to smile,

She appreciates laughter.

Thoughtful woman,

Secure in who she is and what she is about.

She offers us the peacefulness that comes with

Truly knowing who you are

And what matters in the world.

She treasure the pen from her father,

Which inspired her to study hard at school.

She saves all the drawings from her daughter,

Knowing the first “little ugly” painting

Will bloom into pictures that show her love for her mother.

 

Else…

First a mother, then a teacher,

She always has her little son

On her mind and in her heart. 

There is gentleness in her care of her son,

In the way she holds him close to her,

Letting him know he is safe in her arms.

She is Mother Earth,

Strong and nurturing

Of her son and her students.

She knows, too, that her friendships

Are gold precious, who give their hand to her actively.

 

Tina…

Author of her own name,

She is a woman of clear voice

And precise speech.

She is filled with the confidence

That enables her to encourage others,

To support them in both struggles and dreams.

She treasures love and wishes for herself and others

Both happiness and romance.

She is a beloved daughter,

Like the necklace from her father

She is a good person like the white sparkling pearls

And she knows her father is a good star in the night sky.

 

Mary…

One of the most “merry” among us,

She sings and dances her way through life.

Music makes her both happy and comfortable

And her blissful rhythms are contagious.

She cherishes the warm noodles,

A gift from her husband on a  cold morning .

Proud mother of a son who is a kilometric champion,

She , as her name, offers only “the best silk”

To everyone she meets.

 

Louise…

Whose motto is “Where there’s a will,

There’s a way.”

She is the “King” amongst us,

Bedecked in her gold crown

And her homemade gold shoes. 

Hers is a commanding presence,

Confident and self-assured.

Her dream is to help students in the poor countryside,

Where she is certain to spin straw into gleaming gold

With her smile and her strong will and determination.

She remembers a dear mother in her primary school years

Who made a special eggs with sweet wine for her,

Easing her sick day into strong health.

 

Mike…

A devoted father and husband,

Companion to his eleven year old son.

He is a proud father,

Instilling values and purpose

In his young boy.

His home is Weichong,

Famous for its delicious food.

His ready smile is welcoming

And reassuring,  accepting everyone

In a most generous way.

 

Alice…

Who collects coins

And stores them gently in a special stone pot,

Counting them like the many blessings in her life. 

She is a quiet soul

Who worries that her son plays too many computer games,

Distracting him from necessary studies. 

She wraps her hands in gift of gloves

From her husband,

Knowing his loving will keep her skin from splitting,

Will keep away the harshness of the winter’s wind.

 

David…

The smiling presence

Whose sadness tears against the laughter.

He volunteers to be the lonely man

Across the wide, wide river in the Langston Hughes poem,

And we hear his longing as he is separated from his baby

Far on the other side of the waters.

His wise father still walks quietly

Along his side ,

A master in teaching him the ways of learning.

He treasures the watch given to him

By this father who reminds him of the long road ahead.

And he is overflowing with generosity,

Providing us with many extra beers

For our “gambay” celebrations

At our hot pot lunch together. 

 

Janya…

Emerging from a big family

Full of happiness,

She remembers her father

Who borrowed money for the education

Of his beloved daughter.

She carries gratefulness in her hands

And in her heart, always,

And dedicates herself to hard study

And seeking out the challenges

In the shadows of her life. 

She knows Erin Gruell, from the inside

Of her own life,

And , like her, seeks balance

Between the worlds of work and home.

Knowing time is the very best medicine,

She offers the gift of patience to others

And to herself.

 

Vivi…

A music box of a woman,

Forever dancing and singing

Like the ballet dancer inside

the jewelry box her mother gave to her.

The first birthday present she can remember,

She treasures this gift from her mother’s heart.

This Vivi is a woman who abandons the umbrella sometimes

Wondering why anyone would ever refuse the sun.

She sparkles brightly,

Like the diamond her mother gave her

For her adult ceremony.

There is a vivaciousness in her laughter

That never fails to add glitter to any room.

She is a woman who knows her own dreams,

A tree confidently rooted in good, growing soil.

 

And so today, I come to you with these memories,

Knowing that separation from you is a most vile thing.

I am so very clumsy at saying farewell.

I wish you many moments

When you can soar above even your own expectations,

Like Amy in Fly Away Home

Who carries Igor on the wings of her shoulders

As she nurtures the whole flock of geese

To its rightful destination.

I wish you teachers like Dr. Larabee

Who remind you of your own own power and beauty,

Who celebrate the brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulousness

That is genuinely you.

I wish you a knowing that

You are far too significant

To ever shrink your own life.

I wish you many moments

When, like Miep Geis,  you bring  a small light

To a very dark room.

I wish you the knowledge

That you, as teachers in this world,

Are heroes every single day.

May your own light

Give others that precious permission

To shine and shine.

Know that I will continue to dream of you

In my nighttimes on the other side of the world.

Your faces, my friends,

Are forever engraved in my heart…

 

 

                                Namaste,

                                Bai Ling/  Marianna/ Mei Lan