I returned from my 10-day trip to Gentleland today (10th). It got off to a worst possible start. My ride thought I was coming a day later, so I had to find an inn nearby. The next day (2nd), I taught 60 excited M.A. students over the 20-hour weekend how to preach.
The next week, I was taken to a new location to teach 28 B Th students. Unlike before, where I was staying with a family in a spacious apartment that has a bathroom with enough exercise space, I was downgraded to slum-like conditions near some run-down factories, for less visibility. Churches here are very out in the open, their worship music travels to the streets, and "emmanuel" signs are all over the church exterior.
It was both a boring and a blessed experience. The backward living conditions are similar to the poorest Hong Kong neighborhoods in the 60s. Students live a very simple life. All basics and necessities are met but all else is stripped away. Still they bring their own snacks. They use a basin for washing but, nevertheless, they have meat to go with vegetables.
Since nobody but students live on-campus, I have to request for coffee, fruits, and a ride out. I have a makeshift reused fruit juice glass bottle for a cup to use in class and in the kitchen I use a bowl for coffee. The restroom soap is big and unsightly. The locals do not use toilet rolls; they use wafer-thin sheets of paper the size of our handtowels.
It's been an unforgettable five days with the 25 youngsters ranging from 18 to 25. So far, I have trained 88 students, which would take me 15 years to do in
Hong Kong! Many of them are bright but lacking opportunities. Since it is held in a low-key location, there is nothing to do but sleep during the afternoon recess of 2 hour and 15 minutes, including lunch. Nights are almost unbearable. No TV, no company, no transport. I am virtually a prisoner, but I am thankful for internet. It would have been unthinkable without it. It was time to leave after adjusting to my lodgings. To counter the hard bed and thin mattress I folded the mattress for more padding since I do not need to use the other half of the mattress. On the last day I heard prayers reverberating throughout the building, but to my shock I saw only four women praying. I am tempted to visit elsewhere in the future seeing the field is ripe for harvest. After this ten day trip, I have a fresh appreciation for missionaries ten years in the field.
Today's 8 degrees C (16th) is the coldest day I have experienced in Hong Kong yet . I had three layers of clothing and I was still shivering without head protection when the cold wind blew. The low temperature, however, did not stop me from my pool exercise or a lunch appointment with a student. It was hard to concentrate at work during this lull holiday break without the students or chapel. I was excited over my sermon on Genesis 45 preached last Sunday because it completes my 30 messages on Genesis, which I hope to be published in English for a change.
I thought the cold could not get any worse, but it did and got personal, giving me a full-blown cold today (18th). I have not sneezed like that for a long time. My nose was running and my eyes were red, so I took a nap after lunch to get rested before today's pre-study, which we thought was canceled. My only hope is that Wife would not be infected. Tomorrow we are headed for early worship so that she can join a school party. At night I-Cable showed my favorite Stephen Chow movie just as we were about to rent the last Harry Potter movie, which we missed. We also signed a new contract today with the new landlord that will increase our monthly apartment rent from HK$7k to HK$8,400. There is no stopping inflation or rent in Hong Kong.
It is Christmas day today (25th) and we went for breakfast with a friend visiting from SF. On the way home I figured out how to text 17 friends from my phone contact list a Christmas message, which took me a full 15 mins to type and send. Tonight we will have dinner with a friend who is returning to No Cal after two years of ministry in HK. It did not work out because he has to return to care for his wife and daughter who have medical conditions.
The day after Christmas was mostly relaxing. We spent time with a church coworker and talked for more than three hours. After that we had lunch and a walk outdoors before we headed home. The pleasant day was interrupted rudely by a flu I caught after swimming. I sniffed and sneezed for the next four hours, causing pain to the right side of my stomach each time I sneeze during the final hour. It was so bad I debated if I should see a doctor tomorrow. Let's hope Wife does not catch it from me.
Today (29th) is my last Wednesday off this year before I sign up to mentor pastors in teaching and preaching next Wednesday onwards in the new year. We were lounging around in the Elements' Starbucks when an alumni called me up for lunch. Wife said I had used both days off, including last Saturday, to benefit other people in our sharing. Thinking ahead, I expect work and ministry to be tough next year.
Finally the last day of the year is here. I have been busy restoring the broken links on preachchrist.com. I have no idea what is in store for the next year, but nothing could be rougher than this year. All is good as long as Wife's health keeps up. It has been cold for a few days, so yesterday I got some thermal wear for both of us.
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