Shirley Tiu and the One Hundred Haircuts

That sounds like it should be the title of a children's story, doesn't it? People bless our school in all kinds of ways. Since I handle the Student Services Department, people often contact me with a desire to help our students. Usually that means scholarships, but occasionally blessings come in other packages. Last year a lady named Shirley Tiu contacted me and asked if she could offer haircuts at our school. She owns a beauty salon, and she decided that in order to give thanks to God for blessing her business, she wanted to bless others. So, she brought a few of her workers to our school for a day and offered free haircuts. God continued to bless her business this year, so she decided to bless our students again. From morning till afternoon they did one hundred haircuts. Here is Shirley (on the right) with Shelby, my assistant.

The youngest customer was a four-month-old from Romania, who had to sit in Mom's lap.

You can play "Where's Waldo" with the remaining photos and try to find me.

I've Been Tagged!

So, I've been tagged by Judy. . . I am supposed to list seven random things about me. I don't keep in touch with enough other bloggers for me to tag seven more . . . but I'll do my best to at least make my own list! Sorry, Judy, for the delay. I hadn't checked my blog in a while.

1. As I am typing this with my right hand, I am cradling a one-week old baby in my left arm. And loving it! Which explains why I haven't checked my blog in the past week.

2. Our two children each have 3 birth certificates, issued by the governments of the Philippines, U.S.A., and Canada. Maybe that's a random thing about them, not me. But since I filled out all the forms to get those certificates, I should get to count it.

3. I am currently teaching a class every Monday morning to 24 ladies in our IGSL Partners in Ministry program. Most are young enough to be my daughters, but one is old enough to be my mother! When I walk into the classroom, the young ones smile and say "Hi!" but the older one stands up straight and tall beside her desk and says, "Good morning, Ma'am!"

4. I am a medical wannabe. I am a teacher, but I should have been a nurse. I love helping people when they are sick, or in pain, or having babies. My daughter is a nurse. My sister is a nurse. My sister-in-law is a nurse. My niece is a nurse. And I am just a wannabe.

5. I spend a few hours each week practicing English, one-on-one, with an assortment of people who are trying to pass our IGSL English Proficiency Test next month. They are from Bangladesh, Nepal, China, Thailand, and Tibet. Did you know that most South Asians cannot pronounce the word "asked," and that "grilled fish" is a tongue twister for most East Asians?

6. I am hoping and praying that everything will fall into place for me to travel to Bangladesh in January. I have never been there before but I am very eager to make this trip.

7. After all these years in Asia, I think most American food is boring. It's not spicy enough or hot enough for me. Except chocolate. I still like chocolate.

Missions Emphasis

For the past several weeks, the kids in our Achievers' International School have been learning about missions. They learned about Adoniram Judson, Hudson Taylor, and William Carey. It was a very significant time in their lives, and many of them announced that they plan to be missionaries when they grow up. I really salute the teachers for all the hard work they put into this! On the last day, I toured the classroom to see their displays. Do you want to come with me to see their rooms?

First we have to get a passport!

This is our tour guide Prena, who will teach us about the life of Adoniram Judson.

This cute little guy is wearing a label so we will know who he is supposed to be!


This little lady is responsible for the map that shows Hudson Taylor's trip from England to China.
Here I am sampling Chinese food and learning about the chronology of China Inland Mission.


Another stamp is required for the next phase of the tour!

This is William Carey, when he was still a shoemaker, before he became a missionary.

These little tour guides are trying to remember all of the details of William Carey's life!

The class wrote a letter to William Carey to thank him for going to India.

This is Teacher Becky, who coordinated the whole project.

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Congratulations on a job well done! I thoroughly enjoyed my tour.