Feeling Like I am in a Valley...

Hello out there,

I hope everyone is doing well as we move forward from the Winter and into Spring. It seems that Shanghai is beginning to develop some color for the new season and the sun is peeking through the dreariness that has clouded us for a while. Nonetheless, the last week or so has left me feeling a bit weak and weary.

Last Monday, I was very sick with what I think was a sinus infection. My brain was clouded, my nose was stuffed,  and even a little movement resulted in a headache. I decided to call in sick to work, because I could barely even talk, much less teach. On my day home sick, a series of unfortunate events unfolded. Sunday night, we had a lovely dinner of spaghetti and garlic bread (which we have dearly missed!). However, when we went to do dishes, we discovered that the faucet was no longer attached to the rest of the piping. This resulted in the kitchen floor flooding and a ridiculous pile of dirty dishes. So, the next morning, while I was home sick, we exhausted our small supply of towels and still had a soaked floor. Our only solution was to close the kitchen doors and block the water with the already drenched towels.

Notice the towels and the bowls trying to contain the water...

I then made a quite pathetic and frantic call to our friend Beili (mind you, I had no voice), explaining that we had to have this repaired and now. We have had quite a few problems getting repairs done in our apartment, so we could not let this go, like everything else. The repair man from our complex came pretty quickly and turned off the water and told us we needed to go purchase a new faucet so he could replace it and left. Within a couple of hours, the faucet was replaced and the water turned back on. However, we now turn the knob right for hot and left for cold. We know we could fix this, but we would take the risk of breaking something else in the process.

We still have some other lingering problems in our apartment. A washer that floods the floor when we do laundry, no lock on the back door, and a hot water heater that has to be reset at least once a day. Justin and I also have a major leak in our room, which we found out is a problem for the whole first floor in our building. It was not treated properly when it was first built and the result is a rather soggy and mildewy wall. After a long discussion with our friend, and bypassing the agent (who we found out was not passing information on to the landlord) we are hoping to have these repairs done without too much more frustration. Each item in itself is manageable, but altogether, they are rather overwhelming.

A small portion of the wet wall

The water seeping in through our window

 Later in the week, after my illness subsided,  I encountered some difficulties at the school. The main difficulty was lack of communication between myself and everyone else. After I came back to school, I was told that I would need to make up my sick day, which did not coincide with my contract, so I had to set that straight. Then on Wednesday, the principal had a meeting with someone from head office and it resulted in a lot of third hand information. I was told that the principal was quitting, the other teachers were leaving, and the principal who came in to assist with marketing was taking over (even though she has her own school). This was all passed to me through a series of three people, so I had no idea what was really the truth.

The next day our principal did not come to school, and showed up later to collect her things. The second principal left halfway through the day and we were dismissed early by a very angry principal who was leaving. We were told that the one student would be asked to leave until the school was ready. When I arrived Friday morning, we had no principal at all and were told we would need to tell the mother of our student that he could not come on Monday.

Thankfully, I had a Skype call with my supervisor that afternoon, and was able to get some clarification. She notified me that our school is not able to recruit students, because we do not have the appropriate license. To get the appropriate license, we must build a playground for the students. A playground area is ready, but we have been unable to build the playground, because we have to get the permission of the community. However, there is no community leader, so we do not know who to get permission from. The solution: Close the school temporarily and pass out papers to the whole neighborhood asking for permission. Whew! I was told I might be working from home in the next week or so, in order for this task to be accomplished.

I went home for the weekend and incurred terrible neck and shoulder pain to the point that I could barely sleep or move. I tried to deal with it the best I could and hoped it would go away, but it did not. I eventually made a pleading call to my friend to see if she could take me somewhere for a cheap massage. I am so thankful that she did, even though she was hosting guests. The next day, I felt much better.

This week at work has been interesting. I have not been working from home, and the student has still been coming to the school because the mom just leaves him. However, this is causing problems for us, because when inspections are being done, they want to fine us for having students on campus without a license. On top of that, work that I have done to decorate my classroom, has to be undone, which is very frustrating. I am not sure what to do while at work, so I just wait. Thankfully, there is a holiday this week, so after today, I am off until Monday. Below you will find pictures of the neighborhood, the school, and my class.

Current building we are using

Second building in progress

The road where we are located

Compound surrounding school, mostly international

Wishing there was a die cut

 

Morning circle, all handmade and individually cut out!

As you can see, progress is being made. Unfortunately, we are now at a stand still. For me this is very challenging, because I highly value productivity. When I ask what the next step will be, the principal responds with, "I don't know." I was also very excited at the prospect of students and being able to teach, and I now feel stuck.  I need a lot of prayer, we need a lot of prayer, so that we do not get discouraged in this. Please keep us in your prayers.

Sincerely,

Blythe