I
had a choice to make last week. Not an
epic choice that would determine the fate of the world, but a choice
nonetheless. I could either go on a
beach retreat in south Taiwan, called Ken Ting, with a mass quantity of
students and all of the teachers, or I could stay in Taichung, my home for the
past 6.5 weeks, and explore the city with the Korells.
For
most people, this choice would be easy.
A beach retreat in Taiwan with college students or remaining in the same
city again with your only company being a family of four, which includes a 2
year old and a 4 year old? The beach should honestly win out every time. It is an adventure, and it will be fun.
And the choice was easy for me; the
Korells win every time. For that choice,
I might just be mad north, northwest, but then again, you do not know the
Korells. They have not shaped you for
the past 6 years as they poured into your life in different roles, from youth
ministers to friends to coworkers. You
haven’t had your heart melted by two little kids, even when your heart has
sworn that it does not like little kids at all.
You have not met a family that has impacted more people then they could
possibly realize, a family whose impact will reach into the next generations. It is a family I love, a family I want to
learn from, and a family I want to be with, so my choice was easy. And the weekend became one giant adventure as
we sought to explore all the nooks and crannies of Taichung City, Taiwan.
From here on out, I am going to try
to summarize all the different adventures we had as we sought a Great Perhaps
in our weekend plans. This is not going
to be a sweet story that you would hear around a campfire. This is going to be
a scattered version chronologically organized brain vomit that could last a while. You have now been warned, so please continue
with your arms and legs remaining inside the cart at all times.
Friday involved eating a delicious
food named by us ignorant Americans who do not know Chinese as rice
triangles. It is rice made in the shape
of a triangle and stuffed with any meat you would like. Then wrapped in seaweed and dubbed incredibly
delicious and mouth watering. This,
combined with a Taiwanese milk tea, was the perfect meal for the moment in
infinity. We followed this deliciousness with allowing the kids to play on a
playground that is strategically located in front of one of the creepy temples,
like you are being watched by one of their gods. If you can ignore that part, the playground
was quite nice and fun. After the kids went
to sleep, Matt and I ventured out to line dance with elder Chinese ladies at a
park. We just went to be silly and have
fun, but we quickly became the highlight of the night, as all of the little old
Chinese ladies sought to teach these weird white men how to Chinese line
dance. If you can remember to ask, and I
remember how, I might be able to show you my mad Chinese line dancing skills
some day. The night ended with a conversation on why do people, including
myself, like the Hunger Games when
they are so twisted and depressing? And then we laughed at the ridiculousness
of the new Three Musketeers
movie. Overall, a lovely night.
Saturday started late because of the
need for sleep. Then Matt and I ventured
out to try Eastern Medicine. We met with
the doctor and were asked extremely awkward questions about our bowel
movements. I was informed that my body
is extremely low in both Ying and Yang energy, and therefore, I have a lot of
problems. Maybe I am wrong, but this
might be because I do not believe in ying or yang energy. That’s just a guess though. They proceeded to stick me with 13 needles in
acupuncture because of how messed up my energy is. I had to lay completely still for 30 minutes
with 13 needles in my body, and for those of you who know my restless self
really well, it is actually possible for me stay still for that long. It was difficult, but it was possible. The doctor also prescribed me to take Chinese
medicine, which is this lovely mixture of herbs that taste so delectable that I
feel like I might die with every bite of the dry, crunchy, bitter powder. After acupuncture, we went and explored an
incredible park in the middle of Taichung.
There we rode stone ponies, climbed a giant goat statue, and laughed a
lot. We went to a night market,
something Taiwan is famous for, and enjoyed the shopping and smell of stinky
tofu. Isaiah and I played a new form of
“I Spy” which involves touching everything, including people. Finally, we crashed onto the couches, ate the
best desert ever (called Mango Bing), and enjoyed a movie. You wouldn’t think that was too much, but
with two kids and in this heat, everything done is an adventure in itself.
Sunday would be the busiest day of
all. We went to Rainbow Village. For
those of you who are immediately curious about a village called rainbow, it is
this old, abandoned military village that an elderly man, who was extremely
bored, decided to cover in paint for almost two years. We followed that up with a trip to the High
Speed Train Station where we ate good food, had a scare with Isaiah, shopped a
bit at some really weird stores, and rested from the heat. After, we caught a bus and visited some parks
and a sports store. The first park was
simple. The sports store was
ridiculous. Take a large Wal-Mart, make
it completely focused on sports equipment, then stuff it with hundreds of
screaming kids like a Chuck E. Cheese, and that was this sports store. They had a swimming pool, basketball courts,
playground, and skating ring outside for public use. Highlight there: I got to play soccer with a
little Taiwanese boy, who was young enough to not realize that I have no clue
what I am doing with a soccer ball at my feet.
The second park was the most interesting part of the day. It had pieces of art and statues everywhere,
and most of these somehow found a way to be naked. The pieces ranged from nursing mothers, to
fat, pink people, to abstract monsters, and all of them were naked. But if you could get past the in your face
nudity, the park was awesome, with lakes and bridges, and beautiful
lights. After almost 7 hours of travel
and visits, we stopped and rested at a local Tea Shop. At this teashop, I was blessed with the
opportunity to drink a Milk Tea that was over a pint. I felt like a champion drinking it, and here
Sarah, Matt, and I dove into some great conversation about the Spirit of
God. We finally made it home after
almost 10 hours of adventure, and crashed on the couch.
I was sitting on the couch, waiting
for the kids to go to sleep, catching up on Wifi, and anticipating our late
night House Church service, when all of a sudden, the entire family came into
the living room. They wanted to invite
me into one of their family traditions.
I sat on the opposite couch, as they sat all cuddled together, and they
began to bless each other. Matt and Sarah blessed the kids and told them how
proud they were of them. The kids
blessed Matt and Sarah in adorable ways that only a two year old and four year
old could do. Matt blessed Sarah and
Sarah blessed Matt, and then they turned and blessed me. It was powerful moment; it was an intimate
moment, and a moment that reminded me of why I chose to stay back this
weekend. It was an incredible weekend
full of adventure and full of an incredible family in the Korells. A weekend I will not soon forget.
So I want to leave you with
this. This is not fabricated or
filtered; this is truly what has been on my heart as I have thought about what
to write. My adventure is coming to a
close soon, and for all of you who have read and followed this seeking of a Great
Perhaps, I want to bless you, if you want to receive it.
“Blessed is the one who
transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man (or woman)
against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no
deceit.” –Psalms 32:1-2. Thank you for
sharing this adventure with me, for taking the time to read this and to
care. Thanks for prayers, support, and
love. I pray that God will bless your every step and you will see, taste, feel,
and experience his goodness in Jesus Christ.
Alleluia.
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