Taiwan

October would be a great time to visit, son Gerald told me.  I think you should come, he said.  So we began making plans for yet another trip.  This appears to be the time in life when we seem to be at our kid's disposal.  Not that I mind; I love spending time with them.  After a couple of pleasant weeks at home, we packed up and headed out.

Going to Taiwan is sort of a big deal.  It takes 1 1/2 hours to fly to San Francisco, then 11 hours to fly to Narita, Japan, sleep overnight and catch a 2 1/2 hour flight into Taipei.  Whew, two days later we arrived.  Our night in Japan turned into a blessing as it gave us lots of sleeping time.  So by the time we arrived in Taipei we felt pretty good; no jet lag to speak of.

Outside our Narita hotel the entrance sign was
decorated for Christmas!  

There was a bamboo forest near our Narita
hotel, where we spotted this amazing spider.
For a spider, he (or she) is quit beautiful!

The door to our Narita bathroom.  Definitely
not made with a tall man in mind.

We had our best time yet in Feng Yuan, Gerald and Frances' home town.  We visited the kids' elementary school (where both Frances and her father before her attended).  It was arranged for us to give simple presentations in both Seth's and Angelica's classes.  So fun!  Layne talked about flying and I talked about Halloween, which they are really into.  They were fascinated although I must admit that much of their fascination probably centered around our not being Asian.  They called us grandma and grandpa and practiced their best English on us.  It was a lovely experience, followed by photos of us with the kids.  Some of them even sent gifts home to us.  We felt so honored and appreciated.  Respect is big here.  Especially for older people.  I like it.

Angelica's class.  She is in the front row, wearing glasses.

Seth's class.  He is in the back row, the tall guy in red.

Seth loves to run.  Here he is running during
PE at school.  He's in the middle.

Gerald and Frances have a successful English school here.  This year they are giving a lot of attention to Halloween.  Their teachers decorated the small school building across from their home for a special Halloween experience for their students.  One of the teachers (all are BYU grads) had a vision for a spook alley room that was bigger than she was.  So we decided to help her make it happen.  Layne, I, Seth and Angelica went to work painting cardboard panels and turning them into a spooky maze.  Sunny, the teacher, added bunches of other stuff.  She was there every evening, developing her vision.  She would not be compromised!  We started helping her last weekend and she was still at work Thursday night.  Such steel-willed determination is pretty rare.

Here is Gerald with a class of tots at the English school.

Here is part of our mural for the spooky maze.

We ate dinner each night with Frances' parents, the Changs, who live next door.  Her mama's meals all follow the same pattern:  we each are served a bowl of rice; the rotating lazy susan holds a selection of vegetables, meat and fish, with a pot of soup in the middle.  We graze through the various offering, placing them on the rice and eating it all down to just some rice grains remaining in the bottom of the bowl.  Then comes the soup to finish up every morsel.  Dessert is fresh fruit.  It is a great way to eat, and delicious "Han suh" is delicious in Chinese.  I used it every night.

Here I am with Mama Chang, in their dining room.

The problem became eating too much of all this good stuff.  Being the caring people that they are, they kept filing us with big meals and all sorts of treats in between.  So, in the midst of these skinny Chinese, I believe I've gained weight!

While there we experienced a sweet family miracle.  Gerald's children are now 9 and 11 years old and still not baptized.  He wanted to wait until Fran felt good about it and give her permission and blessing.  She has felt that they were too young.  So they have been fasting and praying for three years for her heart to soften.  While we were there Seth felt inspired that now was the time to ask his mom again.

Frances has been struggling for some months now with insomnia and digestive issues resulting from extended periods of high stress, brought on by her own relentless work load.  It has brought her to her knees and to a rediscovery of God and the spiritual world.  Her heart is tender.  So when Seth asked to be baptized this week, she said yes!

Cautious excitement followed as Gerald quickly arranged for the baptisms last Wednesday.  The Chang grandparents came, along with a surprising number of others.  Layne and I gave the talks.  A sweet spirit filled the room as the meeting proceeded.  And so we experienced our miracle, timed when we could be there!  So far we've attended the baptisms of every grandchild and I believe I've spoken at all of them.

Wednesday October 30, baptism day!  Here you see Seth and Angelica
in front.  Back is Papa Chang ("The Chairman"), Layne, Gerald,
Mama Chang, me and Frances.

We spoke English to the senior Changs and they responded in Chinese.  Still, we managed to communicate, using sign language, limited mutually understood words, smiles and laughs.  The Chang family show their love through service.  They made our stay embracing by feeding us, paying all of our expenses and providing sweet comforts of various sorts.  Frances, too, spent time with us and did all sorts of things to serve us, including a trip to a place nearby called Chalk City.  Rayne visited it while she was here and I've wanted to see it since then.  It isn't really much, just someone's abandoned home that is covered in drawings, done in brightly colored paint. 

Here we are, posing with a brightly clad guy, at Chalk City.

We were able to spend quite a bit of tim with Seth and Angelica; also Gerald and Frances.  "I"m much better now," Fran assured us, speaking of her struggle with insomnia.  And she is.  We had a lovely visit with her.  Gerald and I talked for two hours straight one day.  He studies both spiritual and temporal subjects regularly and has developed a powerful philosophy and has an extensive plan for educating his children.  He is very consistent with personal study and teaching time for the kids.  I'm so impressed with his insights and competence.  

There is something special about the Chang family.  Perhaps it is their strength of character.  Perhaps it is their affectionate ways; unusual in the Chinese culture.  There is something about them that calls out to us.  We love them.  This visit with our Chinese family was the best ever!

A flight to Narita, then San Francisco, then Boise brought us home 24 hours later, by Friday night.  I saw two great films along the way and thanked Layne for taking me to the movies.  It's the only time he does.

Seth

Angelica

Homes:  Gerald and Frances live on the left; Senior Changs
on the right, in the bright white home.

Gerald and kids, on the way to school.  Taiwan is
full of scooters.  Perhaps because gas is so expensive.