It's hard to know what to post that is different than what I write in my emails to people, but here I am in East Asia and I know there is lots to say about my time here so far.
I've been here a month and a half, and feel like I am slowly getting settled in. It's interesting the things that people told me about moving overseas that I heard over and over, but disregarded. For example, so many people told me it would be hard and draining to keep up with many people back home, but being the extrovert/people pursuer that I am, I wasn't too concerned. Turns out - every email, phone call, and skype date feels daunting. People want to know what is happening here, and how do I know what to say? I'm living life. Most days just feel like another day. They want to know what Father is doing in and through me, and right now my focus is learning language and at times I feel like I'm doing absolutely nothing.
Also, many of my friends have never had friendships with people living in other countries, and don't know what communication in different time zones/situations looks like. I think it intimidates some of them, and so typically if I want to talk to someone, I have to make it happen. Probably people are just thinking that it's only been a month and a half and that's not too long to go without chatting with someone. Unfortunately, on my side of things, it's a month and a half rarely talking to anyone that is not here (and most people here speak only Chinese). I miss people a lot quicker, typically, than they are going to miss me.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not complaining. I'm not upset. It's just interesting and I'm learning how to navigate it. It's good to learn how to do community in different ways.
Do you have any thoughts or tips about how to do community from afar? Would love to hear from you.
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