The coolest thing was getting to see the pictures of our exchange student growing up in China. And his parents were obviously so proud.
Until meeting this young man, who is actually named Chenjun, but who insists that we call him "Frank," the American name that they gave him for the exchange, my real exposure to China really was primarily from EPCOT. In fact I have always wanted to take him to Disney World to see what he thought.
Anyhow, though, it has been a real blessing knowing him for these two years. I have learned a lot. He was relieved at how much more free time he had in school here (a good thing?). He also explained what he was taught about China's relationship to Taiwan, and it helped me understand a little more about their perspective vis-a-vis Taiwan's. I have also had an interesting discussion with him on capitalism vs. freedom as motivating factors for Americans. He had kept using the word "capitalism" when comparing to China's communist background. And it dawned on me that he thought of that as the main difference and motivating factor in the American perspective and government. It made for a good conversation, as I explained that, while capitalism was in fact our economic system, most Americans would not ever really think about it as a motivating factor to them for patriotism -- that instead the motivating factor was freedom. Yes, I said, that capitalism (and particularly property ownership) was a tool and factor in working out how freedom translated to government, but that freedom was the motivating factor that Americans cherished and would cite a hundred times more than capitalism as something that was important to them. It made for an interesting conversation, as he talked about it. He talked about coming back here for college, and perhaps moving here; while in the same breath talking with reverence about the values that he grew up with. It also became most clear that his family life, while different and influenced by the culture, was also remarkably similar to the hopes and dreams and aspirations that we all have. He recently had to do a "senior presentation" at school (a 20-minute speech about something important to him), and he spoke about perspectives and truth -- largely that truth was larger than our temporary or imcomplete perspectives. It was a wonderful speech, and as part of it he opened up about his feelings at first when his parents told him he was coming to America for a year (at first). He said he was a little fearful and wondered why his mother, if she loved him, would have wanted to send him away for so long and so far. But he now knew that she wanted the best for him, and for him to have experiences she would never have gotten. His parents are people of modest means, and the cost of transportation and living here was huge to them, but worth it for his growth.
So, in opening and seeing these pictures, of him growing up, the story was made so complete -- and I was moved by seeing a family so far away, but yet so close. I saw a parents and a kid and his friends at the park. I saw a kid smiling at his birthday, and hanging from monkeybars. I saw proud parents with their child visiting a national monument (the Great Wall). And at the end of the file, I was moved again with pictures they had sent showing him in America -- pictures that I had taken and shared some time with him, and which he had shared with his parents as important. Clearly they did not know that I had taken these couple of pics, but it meant a lot to me that he had shared them with his parents with enough attention that they included them in a file of pictures about his life.
What a blessing.
Thanks for helping me open these pictures -- and open my perspective even more.
