So, I have been home now for about five days since my adventures in Hangzhou and I’ve been putting off the final post to the blog.  I think that although I am deeply grateful to be home, I am nonetheless a bit unwilling to end the ‘China Chapter’ of my life’s journey.  This experience was one filled with a lot of challenges, but also allowed me to look deeply at myself as a teacher, as a mother, a wife…a human being.  What I’ve learned is that in all of these respects, I still have a good deal of room for improvement—or rather, to put it more positively, there are still many opportunities to better myself.   I could recount in this post, all of the final activities I engaged in—(i.e. the teacher/student water gun war, boat ride down the canal, the hunt for Haagen Daz on a hot summer evening in Hangzhou, the Open House we put on for Wahaha WeLearning parents)—but instead, I wanted to share what I’ve learned from this experience:

1. Life is overflowing with wonderful and joyful moments.  If we spend too much time dwelling on the what ifs, the only ifs, the buts and the why me’s, we will fail to see the joy in our experiences. It’s easy to get bogged down by negativity and judgment. Sadly, I think that I didn’t realize this until AFTER I returned from Hangzhou.  Were things perfect? No.  Challenging? Yes. But they were also eye-opening, beautiful, wondrous and amazing too.  I’d much rather celebrate these moments.
2. When you are faced with a situation in which you don’t speak the language, remember that a smile is universal. It breaks down biases and connects cultures.
3. Parents in every culture and every part of the world want the same things for their children—happiness, opportunity and success. 
4. All children want to be happy…to be heard…to be loved.
5. A good teacher is one who remembers that learning is about the student, not the teacher. 
6. You’re never too old to learn something new.
7. Though it is difficult, everyone should have the experience of being the ‘other’ in a culture.  It is frustrating and at times, even humiliating, but it also incredibly humbling and helps to build empathy towards others.
8. Sometimes you have to let go in order to hold on.
9. Laughter and music are bridges.  Use them.
10. When in doubt—just smile, breathe and say ‘yes.’.

That's all I've got. China has been quite a ride!  For the few of you who read this blog, I hope you enjoyed it.  

With Gratitude,

Heather

P.S.  We found Teddy!