Em, Brian, Sally and I plus two dogs…………..the students left today.  Sally took them by boat to the other island and then by 4×4 down the 20 kilometers of logging/paved road to the ferry.  They left at 10:00 for the 12:00 ferry and, tho they could ‘walk on’, they couldn’t take the car because it was full.  Sally walked with them through town to the bus station and they were hugged and ‘goodbyed’.  They are now on their way to Victoria.  Sally got back by 3:00.  That’s five hours just to get to the nearest bus station and back!

It is good to have the house back to semi-normal (Em is here, after all!).  Already the pace and decibel level have lessened.  Having the students is great.  Really great.  They are wonderful young people and strong friendships have been made.  And we sort of feel like we are ‘doing something’ to assuage the pollution, consumption and materialism that has come to symbolize the Chinese ‘way’ of becoming a ‘first world nation’.   

Isn’t that tragic?  The current definition of first world is basically pollution, crap and overwork.  It really should be sustainable in every way – especially for the people.  China is currently very close to being unsustainable in terms of healthy lifestyle.  It is already unsustainable environmentally speaking. 

That stereotype, of course, is not quite fair to anyone, even the Chinese government.  But, from our vantage point, it seems as if their country is hell-bent on polluting itself and everyone else into oblivion. The present first world, it seems, is not a good role model.  And soon, economically anyway, China will be first world. 

I do not fear relinquishing top-of-the-heap to anyone.  My heap is good enough for me, thank you.  But I do fear a society whose influence will be great heading the world to the brink of environmental disaster.  Look how the US has done so far………..

The students have never seen a forest like ours.  They have never seen eagles and ravens and porpoises and seals soaring and cavorting around them.  They were stunned at the natural abundance of free and clean food-for-the-picking by simply walking out the door.  In fact, they have never even see the stars properly at night (due to the excessive ambient light)!  These are urban kids, raised in concrete and shut in classrooms and offices like Skinner boxes.  Their ‘everyday life’ is hell for me, and, at the very least, quite unpleasant for them.

But they didn’t really know that.  Not until they came here.  They only knew what they had experienced, ‘what is normal’ in the city.  Now they know that ‘normal and natural’ can be very, very different from what they have grown used to.  I think it is important for them and for their country that some young people know this.  Admittedly, it is a small thing.  A very, very small thing.  4 Students at time is the smallest of things.  But it is still an important thing and we were pleased to offer the opportunity to them.

But we may not do it again.  It is getting hard.  There is a week of preparation and half week of cleaning and, of course, there is the week of ‘hosting’ that exhausts me and Sally does twice what I do.  I think we can still offer this experience if we can find a way to ‘cut back’ our efforts but, to be fair, cutting back might ‘short change’ their experience and so we have to get creative if we are to continue.  Delegating some of the ‘hosting’ might work.  Hiring some help might work.  Maybe even just building another ‘bathroom’ for them………….we’ll see.  Whatever it is, I hope we can continue.  Any suggestions would be appreciated.