Blessed Summer 2011

Today is the first day of school after ten weeks of summer break. It means summer is officially over; Didi and I are now back to school :( We are excited yet nervous for different challenges in the new school year! Looking back this summer, it was time filled with love and God's Blessings. I accomplished multiple tasks and it was the most meaningful summer of my life.

First, my family had a nice two weeks vacation in China, especially with the accompaniment of my grandparents. China is our origin country and I was thankful for an opportunity to visit and study our own people's culture. Indeed, the Chinese culture is very different from the Western
culture where I grew up. However, I do enjoy some Chinese aspects more than Western, especially Chinese food - noodles and bread!

Then, I joined a missionary trip to Cambodia for one week. It was the first time I went on a trip without my parents. This trip was totally different than the China trip except the weather - both countries were hot and humid. In China, we had a buffet for breakfast everyday and there were plenty of food left over from lunch and dinner. In Cambodia, the kids there were small and skinny. In the morning, we had one egg for breakfast and rice with one dish of vegetable for lunch and dinner. People hardly eat meat there because they cannot afford it. Most of the time, I ate rice with soy sauce because they didn't have enough food. Although life is very poor in Cambodia, I saw joy and happiness in these kids. The joyful spirit has influenced me and I enjoyed the Cambodia trip very much! Next, I visited Taiwan for 3 days before I returned to USA. Of course, I was happy to see Uncle Johnny, Auntie Maria, John Paul and Matthias. Besides traveling, I also invested my time in studying the SAT over the summer. I have seen an improvement from 1790 (first score before the class started) to 2080 (last score before the class ended). I hope to continue and improve my score to 2200 when I take a real SAT test in October.
In September 19, Dad will start his new job at Children Hospital Orange County (CHOC). This time, Daddy found a new job quickly and easily. He only applied for two jobs and got interviews on both. Within 2 weeks, he already received an offer from CHOC. CHOC is located in Orange County which is 3 miles closer than Good Samaritan Hospital (Dad's current job). We have had a good start for a new school year. Now, Daddy is able to come home early and take Didi to soccer practice so Mom can rest more. I hope Didi becomes more responsible and independent in self study this year. Thank you God for a wonderful summer and I hope we have more great year to come!