Continuing the List

This past weekend inspired some more additions to the list of 50 things I like about Boston. Enjoy!

11. Reuniting with old friends from China now living in Boston.

12. Sichuan Gourmet in Brookline. The first restaurant I've visited outside of China's borders that serves LEGIT 川菜, including but not limited to amazing 回锅肉，real 空泡鸡丁，and hold your breath my dear friends... 烧烤!!!!!! Apart from water chestnut and baby corn in the 烧烤, I would not have known I was in Boston.

13. The autumn leaves and beautiful sunny days. Boston in the fall really is great.

14. Our futon (since it has hosted many friends in the short time we've been here!)

15. A job that propels me to worship with my Chinese brothers and sisters at their local churches. 

New Home, New List

I've been recently inspired to restart this blog. It was my primary outlet during my years living in Asia, but upon returning to the United States, my interest in it dwindled (see Carved to Adorn, the blog my sister and I write, for a glimpse of where my creative energies have been channeled).

With my recent marriage and move to the Boston area, however, I've once again transitioned to a new home and once again struggled to connect with my new surroundings. (Noticing a trend... hmmm?) My poor, dear husband has finally grown tired of me complaining about life in New England, so it's time for me to move past the "I-can't-handle-this-place" stage to one of the truly best stages - exploration and discovery.

So as I've done with the last 2 moves, I am going to make a list of 50 things I like about Boston and/or New England. I must confess, it seems a daunting task at the moment, but so did it feel every other time I forced myself to make such a list. It'll grow over the coming weeks and I anticipate, by the time I'm finished, I will truly be able to say "I love this place."

Here it goes...

1. Having a home with my husband
2. Apartment windows that look out onto trees
3. Neighbors who a) own horses, and b) ride their horses around the neighborhood
4. Living this close to the ocean - a first!
5. Mike's Pastry Shop
6. The Boston Public Library
7. Hearing Turkey's gobble out the apartment window
8. The commuter rail and the T
9. Finally having somewhere to hang my art collection
10. Lots and lots of used book stores - seriously could not ask for a city with more of them!

Technological Dislike and Responsibility

I tend to dislike technology. It's not that I begrudge the benefits it brings me, but rather I strongly disdain the feeling of being weighed down by it. It so often feels like a leash - one more thing to look after, to be responsible for, to be beholden to. It is expensive, easily stolen, and much to consuming. Most of all, I just don't "get it," failing to understand it despite the endless tutorials and lessons given me by those who do. As a result, I tend to be sloppy and careless with my digital 东西.

Last night, my hard drive crashed and burned. Luckily, I am laid back enough about this sort of stuff, that there were no tears or cussing, despite not having backed up since January. Some things are gone, true, but there is this part of me that almost feels freedom in knowing I am ruled by my computer. There's a kind of messed up pride in me that almost feels proud that I can be so unconquered by the pictures, music, emails, documents, whatever which has been lost.

But today, I started to think the whole situation through, and I realized this is not actually something to feel so unaffected by. Maybe it's true that there is no use in shedding tears over spilled milk; what's done is done. In the end, however, I've concluded that this is actually nothing other than a sign of immaturity and irresponsibility. Maybe I don't want to feel tied down by the things I posses, but if I truly desire this, then I shouldn't posses them in the first place. If I am going to invest money into something which I believe will enhance my life, then I must be faithful to care for it. Maybe I truly don't like the constant up keep and maintenance, but that is part of the deal.

It's been a good lesson in how you can have two opposing opinions or convictions and be completely unaware of it. In addition to my dislike of technology, I have a strong dislike of "throw away" culture. I live in a country where everything from buildings to text books are designed, manufactured, and sold as dispensable - use it while it's convenient and then move on. What is really different from this and my careless attitude toward the computers, phones, cars, ipods, etc. that I have owned? Maybe I make the excuse that is stems from my desire not to be leashed, but really, in the end, it's just an immature and irresponsible way of disregarding the idea of stewardship.

Poverty

In Walking With the Poor, Bryant Myers discusses the varieties of poverty we find in our world. He writes that we are all poor and need others to address our poverty whether it's financial, spiritual, emotional, etc. I may be able to assist someone who is financially disadvantaged compared to myself, but there are many ways that same person can speak to my particular form of poverty. I thought this was an excellent idea when I first encountered it, but living in Washington, DC, has caused me to experience it.

One day not long after moving to DC, my roommate Christie and I were approached by a woman asking for money as we walked out of church. I was usually pretty good at just shrugging off such requests, but Christie couldn't do so as easily. Neither of us wanted to just hand over cash and we fumbled for words. To this day, I don't really know what happened, but somehow the words "dinner" escaped our mouths and the next things we knew, Gloria was walking us down the street to buy her dinner. I was grumpy and felt pushed into the situation, but as the evening went on, I started to realize just how much my heart needed such pushing. During the past months since our first encounter, my heart has been challenged again and again to love this woman.

Today, though, I realized how much Gloria has not just been a challenge for me, but a tool from God to address my own poverty. Since I am moving, I decided to give Gloria my bed rather than try to sell it or store it for the next two years. It seemed like a rather simple thing to do. But as the time grew closer to actually give it away, I started to cling to this possession. My heart came up with so many excuses such as Christie having a matching bed, the sheets and comforters were my favorite all through college, maybe I would need it after returning from Asia, etc.

But I forced myself to give it away. A friend graciously helped me move and set up my bed for Gloria and as we left her apartment waving goodbye, he asked me, "Are you going to miss Gloria?" "Yes," I responded. Thoughts raced through my mind and I came up with many things I will miss about her, but I will especially miss the way having her in my life forces me to hold my possessions more loosely. Knowing Gloria has shown me my spiritual poverty, the way I cling to things, unable to acknowledge that everything truly is God's. I may have given Gloria a bed, but she has given me a new sense of security in the Lord.