Ryu2.mind

Back and finally settled into Shanghai -- or so, it feels like it to me that I'm actually living here now, rather than just on an extended business trip. Knowing that I won't be off to Hong Kong or the USA for holidays/retreats/conferences/whatnot, plus the fact that I've finally found a place, gives me more confidence to start planting my foundation for my next 1.5, 2, or however many years I'm called to in this city.

* WCC was a blessing as usual and in not-so-usual ways as well; it was my first conference from the other side of the fence (serving, rather than just attending), and even though it was busy and I was almost losing my sanity with last minute admin work, I think everything was ultimately provided for by someone "above".

Fortunately, I was still able to experience most of the content of the conference itself; for me, it felt strange -- in a good way -- because I've taken WCC and its central message to heart; my "launching out" to this life out here in Shanghai provides this point -- so it was a reminder and a renewal of commitment, rather than a whole new "eye-opening" experience for me.

On the other hand, I'm not one of those people who've spent years out on the field and have gripping stories to share and encourage the masses, like the keynote speakers or the "consultants" do. I'm somewhere inbetween this continuum, but I know that it was good to just make sure I'm oriented the right way as I start off in this city.

Finally, it was an affirmation -- the blogs of various GrXers and others who attended WCC 2005 certainly say that much -- that the good work that has begun at GrX and WCC is being carried, sustained, and indeed, cultivated by Him, not me, and even in my relatively sudden departure, He is raising up people and building the momentum for overseas work through these two organizations near and dear to my heart.

Back to the present.

This is China... or just tic. It's an expression rather popular amongst the expat population here, often used as a pseudo expletive when people get pissed off at whatever little thing. People blowing smoke in your face in a building, no smoking sign clearly in view? TIC! Got caught in a spit crossfire? TIC! A customer "service" person sends you to another window, which promptly sends you back to the original one, pitting you like a human ping pong ball? TIC!

This is my eighth (ninth?) trip to the mainland (ie, not counting HK, Macau, or Taiwan), so I think by now, I've started to not be totally shocked or upset at the many aspects of daily life here that would elicit a TIC from a China newbie... until today.

* Shanghai is divided by the Huangpu river running through the middle of the city, and its two halves are known as Puxi (west) and Pudong (east). When Kipling penned his famous line of: 'Oh, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet', he could very well be describing Shanghai taxis today. It seems every Puxi taxi driver has no knowledge of Pudong, and vice versa.

Anyhow, I was in a rush, so I decided to cab it to work, rather than taking the subway. I tell the front desk to call a taxi. The wait is abnormally long (so much for saving time...), and when I finally get in, the driver is clueless about the street name... yes, the hotel thought this rich overseas Chinese was going to Pudong airport, and thus called a Pudong taxi. The second time, it happened again, but I realized it, and just told them where to go step by step. Lesson learned: When calling for a taxi provided by a hotel, always tell them your destination.

My first time so far where I actually got in sort of a annoyed mood... TIC!

* The government-condoned practice of having two separate prices for local Chinese and foreigners used to be the norm in China, but it has been abolished for quite some time now. Yet, its spirit still lives on... for at several restaurants, I've noticed that they'll have a nice menu with English text and photos. Then, they'll have a menu completely in Chinese listing other dishes not on the English menu, comparable in quality and quantity, but for about half the price.

Of course, they have not violated the letter of the law, since a foreigner who reads Chinese could certainly order the cheaper dishes from the Chinese menu. But of course, most ignorant laowai will be oblivious to this disparity.

Actually, I was more amused rather than annoyed at this whole thing; perhaps if I knew just a bit less characters, I might be annoyed. All the more reason to learn! =)

* The sun is finally starting to shine... I'm not sentimental, but waking up to sunlight on my face has actually renewed me quite a bit.

* I'm hopefully moving into my permanent place tomorrow! =) An end to this convenient but sterile hotel lifestyle is at hand.

* A friend of mine, living in China for 6 years and counting, gave me the advice of getting 8 hours of sleep during your first month, whether you want to or not, and I am going to take her advice to heart...

晚安！

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While I like to think I speak slightly better Mandarin than the typical ABC, it's far from perfect, and it's clear that I'm not a native speaker of it. It's pointless trying to deny this, but sometimes, I'll be told that I don't sound like a mainland Chinese, and I'll get asked as to where I'm from.

This sometimes happens in taxis, Shanghai cabbies being a chatty lot -- which, mind you, can be a helpful thing, a chance to sample the barometer of the typical Shanghainese on the street. In response to this question, I'll say I'm a overseas Chinese from North America. That satisfies most of them, but twice now, I've then been asked what country.

I said "Canada" -- even though I had no connection to that country whatsoever.

Yes, it was technically lying... but I really had no desire to get into a heated argument about US foreign policy and listen to rants about Bush and his administration -- especially when 1. I consider myself first and foremost a Chinese, not an American, 2. I didn't vote for Bush, and 3. when I myself disagree with much of what the US has been doing worldwide in the last few years.

I suppose if I had more energy, I would have truthfully said that I was raised in the US, and pre-empt the inevitable anti-American rant by telling them that I myself am no fan of Bush and his actions... but I was just too tired.

Was I wrong? What would you have all done... and to the China-based ABC readers, what do you all do? =P

Solving this jigsaw puzzle and posting about this sweepstakes for Big Red makes me eligible for free Xanga Premium for life...

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Sigh... I can't believe I just did this silly thing.

Still, eProps to whoever at Xanga and/or Big Red came up with this -- viral marketing at its best!

Finally settled into my new and more or less permanent place, opened my bank account, my work visa is being processed... at long last, I think it truly begins.

Anyhow, I went to the International Church here for the first time in a while (well, since 2002 at least).

I was looking forward to this first Sunday where I really wanted to focus on meeting new faces at the International Church, but shortly before I was to leave home, I get a knock on my door while I'm showering. I hurriedly put on something, and went out to greet them. A delivery guy comes with a desk... very well, I was expecting it. I tell him to just put it in my room, and then he says... 180 kuai. What the...? For the desk? I told him that no, my landlord is supposed to be paying for this... and where the heck was he?!? This is of course, while I'm still dripping wet.

I tell him to call the landlord, and lo and behold, he's coming. Finally, he comes, and all is resolved, and I just tell him to work with the guys to bring the other upcoming furniture in.

Yes, the classic case of one hand not knowing what the other is doing. I shudder to think what would happen if I was a laowai who couldn't speak Chinese.

TIC...

Anyhow, I was planning a leisurely walk to church down Nanjing Xi Lu, to Changshu Lu, and down Hengshan Lu to take in Shanghai on a beautiful (relatively) Sunday afternoon, but of course, this complication put a wrench in my plans, and I had to cab it.

Got to the church just as they were doing introductions. I hurriedly introduce myself, where I was from, what I was doing here. I was still rushed though, and it didn't help that I forgot to turn off my cell phone ringer and chiedog calla me right in the middle of the offering time. RING!

Imagine the eyes of several hundred people from over 40 nations fixed on you. Doh! Well, I'm sure people will now remember who I am now...

The whole thing just sort of threw my heart off track for worship. Mind you, it was awe-insipiring, I felt. If you want a taste of "every tribe and tongue" worshipping Him together as described in Revelation is like, there is probably no better place -- at least in this world -- than the International Fellowship in Shanghai or its sister in Beijing. Taiwan and HK Chinese, Caucasians, Africans, South Asians, young students to senior citizens -- all singing with one voice, and one heart.

And yet... it was not perfect for me. Because, with every occasional off-key note, with every missed beat, with every wrong lyric displayed... I started thinking:

It's good, but it's no GrX. And I began to imagine:
if only Bobby was here leading worship...
If only Tiff was programming and Mike was doing tech...
If only Ben was in charge of ushering... and yes, those Krispy Kremes...

... this place would be so much better!

And then, I mentally kicked myself... because I should be glad that such a place even exists here! And that He calls us to worship Him in spirit and in truth, not in Powerpoint and in amplified instruments... the former that 2 billion believers do every week, the latter, something only a very few in developed countries get to experience, and which matters nary a whit in His eyes. In the final set, we sang "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross"... and He again reminded me that we should be be focused on Him up there, and not our stuff down here.

I realized, during the message, that they could just be pangs of longing for a community that I just left behind indefinitely scarcely two week ago, a community I always took for granted -- but then again, I realized that these feelings of inadequacy and selfishness might just be the enemy might be attacking me.

Please keep me in your thoughts...

Still, He lifted me up, for it was there I ran into Pui from Stanford, studying at Fudan... what a blessing to see a like-minded old friend from school, now out here as well.

And there were more blessings in the interactions we had afterwards... more to come. =)

I read very recently an interesting article about the Shanghainese dialect.

Just when I thought my Mandarin was getting better, and even in this day and age of Mandarin truly being the common language in China, I realize that speaking Shanghainese still has its benefits.

Everything in the article I've found, in my limited time here, to be more or less true -- the Shanghainese do think of themselves with an air of superiority; while not arrogant, very much perceivable still. Yes, Mandarin is now the language taught in the schools, and speaking Mandarin isn't a problem for me going about my daily life, but still, they look at you as an outsider, and so they might not give you the best deals, etc.

When I was hunting for an apartment, the agent that my company introduced me to spoke Shanghainese exclusively to the landlords as we were touring the various offerings, and he wasn't even native to Shanghai himself, so that extra 'edge' in diffentiating yourself from the masses of other waidiren moving here from all over China to try and make a living must at least amount to something tangible.

Even putting practicalities and social niceties aside, I've always relished the intellectual challenge of learning new languages -- even in my short visit to Mongolia in 2003, I tried to learn some greetings and piece together simple sentences in Mongolian. Since I'm here for at least a year or two, I feel that it's only proper I at least learn the local dialect here sometime. Of course, I'll never be perfect, but knowing the Chinese, even taking the effort makes people appreciative.

And to my Shanghainese friends (Kevin, clieu, ...) come back to your roots and join me out here, so you can help me out!! ;)

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...is not easily broken.

This passage from the good book was firmly imprinted in my mind during an informal FiCS brothers' retreat at Bodega Bay during Spring Break of junior year. Andy 'hsiaonao'/'beautiful' Hsiao led a devotion from a Promise Keeper's book, where it talked about the constant need to have three "strands" amongst one's like-minded friends, and used that illustration from that verse to represent the three types:

1. A strand representing an older and wiser brother, one who leads and influences through mentorship and/or discipleship.

2. A strand representing one's like-minded peers, a source of fellowship, mutual encouragement, and accountability.

3. A strand representing those that you act as strand 1 towards.

I'm thankful that in my nascent life here, there has already started to be the seeds planted of strands 2 and 3.

But the glaring omission is still in the first category. So my request is this... I need a mentor, a discipler out here. Not someone formally ordained in his position who leads by formal sheparding of his flock, but a gege, dailo, hyung, someone that I can just be totally vulrenable and transparent too, that I can expose all my sham, all my sin, all my interest in various specific and non-specific members of the opposite sex, everything... someone who is totally unafraid of rebuking me, often harshly, to strengthen -- or oftentimes, restrengthen -- my own discipline.

Basically, someone like say, Harold or Justin at FiCS/KCPC... or Collin, Min, or Roy at GrX was to me in influencing my own life both directly through counsel and teaching and indirectly through their own lifestyle...

In being out here, and facing the temptation on multiple fronts, the need is clearly so much greater.

I know that a healthy spiritual life always will have those three strands present. And yet, I wonder, is the first strand always in the form of a person? In the Book, the discipler/disciple relationship was far from apparent for many great leaders -- certainly in the OT pre-Son, it seemed to be the norm, and yet they did great things.

Indeed, even in secular epics ranging from Star Wars to LotR to many a Final Fantasy, the mentor, the father figure of the hero, while playing an instrumental role in cultivating him, was never around in the moment of ultimate triumph...

Whether such a new person appears in my life, seems to be one of those ambiguous spiritual answers, for which I am called to wait not on the final answer to, but to continue to persevere in faith and trust, knowing that He will provide at the right time...

Thank you for your thoughts, and please continue to do so!
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Potential places in the region that I'm thinking of visiting during the weeklong May 1st holiday; some where I can hang out with friends, others where I'll be doing the whole touristy thing by myself or with strangers...

* Cambodia (never been there)
* Indonesia (never been there)
* Japan
* Korea (South)
* Korea (not South... ;) ) (never been there)
* Malaysia
* Mongolia
* Philippines (never been there)
* Thailand
* Vietnam (never been there)

I've already decided I'm NOT returning to the USA then...

Any suggestions, or anyone up for joining me?

The above quote, courtesy of a FiCS sister who shall remain nameless after returning from a stint in Japan.

I thought that was pretty funny when I first heard it during college, but ack -- I'm starting to feel the same way now as well. I've been here for only 3 weeks, and I think my spoken English is already starting to regress! =P

I had dinner this past Wednesday with a Korean-American brother and his wife and kids and just getting to know them better, sharing about my life, hopes, and fears... I'm quite thankful as I think it is -- at least partially -- an answer to my request two entries ago.

But -- ack, too much stuff like "I have been just, uhhh... obtaining various items for my apartment" vs. "I've just been buying stuff" or "I work for an... uhhh... international development company of... uhh... video games." vs "I work for an international video game developer" was coming out of my mouth.

I don't know if this is good (meaning I'm thinking more in Chinese these days) or bad... =P

* While on the way to said dinner, at circa 6:45 PM, I was walking through stopped bumper to bumper traffic on Changle Lu -- with an ambulance with blue lights flashing in the midst of the jam, as immobile as everyone else. Note to self: do not get injured seriously in China...

* Worship for the international church small group I checked out tonight was "lead" by someone's DVD player. Yup -- praise songs in karaoke format; has to been seen and heard to be believed.

Hmmmm... I think I should bring some back to the states next time I stop by -- a perfect chance to combine two of our favorite GrX small group pastimes: Karaoke and Praise! Mindy -- next Living Stone activity... ;)

* I thought Korean-Americans from SoCal had a annoying habit of lapsing into Korean sometimes, but compared to Malaysians/Indonesians/Singaporeans at the international church, they are tame...

Yes, I love all of you, and yes, you're the dominant ethnicities in most of the small groups but -- ahh, so terok, lah! I know all you guys are perfectly capable of speaking the Queen's English, having befriended quite a few people from your respective countries while at Stanford, so please do try to speak English, not Singlish or Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia in conversations where there are others participating not of the above ethnicities... ;)

More than once, in my few weeks here thus far, a nice evening stroll on the way back to work, or a night on the town with friends on Tongren Lu or Xintiandi have been marred by beggars doing their thing. They almost always invoke a mixture of pity, frustration, and rage in me that's completely incompatible with whatever I was feeling before, and it's just hard for me to get them out of my mind afterwards.

In China, like most of the rest of the world, beggars are like email spammers -- people here (locals and expats alike) generally detest what they do, but they keep on doing it, for the simple reason that however much they get rejected, enough still respond to them to make what they are doing financially worthwhile. Likewise, if they are truly poor, why would they travel to and/or live in Shanghai, the most expensive city on the mainland? Beggars know it's teeming with well-meaning but naive tourists and expats, and they can recoup their investment and more in a day's "work". A "good" (if such a term can be used) beggar in Shanghai can make several times more than a "honest" factory worker can, for a lot less physical exertion.

At the same time, it is worth remembering that many of them ARE really in need, and not scammers. Beggars were virtually unknown before the advent of market reforms in the late 1970's, and many of them are people for whom fate has dealt them a poor hand; whether victims of financial corruption, industrial accidents, or just having missed the boat of free enterprise, they are outcasts of a market economy rushing forward first and putting caring for its lost as a distant second, if at all.

In a way, I respect Comrade Deng for his fortitude and his "greater good" mentality in sacrificing Communist purity on the altar of pragmatism, making the decisions that he did to allow China to open up as such (and thus, ultimately for me and so many others to be here doing what I do); he must have realized even at that time, if only in theory, that while opening up the economy would ensure China's survival, it would leave a ugly trail behind as well, of bringing back the "class" of the poor with a vengeance.

With the above in mind, there are beggars that I think are truly in need, and those I think cross the line (whether or not they are truly needy is unknown to me and irrelevant for their conduct sinks below human dignity, in my opinion).

To the "good" ones, I'll try to give food in lieu of money, and usually will buy some extra bread or fruits for this express purpose, because if one is genuinely in need in terms of day to day survival and just not trying to make extra money, what I give will be appreciated (and always are). It is also worth remembering that Jesus Himself gave food many times to the hungry, but not once did He give money.

Anyhow, a rundown of various types of beggars I've witnessed on the Shanghai streets: the good, the bad, and the ugly.

People that I'll often give some food to

* People who are genuinely too old to work. It's obviously subjective, and yes, they could just be passing the money on, but standing in the Shanghai winter cold or summer heat in the weather garners pity from me.

* People who are severely disabled. Yes, some might not be genuine, but then, I've seen people with injuries that elicit an "OMG!", stuff which you know -- even with no medical training -- couldn't possibly be faked. Again, these people are sad byproducts of a society where the infrastructure to support the crippled has been given a nary a second thought in the rush to modernization.

* People who at least try to provide something enjoyable -- no matter how meager -- like playing music, rather than just being a parasite on the area.

Those who will get nothing from me except my wrath

* People who tell you (in a slick and rehearsed fashion) they've lost their train tickets to go back to their hometown. Funny that people only seem to lose their tickets in touristy areas, and nowhere else. It gets old the third or fourth time. And it doesn't help your case if you're dressed in nice blazers and polished shoes.

* People who grab on to your pants and won't let go. Even the most aggressive beggars in the US knows that to pull something like this in the sue-happy US is asking for trouble. But TIC...

* Worst of all: women who train their children like dogs -- children who couldn't possibly be more than five years old -- to approach strangers and pitifully hold up a cup. You make me freaking sick to my stomach. No matter how bleak your own situation, your kids have a future. Keep them out of your pathetic game -- they don't @#$@# deserved to be brainwashed like that before they can even start attending school.

** Finally, I came across a simple tip to allegedly get rid of those in the latter category. I'll have to give it a try -- I wonder why I never thought of it myself, especially given my own personal hobbies! =)

So many of my mature and wiser ;) GrX friends are jumping on the Xanga bandwagon recently. Starting with bahbeelee, a whole bevy of people ranging from hongkykong to lindajchoi to uspolymer have set up their own pages as well. Who's next -- Pastor Dave?!? I'm guessing it's only a matter of time...

It's definitely not just for the AzN tEeN sEt anymore... For me, I still very much prefer hosting my own blog (mirrored to Xanga for the convenience of the masses), but in any case, yay -- more people to be updated on!

Still, despite the fact that being out here in China, I've definitely spent more time reading and writing, I do hope that bite-sized entries sanitized for public consumption doesn't replace the art of sending or receiving a good lengthy personal email, phone call, or even letter -- whether on my or anyone else's end...

For random visitors and lurkers here, please do not imagine that the words here and the photos elsewhere are my life, or even the majority of it; nevertheless, I hope something I write here is meaningful, someway, somehow, to someone...

0. Why am I sending this out? Yes, I hate surveys, but I also hate having nothing really compelling to write about (publically at least)... and I realize that living out here, the mundane can be of much interest as well, so courtesy of danpei, here goes...

1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:35AM, and I got 9 hours of sleep; being in this situation often presages a good day to come; alas they are not too often as well.

2. Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds... yes, a sellout to the industry, I guess, but ah well, I suppose in the pursuit of justice, you have to selectively pick your battles to fight...

3. What was the last film you saw at the movies? Do pirated DVDs count? If so, "the Aviator". If you mean a real theater, "Meet the Fockers" -- no, I didn't choose it.

4. What is your favorite TV show? The Simpsons

5. What did you have for breakfast? Blueberry cheesecake and small mocha at the Kerry Center Starbucks down the street from my place.

6. What is your favorite cuisine? Japanese (all you can eat for about USD 18 at Rong in Gubei, yeah!)

7. What foods do you dislike? Stuff that takes too much manual labor to eat (eg, most shellfish). Also, eggs as well, not allergic, just don't like the taste of eggs themselves; egg containing products like cookies/cake are fine.

8. What is your favorite chip flavor? Umm... Guacamole? Don't really have one, though, but I dislike salt and vinegar.

9. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Currently, pH worship's debut album.

10. What type of car do you drive? In the USA, a 2001 Toyota Prius; in China, walk, the Shanghai metro (not during rush hour if I can help it), or taxi.

11. Favorite sandwich? Hot pastrami (#9 at Togo's, one of the few Western franchises you can't find here in Shanghai)

12. What characteristic do you despise? People who say they'll do something but don't do it without giving an explanation, and/or don't respond to contact.

13. Favorite item of clothing? Anything functional, but especially sweat clothes which aren't too heavy or rough, and which I can quickly slip on for just being in my apartment during a Shanghai winter.

14. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation? There are a lot, but I'd say the DPRK has got to be near the top right now. It's a country that, for better or worse, may not be around longer in its current form, and I want to see it with my own eyes before it's too late...

15. What color is your bathroom? Black tiled

16. Favorite brand of clothing? Whatever Xiangyang has...

17. Where would you retire to? Singapore, maybe -- great weather (save for the rain), good and CHEAP food, ubiquitous broadband connections ;)

18. Favorite time of the day? Around 7 PM -- my efficency curve at work actually increases slowly as the day goes on, contrary to most others that plateau much earlier. At 7 PM, I actually seem to be accomplishing the most, and the anticipation for the evening ahead adds excitement for me.

19. What was your most memorable moment? China summer of 1999, for what I learned about China, myself, and God...

20. Where were you born? California, USA

21. Favorite sport to watch? Halo 2

22. What fabric detergent do you use? Currently, some Chinese brand (洁霸, literal English translation: cleanliness hegemony =) )

23. Coke or Pepsi? Coke, but I don't drink it that often; rather sensitive to caffeine... =P

24. What is your shoe size? 9.5 USA system, haven't figured out the way things work here in China yet...

25. Do you have any pets? No, but I like to play with other peoples' dogs (Rudy, Emmy, Manny, Mac... I miss you all!)

26. What did you want to be when you were little? Game programmer or international airline pilot... well, one of those things came true at least!

27. What's a good book you read recently? Celebration of Discipline, by Richard J. Foster -- actually, re-reading it after some years, as it's all the more important being out here...

I left my apartment today, grabbed a hot chocolate and blueberry cheesecake at Starbucks, and went on my merry way to work. Shanghai is finally warming up, and I can actually walk briskly and feel warm now as I do the 25-minute walk from my apartment to work.

The route always takes me by the Jing An Hilton. Normally, there's not much -- the entrance is just like any Hilton in the world, and usually, there are a few taxis in the queue and a JAL bus parked outside with tourists from our island neighbor to the East.

Today though, I see a North Korean flag flying over the Hilton. This piqued my interest, as last I checked, the Hilton hadn't been bought out by the North Koreans yet.

The other thing I quickly noticed was that the place is teeming with police. Not the 交通办管, jiaotong banguan, traffic assistants whose job consists of little more than blowing a whistle at completely arbitrary times, but real 警察, jingcha, police. On every street corner and intersection, there was at least one, usually two, holding up traffic of all kinds, barking at pedestrians to get back and making the place devoid of the usual Shanghai free-for-all traffic chaos.

Some of them had guns as well. In China, that definitely means something big is going on.

I wanted to whip out my camera, but for the above reason, quickly decided it probably wasn't the best idea and suppressed my shutterbug instincts for once...

Then I noticed a lot of people going off to a black cars parked off to the side. Each car had a driver and someone else. They were full-sized sedans except for one, a stretch Mercedes limo with a North Korean flag attached to the front right.

The person who got in the Mercedes didn't look like Dear Leader Kim Jong Il, but he was obviously some high ranking official. Standing off to the side with a few other bystanders, unable to get closer, I managed take a quick look at him. And he seemed to stare back fleetingly at me, just some guy in the blue sweater toting a Starbucks cup, but enough for me to see a face and eyes solid, and without emotion.

In my brief brush with NK leadership, I did not feel he seemed cold or evil like a Westerner might imagine from reading about NK in the media -- but what struck me was the fact that he seemed absolutely devoid of emotional signs, one way or the other.

Then, like that, they drove off one by one in a motorcade of probably 10 cars in all, plus a bunch of Chinese police cars and motorcycles leading and trailing them.

Who could it be, I wondered? When I got to work a few minutes later, I did some searching on the usual Chinese government websites, and sure enough, found this article.

And that was my commute to work today.

I recently learned that the term for this day in Chinese is 受难节, shou nan jie -- literally, day of suffering tragedy, and personally, I think it conveys the reason for this particular day's significance in no ambiguous terms compared to the "Good Friday" in English -- the word 'good' indicating none of what He went through for those unfamiliar with the life of the Son.

On the other hand, the English term conveys the fact that this "tragedy" was part of the greatest act of redemptive good for man.

Perhaps such double-sided identity and linguistic variance is itself symbolic of the fundamental tenet of Christian faith, Him suffering for our sins and giving us salvation.

No matter what you call it, may we always remember the suffering borne by Him for the good of us that took place on this day...

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Myso-called "2 Mbit" ADSL connection, at around 9:23 PM Shanghai time;direct 100 Mbps Ethernet connection to the modem, no other networkprograms running in the background...

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