This week, we taught our last English lesson and said goodbye to eight classes of No. 9 students. We had met the Wednesday students four times, the Thursday students three times, and the Friday students twice. I treasured the time we were able to spend together, and I wish we had more of it: it did strike me as slightly unfair that we literally only saw the Friday kids for the second time ever this week, but it was rather unavoidable thanks to their agricultural/military field trip, Dragon Boat Festival, and ä¸è€ƒ. Still, this week felt rather bittersweet. I didn’t expect our goodbyes to begin so soon.
Another extremely unfortunate occurrence that happened on Tuesday was that Hsiao-Mei hurt her ankle after falling in a restaurant during our Tuesday group lunch. She stayed at home for the rest of the week, and it felt very strange not seeing her walking around No. 9 or popping her head into our office to share a few words of wisdom or advice. I know we’re all worried for her, especially because our trip to Beijing and Xi’an is coming up soon, and it’s extraordinarily difficult to travel when you’re injured. I hope she’s able to get better soon!
This past week has really proven that, truly, this DukeEngage is all about recovering from and reacting to spontaneous changes. I was lucky enough to finally get my costume for dance nailed down this week (hopefully, at least, if the black tank top and leggings work as needed), but for a while the sleeves were my main concern. Also, the threat of possibly having kids cut loomed over my head. Nobody ended up being cut, and in fact the teachers didn’t even come visit my class on Thursday, so I was able to breathe a sigh of relief—but only for about 0.2 seconds, because right after class finished, we were informed that there was a sudden outbreak of chicken pox, of all things, in Class One. At first, we were told that all students in Class One would no longer be able to perform with us at all. The Duke students collectively rebelled against the idea, because we believed it would be incredibly unfair to the students who were affected.
Luckily, the school administration ended up deciding that these students would still be able to perform, but unfortunately, would not be able to attend practice for the next two weeks. While I am immensely grateful that they can still dance with us, this presents new problems: the three students in my class affected have all expressed a desire to learn the rest of the dance still, but I’m not sure if I can accommodate that. They’ve already missed learning 15 seconds of choreography, and there’s still 30 seconds left to go, much of which is taken up by quite complicated formation changes. In the end, I most likely still have to take them out of that section, which means I’ll have to disappoint them. I’m particularly regretful because my one boy in Chinese dance, Jack, is also in Class One. I only have one boy! And he’s fantastic! And now he can’t practice for two weeks, or learn the last part!
That being said, I understand that No. 9 Middle School is simply trying to keep us safe, first and foremost. Although their plan seems to have a lot of holes, considering that my students in Class One still come talk to me outside of class (thus exposing me anyway), considering how contagious chicken pox is and how they aren’t necessarily sure it’s the same strain we’ve been vaccinated against, the need for caution (even if it seems excessive) is understandable. If a Duke student contracted chicken pox in China, it would be immensely problematic. Still, this unlucky outbreak undeniably creates many problems.
I believe that something important for us to remember as tensions start climbing due to the performance is that the school administration is not our enemy. They, too, have their own pressures and requirements, which we might not always be able to see or fully comprehend; I just hope we can have better communication in the future to figure out exactly why conflicts are arising, why they are asking for certain changes, and how we can compromise between different visions. Right now, I am most regretful that not everyone who wants to will be able to see our performance, and not even every act is guaranteed to be shown due to the limited audience and time constraints. I wish we could have a separate, more casual performance at the school as well, just to let everyone have a chance to sign, but I understand that this would be immensely difficult and likely unfeasible. Still, all I wish is that my students’ parents, friends, and loved ones had the chance to see them dance.
As the time pressure continues to increase, I am more and more aware of how grateful I am to my fellow Duke students and to Hsiao-Mei and Yanan, especially with our brief discussion about gratitude during our discussion. Tessa, the best teaching partner ever, is my rock when it comes to struggles over lesson plans, student interactions, and dance. I constantly commiserate with Bryant and Kristie over how to best teach and improve our dances (special shout-out to Kristie for teaching us Ddu-Ddu-Du!). Elizabeth is always there for me when I want to vent or share my problems, which I cannot express my thanks for enough. Spending time with my fellow Duke students is a joy (even Alexander with his freaking neck taps), and I can always count on them for support, advice, and guidance. Finally, enormous, infinite thanks to Hsiao-Mei and Yanan, who help us whenever we need it, provide insights into Chinese culture, and make sure that we are safe, happy, and healthy. No matter what new problems and struggles might emerge later on, I know we will get through them with each other’s help.