I’m pleased to say that I have returned and will continue to aid you in your effort to learn Chinese.
Contrary to what one reader suspected, I didn’t get abducted (;-) ), a bit unlike a man in the neighbourhood, who was detained and not seen again since. Admittedly, he threatened to assassin our country’s leading political figures during the Olympic opening ceremony. He must have been in a drunken stupor, because he did so in front of a group of soldiers, one of whom, to his demise, understood the Wu-dialect.
Quite a lot of distractions, both positive and negative ones, account for my unexpected, long absence.
Our two-year-old daughter Meiyu 美玉 has taken up erhu classes, I feel so proud of her.
My mother lost her false teeth and father tripped over a sewing machine, so I had to procure quite a lot of money within little time, because I mustn’t use up either our savings or rely on my husband, because he had to invest a lot into his company recently. His willingness to take a risk has paid off (literally), though. He will return to see his family for six weeks. I still can’t quite believe it. I hope he won’t squander too much money buying gifts for us, that’s always a little scary (and embarrassing, if the new qipao is somewhat tight).
Immense grief fills my heart whenever I give English classes for workers because one of my students, a female factory worker who’s only a few years older than me, is not present. She died in an accident at work, leaving behind her 5-year-old daughter and her husband who is dying of a lung disease. I feel as if my insides have been torn apart, because I know the family well. I have no idea what to do to help them. I consider an adoption of the little one, if we work hard we can afford it, but I don’t know anything about official regulations…It is deeply troubling, but no one dares despair.
I don’t think I have slept more than four hours per night for several weeks. I’m sure the world will look much brighter as soon as I’ve had enough sleep.
See you on Monday, and good luck with your studies.
Sorry to hear about all your recent trouble. I hope that things turn around soon for you.