Sunday Snapshot: Stella

Stella is one of my best friends in China.  I’ve known her for about three years now, and other than the team, she’s probably the person who knows me the best around here.

She’s an English major, but I’ve never actually been her teacher.  Stella is relieved and thrilled that she’s in her last semester of foreign teacher classes and she’s never had me as a teacher.  I have the reputation for being a strict teacher, so she’s afraid I would make her work too hard.  She’s happier just being my friend.

There are many things to love about Stella.  First of all, she’s spent enough time around us foreign teachers to not only understand but employ lovingly used sarcasm.  She’s also spent enough time in my house to feel comfortable helping herself to drinks in my fridge.  I don’t have a single other Chinese friend who will do that.  It’s quite a relief; I know if she’s thirsty I don’t have to ask her ten times if she wants a drink.  She’ll just get it herself.

Stella also shares my love of food and cooking.  Her dream is to attend culinary school in the States to become a chef.  She in particular wants to study French cooking.  I encourage this endeavor as long as she returns and opens her restaurant close to wherever I’m living in China.

Stella is from the nearby big city, and returns home frequently on the weekends.  While there, she’ll run to the import store to pick up things like butter, cream cheese, and brown sugar for me.  It’s yet another reason to love her.

But one of the things I love most about Stella is one of the ways in which we’re the most different.  She has an amazing gift with talking to people she doesn’t know and making them feel comfortable.  She can strike up a conversation with just about anyone, and the joy and bubbly-ness that oozes from her puts the other at ease.  It’s a rare gift, especially in this culture of in-groups.

Consequently, when I knew I would have two hundred freshmen, none of whom I teach, tramping through my house this past Thursday evening, I invited Stella over.  Meeting new people is near the top of my greatest fears list.  Hordes of new people make my palms sweat and my mouth go dry.  Stella is like my security blanket.  I know she’ll make not only those entering my door comfortable, but she’ll also make me comfortable.

She eagerly and excitedly explained the game of twister to group after group of freshmen students as they came through my house, demonstrating the rules to each group.  She was the official “spinner” and “caller of commands,” which allowed me to participate in the game.  You see, I thought the best way to meet freshmen students the first time was with my behind stuck high in the air and with my body contorted in all sorts of positions.  The freshmen open house is also known as “photo op with the foreign teachers.”  Pictures of us show up within hours on the Chinese version of facebook.  Which means, there are now likely pictures of me with my booty high in the air on this website.  You can tell I thoroughly thought through my choice of activities.  But I digress, this is supposed to be about Stella, not about the many ways in which I daily embarrass myself.

Stella, who made the night go off without a hitch.

One other thing I love about Stella?  She has a huge heart for the orphans in this city.  Remember these guys that we were able to send south for treatment?  Stella is the one who spent hours talking through all the arrangements with the orphanage leaders while I sat there smiling prettily.  Like I said, she can talk to anyone.

About the only thing not to love about Stella is the fact that she hates me taking her picture.  It took all my persuasive powers to get the shots in this post.

Fourth year students tend to spend more time away from campus than on campus (they don’t have to attend classes), so I’m trying to treasure every moment I have together with Stella before she heads her own way.  Her ready smile and contagious laugh will leave a gaping hole around here.