2008 (er ling ling ba!)

Well the year of the Rat and the Olympics is finally upon us. We rang in the New Year with style as always. We had about 15 friends come to Yichang from Wuhan and Shiyan yesterday afternoon. Beth and Kim arranged a video scavenger hunt which was hilarious and awesome. We split into 3 teams and ran all over the city getting random videos and pictures. Some favorites were Titanic re-enactments, pictures with split pant babies, Kung Fu on the bus, and going up and down escalators the wrong way. It all ended at Pizza Hut with a delicious pizza feast. We headed back to Kim and Katie's house for a video viewing and snacks.

Now last year we apparently began a tradition that has gained interest and appeal all over Hubei province. We dropped an apple down a chopstick at Midnight as a make-shift Time's Square ball. This year as our guests arrived they kept asking about the apple and chopstick. Apparently that's what brought people in far and wide. So this year we spruced the apple up a bit with sparklers and the Chinese character "fu" which means blessing, and I believe it's safe to say it exceeded all of our expectations! :)

Now with resolutions and such I'm usually pretty skeptical. But this year two of our very own Yichangren completed a resolution! Kim's goal was to become a hat person, and Beth's was to cook a new recipe each week - 52 in all! Amazing. So this year I'm not declaring a resolution, but I do have something I want to focus on and study. Sunday we began discussing what it means to love, and what that actually looks like in our lives. So I want to begin a new quest to learn to love as Jesus did, and I need your help and accountability. It's the greatest command but I often look over it and don't take the time to think about what it really means. It's easy to love people you like, but is that what Jesus did? His love is radical, unreserved, and abundant!

I found this definition of love:
Love - unselfish, loyal, and benevolent concern for the good of another
and of course, 1 Corinthians 13 gives an in depth look at what love is. So help me keep on track, and ask me about what I've learned on love in 3 months when resolutions die! 2008 could be the year Amy loved.

Oh, and I want to eat slower. But how can you really measure that?