I know a bunch of you are wondering how I picked China. I can't remember who all I've talked to, so if it sounds like I'm reiterating, please feel free to ignore this post. For the rest of you...here's a little background information!
I graduated from Kansas State University in December of 2011 with a degree in Mass Communications. Throughout my time at K-State, I dabbled in a bunch of different areas: Architecture, Interior Design, Art, Journalism...I think it's obvious that I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to do with my life. They all seemed to have the same general theme, which was art. I've always loved creating things and seeing physical results from my hard work, but I also loved problem solving. I didn't really put the two together until about my junior year when somebody mentioned Advertising being a potential fit for me. I got into the program and instantly loved it. I can't wait to see what God does in my life through Advertising, but right now I need to take a break.
I haven't really done anything crazy with my life - you know, something to look back on and say, "wow, I really did that." So, you can understand my excitement when a lady came into one of my classes senior year to talk about the Peace Corps. She didn't even get 5 minutes into her presentation and I already knew that I wanted to be a part of it. The thing was, the application process was going to take longer than I would have liked. I looked into some different options and that's when I was told about China. It started out as a kind of thing where I just wanted to see if I'd get accepted to teach and after I did, my excitement made me realize I wanted to do this for real.
So, here I am. About to move to a completely different country - different culture, different government, different everything - and I'm 50% excited and 50% scared out of my mind. Either way, I know that I've got God and so many friends and family supporting me that there's no way this experience can have a negative impact on my life. I'm anxious to see what I learn and what kind of relationships I create while I'm there. I know I say this a lot, but thank you for being part of my journey - I really appreciate your support :)
Friday, January 20, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Censorship/Contact Information
Hello again! Or should I say "Ni Hao!" (that's "hello" in Mandarin)
I have just a little less than a month before I leave and I have one final document to finish - my work visa. Over the last couple of months I've been so busy e-mailing information back and forth to China, I never thought the day would come that I actually got it all done! So, that's definitely a load off my shoulders.
On another note, I just want to take a minute and THANK YOU all for your support. This is definitely a huge step in my life and it's made me so happy to read all of your kind words of encouragement! As far having access to social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, I'm afraid that I will not have that luxury while I'm there. If you're not aware, China is a Communist Party-led state so, a lot of sites are censored from the citizens. Since this is the case, I only ask that if you want to contact me to please not use any political or religious language. "If in doubt, leave it out," is some good advice that I've gotten from people that have lived there before. From what I've be told, if you say things like "I'm praying for you" or "God is good," that's completely okay. I hope this doesn't scare anybody from wanting to talk to me while I'm there! I just want you to be aware.
If you're interested in getting in touch with me while I'm in China (oh my gosh I still can't believe I'm moving to CHINA!), I'd love to receive your e-mails and get back to you as quickly as I can. As far as I know, I'll have access to Gmail and Skype - my information is at the bottom!
I'm still not sure when exactly I'll be leaving, as of right now it looks like around the 14th/15th of February. Hopefully I'll get to say good-bye to a lot of you in person and if I don't get to...remember, I'll have Skype so we can video chat while I'm gone. Thanks again! I'm so blessed to have all of you in my life.
Skype: mickschneid10
Gmail: mickschneid10@gmail.com
I have just a little less than a month before I leave and I have one final document to finish - my work visa. Over the last couple of months I've been so busy e-mailing information back and forth to China, I never thought the day would come that I actually got it all done! So, that's definitely a load off my shoulders.
On another note, I just want to take a minute and THANK YOU all for your support. This is definitely a huge step in my life and it's made me so happy to read all of your kind words of encouragement! As far having access to social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, I'm afraid that I will not have that luxury while I'm there. If you're not aware, China is a Communist Party-led state so, a lot of sites are censored from the citizens. Since this is the case, I only ask that if you want to contact me to please not use any political or religious language. "If in doubt, leave it out," is some good advice that I've gotten from people that have lived there before. From what I've be told, if you say things like "I'm praying for you" or "God is good," that's completely okay. I hope this doesn't scare anybody from wanting to talk to me while I'm there! I just want you to be aware.
If you're interested in getting in touch with me while I'm in China (oh my gosh I still can't believe I'm moving to CHINA!), I'd love to receive your e-mails and get back to you as quickly as I can. As far as I know, I'll have access to Gmail and Skype - my information is at the bottom!
I'm still not sure when exactly I'll be leaving, as of right now it looks like around the 14th/15th of February. Hopefully I'll get to say good-bye to a lot of you in person and if I don't get to...remember, I'll have Skype so we can video chat while I'm gone. Thanks again! I'm so blessed to have all of you in my life.
Skype: mickschneid10
Gmail: mickschneid10@gmail.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)