Participant Background: Zoe Pastorfeld-Li has been teaching in Yantai, China since August, 2008 on Cultural Embrace's Teach in China program. She has extended to teach in China for another year, and we would like to share an old blog that she sent during her return back to the States, between her semester break.

I miss you already and still; being home was so good. MD/DC, New York and the Bay Area in Cali were all self-affirming in their own right, and I felt equally at home in each place. I realized what I love so dearly about America besides the obvious- family (by blood or bond).

Namely I love America for the music and diversity. It hit me that I was going back to China when I was boarding my flight from LA to Seoul and everyone was Asian. Don't get me wrong, I love em all, but I realized it would be a long time until someone asked me what's really good? or que onda? It would be a long time before I heard a live MC with something worth saying or a piano player that could wash my brain and soul with his improvisations.

These realizations make me proud to be American, and when I rock my giant Obama pin around Yantai I know people can see it in my eyes.

I miss my family and I miss America, and I now realize they are one and the same. When I first got to New York I felt a bit disoriented. I remember saying, "I am not here for the city, I'm really just here to see people." I knew once I had uttered the words that I was only trying to dupe myself, but it took the unfurling of the trip to realize that New York is the people and the people are New York, and the same for DC and the same for San Fran, ad noseum. The absence I feel in my heart when I am not in these places with you, is a pain that gives me strength and regenerates my confidence in what I am doing, seeing all that you are doing to become more courageous, wiser and kinder people.

Gandhi said we must be the change we wish to see in the world. And Lauryn Hill reminds me that change comes slow or not at all. My Dad echoed this truth by relating a Japanese organizational method for achieving true, but very slowly achieved change. This method was put into practice by a man who wanted to lose weight but simply loved french fries. Rather than try and kick the habit all at once, he began the first day of his diet by throwing away one fry and eating the rest. The next day he threw away two, and the third day three, and so on.

Last night I watched a film called, “Happiness Is” created by local Austin filmmaker, Andrew Shapter.  It resonated so strongly within me, that I wanted to spread the word in hopes that others will see and enjoy the film as much as I did. The premise of the movie is defining happiness, measuring it, and knowing when we’ve reached it.  
 
This film reminded me of what my mission statement is, not just for Cultural Embrace, but for me personally, as well. I believe that traveling is a reciprocated flow of communication and interaction between people...the more you seek, the more you learn.

This brings me back to my first international experience. I had just graduated from the University of Maryland-College Park with a communications degree. I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life. I had a good job, but wearing a business suit and sitting behind a desk sucked the life out of me in just seven months; I wasn't ready for graduate school; and the Peace Corps application seemed too long and unsettling to not know where I was going to be placed for two years. So I faxed (yes, um, this was before the internet and e-mail) my resume to relatives that lived in China. The next thing I know, in February, 1995, I boarded a plane and flew across the globe to teach at Wuhan Iron & Steel University. I wasn't sure what I had gotten myself in to—my Mandarin Chinese skills were poor, if not pathetic, the air was polluted, and the streets were overpopulated and noisy. I earned less than US$120 per month, which was double the local teacher’s salary, and enough for me to live comfortably and travel extensively in SE Asia for 2 years. I shared a basic 3-bedroom apartment with two other foreign English teachers, on the seventh floor (without elevators). Even though I had 'downgraded' my lifestyle, I felt more ‘uplifted’ about my life. 

I was supposed to be the teacher giving instructions on grammar and pronunciation, yet I felt like I was learning and taking in so much more during my experience abroad. There was one class lesson in particular that I will never forget. I wrote “What do you want to do after you graduate?" on the chalkboard, anticipating a lively open discussion with my students. Many of them stared blankly at me and responded that they would go back to their home city and work at their local factories. I was shocked at their ignorance for not wanting more out of their lives…but then I realized I was the ignorant one.

China has a 'hukou' system, or residential permit, that binds a person to their home town. This isn’t necessarily where you were born, or where you went to school, or where you worked, but where your family is from. For example, if a child was born in Beijing, if his parents have a hukou of a village, the child is registered back to the village. Although it is not as important as it was before, it is still pretty significant. It affects where you can study, work, get medical, social insurance, and other benefits. It does not allow people to relocate very easily, therefore limiting choices and possibilities. I finally realized how fortunate I was to have so many opportunities and freedom to do such simple things that I took for granted—like relocating to different cities, having electricity and potable water every day, choosing my major, and so much more.

After that class, I wondered how my life would have been if I was born and raised in China, instead of being an American-born-Chinese. Unlike most of my students, I got to select the school, city, and major that I wanted to study. In fact, I chose not to choose a major, and was ‘undecided’ for five semesters. I am a prime example of the “restless American” that was referred to in “Happiness Is.” I’ve gallivanted around the globe to teach, work, volunteer, take cultural classes, sight-see, relax and explore. Is my restless energy due to the pursuit of happiness? I guess so!?! To me, the world and my passport are my life lines, and getting on a plane reminds me of my liberties. All of the amazing people, sites, foods, culture, and communities that I encounter bring me happiness. And what brings me even more joy is when I am able to teach and share my experiences and knowledge about travel to other people, so they can learn, take it in, and embrace their own experiences and fond memories. 

So, is my pursuit of happiness going to be the same as your pursuit of happiness? Maybe.  What makes me happy may be different than what you define as happy. But if you find joy in learning about other cultures, I and my staff at Cultural Embrace are here to alleviate the stress and energy that affects your pursuit of happiness when you travel abroad. We give you personalized attention before you embark on your international journey, and once you are abroad our English-speaking local coordinators will ensure that you are having a safe, healthy, and comfortable time. So feel free to contact us when you need guidance and assistance on all your logistical details for your next journey. Embrace your life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, as you embrace other cultures.