Rebecca A. Foster

After the roller-coaster that was life in China, life back in America can sometimes seem a little...plain. Not bad. Plain. So this is life now: work hard, go to bed early, get up early, meditate, read, study, make time for friends, talk over the internet with far-flung well-loved friends, make vacation plans, work on art projects, watch Community , shop for food, do laundry, clean, Netflix in bed, cook, do all of these things many times all over again. It's a good life. I'm adapting to life here in the American Western desert, but it sure does take some getting used to. I've met some fun people here and I'm reminded again that 99% of people in this world are good-hearted and kind and worth knowing. I'm now able to accept I liked those not-so-good guys in my past because I didn't believe I was worth more than how they treated me. It's hard to admit that, but overcoming it has made a big difference in my life. Kind and steady beats jerky and exciting a...

R. had the great idea yesterday that we should write a book together about our daily life experiences in China. I said this sentence to R. while we were video chatting: "It was when you were in Tibet, the night we had all the gin and tonics and got sprayed down in the street by the paint truck..." and I wasn't even telling all of that as the story, it was just the setup to the story. And she stopped me with a "Do you hear yourself? Our lives are never going to be like that again. When will you ever get the experiences to say a sentence like that again?" And she's right. Our remarkable lives became common place and ordinary to us. So we watch to recapture our now-remarkable-again experiences for posterity. She's the editor; we'll both contribute. I'm really excited to start this project. I picked up a new sketchpad tonight to start collecting things I'll include as inspiration and illustration. Even if we only publish it for two people, i...

Today is my birthday and I have been overwhelmed with the good wishes and kindness shown to me. I plan on answering everyone individually, but until then, THANK YOU! You have made me feel very loved and remembered. A new guy I work with offered to take me technology shopping last week because he knows a lot more about these things than I do. I don't know him well, so I was really touched at his generosity. I am now the new owner of a flat screen lcd tv (the first tv I've ever purchased) and a Blu-Ray wifi dvd player, purchased at his advice, and through which I can stream Netflix and Pandora over my television. The technology available to me in America still blows me away. And as a birthday gift he bought me the HDMI cord I needed to hook my new dvd player to the TV. I was surprised, because as I said, we barely know each other, but he is a generous and thoughtful person. Good people are everywhere. The first movie I watched? This is not a good movie. But, um, I enjoy hi...

When I was in China, I was asked to write an article for the Peace Corps China wiki about what it's like being a female volunteer in China. I guess I seemed well-adjusted? Ha, little did they know the hardships I still dealt with on a daily basis. It does get easier over time, but the challenges never fully go away. I forgot about it, but the other day I searched for it and there it is! My name isn't attached, but if you want to read what I had to say about being a female Peace Corps volunteer in China, you can read it here . It was interesting to me to read it again, after being home for these months. Gosh, it wasn't easy to live there. ___________________ My grandpa has pancreatic and liver cancer; cancer sucks. I was in denial for a while about this. I think after everything I went through with my dad, I couldn't go through this again. I think I'm still in denial about it. Dealing with cancer never gets easier. He's not doing treatment, but being treated f...

How could I have forgotten Xanadu for 'X'? Here's a brief clip of the final medley , during which she wears her little tiger skirt outfit. One of these years, I simply MUST replicate this outfit for Halloween; anyone who recognizes who I am is instantly on my love list. When we were out in the countryside training rural English teachers, we got REALLY bored. It was hot, and there was nothing to do there. So we downloaded this movie and spent an afternoon watching it together. Now I always think of Yunyang, China when I hear songs from Xanadu. (Which is more frequently than you'd imagine.) For those who haven't seen it, please know this movie is all kinds of ridiculous and the ending makes no sense. But, it's an 80's kitsch classic. Another time, I overheard a guy in Target gushing about Xanadu. I immediately sent out a text that I was in love. My brother texted me back: "You do realize the chances he is straight are very slim, right?" Or someth...

I bought this cinnamon and frankincense candle  and loved it so much I went back and got the fragrance oil. It smells very warm and spicy and reminds me of the smell in the Buddhist temples. I bought the oil both for the oil burner I keep in my study/meditation spot and for adding a few drops to a hot bath. I'm about to be so meditative and relaxed. I recommend it, if you like spa-y, spicy smells. ____________ I've been working on putting my memorabilia from China in some sort of organized format. For my small papery souvenirs, I chose these cardstock cards, with a plastic cover on the front side and heavy cardbard backing on the back side. Here's what it looks like fanned out a bit:  I don't like that ring, so I'm going to get a leather string and use that to tie it off instead. I'll use another peace of leather through the bottom holes but tie it in a bow so it an be untied for viewing. Another project: I asked all my students to give me 'name ca...

I mentioned recently that if you're a guy, and you wind up, you should follow through so the girl doesn't wonder why you dropped the ball. Well, I have dropped a few balls in my life, friends. I don't know if I remember all of them, but I remember these: J.: Sorry about the symphony, and that night at my house, and the next morning at breakfast. I don't know what got into me. You were so cute! You just out-cuted me. S.: Sorry about the fishing trip. But like I said, I'm not really the outdoorsy type. T.: Sorry about how we said goodbye. I know it's my fault for misremembering when my plane left, which meant we arrived at the airport 15 minutes before my flight took off. Things were a little rushed. Sorry. And yes, I always double check now. B.: Sorry for that night on my doorstep when you were hugging me, put your hand on the back of my head and sighed. I thought we were Just Friends. I didn't know what to do about the sighing without thinking about...

Last week I walked into a restaurant bathroom and fully expected to see a row of squat toilets. As in, I was shocked and briefly disoriented to see Western toilets in front of me, not squats. Something in the restaurant must have reminded me subconsciously of a restaurant in China. I still experience these little disorientations in other ways too, like when I visualize in my mind needing to go to the store and the image is the Carrefour in the main square near my house, not the Target down the road. (Sorry, Target! I hope we can still be friends!) Evidently China is like Hotel California*: you can check out, but you can never leave. I have a theory that the more emotionally difficult or significant your experiences are, the more embedded those memories become. China almost broke me, but then became the thing that saved me. I guess you don't forget that easily. *Every Chinese person I ever met in China loves this song. I don't know why. If you ever go to China, learn to ...