I always post my sister Angela's first published story about her Christmas away from home. Christmas in Taiwan..isn't the same as home
As Christmas time approaches, I often find myself reflecting on past holidays and the special memories and the people who have made each year uniquely special.
For my entire life, the holidays had revolved around gatherings with family and friends. In fact, until a few years ago, I had never spent Christmas away from my family.
However, when circumstances forced me to spend Christmas away from home for the first time, I was further away and more alone than I had ever imagined. I was working in Taiwan as an English teacher, which meant I would not be able to return home for an entire year. The enormity of that decision didn’t truly hit me until December arrived; it was 40 degrees - and there was no Christmas season! As most of Taiwanese population are Buddhists, they obviously have no Christmas holiday. There were no lights, no cards, no busy shoppers at the mall, and no line-up of children waiting to see Santa. I was stuck in a world where Christmas simply didn’t exist. December 25th would not even be a holiday! I would have to get up and go to work, just like it was any other day of the year. It somehow felt sacrilegious. Although I had nowhere to go on the 25th and nobody to spend it with, I bargained to take the day off, working an extra day on the weekend to make up for it. At least it would be Christmas in my heart, if nowhere else.
I grew more and more despondent as the holidays back home approached. I would imagine everyone back in Newfoundland, all busy buying gifts, decorating the Christmas tree and planning for holiday parties. I had flown halfway across the world by myself back in August, full of bravado, feeling very proud and independent. However, there was little of my bravado left as December rolled in. I was running up enormous phone bills, crying on the phone every night as I called my family and friends back home. I had never been so homesick in my life. I wanted to be home for Christmas more than anything else in the world. I had brought my holiday music with me and listened to “I’ll Be home for Christmas” over and over again. It never failed to bring tears to my eyes.
As I was riding my bicycle home one day in the middle of December, I took a wrong turn and found myself in an unfamiliar part of the city. This may not be a big deal in any English-speaking place, as you can ask for directions from anyone. However, this would prove rather difficult in the little island in Asia, where only a few had a working grasp of English. In desperation, I got off the bike and wandered up and down the street. Then I saw something that made me stop in my tracks. It was an English sign in an apartment window. It simply said “Church of Christ”. An English speaking, Christian church in that part of the world is certainly not very common, to say the least. I thought I must be imagining things, so I stood and just stared at the window. To my surprise, an elderly Taiwanese man took my arm and led me to a door on the side of the building. Feeling a little nervous and foolish, I entered the building. Who would I find inside the apartment? Was this some sort of cult?
I was greeted at the door by a beaming man, with a deep Southern accent (which just added to the surreal feeling!). As it turned out, the little church was operated by two missionaries from Arkansas – Pastor and Mrs. MacAteer. Without knowing anything about me – except I seemed very alone, lost, and had nowhere to celebrate Christmas – they promptly invited me to their home to spend it with them. They were so kind and insistent that I immediately accepted their invitation, feeling as though I was experiencing a true Christmas miracle. I had been adopted for Christmas!
Despite our very new acquaintance, they took me into their home on Christmas and made me feel like a long lost member of their own family. When I arrived, I discovered that I wasn’t the only lost soul that the missionaries had rescued for Christmas. There was also a young couple from Ontario who had been taken in for the holidays. Although turkey wasn’t available, it was the most memorable Christmas dinner I have ever eaten in my life. We had a huge barbeque of streak and chicken, complete with all the traditional fixings, sent by their family back in the U.S. We ate outside in our shorts, basking in the sunshine, and I imagined the snowflakes that were surely falling back in Newfoundland. After dinner, we put on some soft Christmas music, sat in front of the little artificial Christmas tree (also sent special delivery), staring at the lights and each lost in our thoughts of our families back home. We were strangers, but on that day, we became a family.
This was only the beginning of many kind acts offered to me by the MacAteers and they became my honourary family during the rest of my stay in Taiwan. That Christmas Day will always remain a cherished memory in my heart. They truly showed me the deepest meaning of Christmas.
By: Angela Cole
