Miss Lee - English Teacher
My name is Mia Lee. I was born in 1978 in a small town at Heilongjiang Province in Northeast China near the Russian border. My parents were both schoolteachers and we had a simple but happy life. As a child, I would like to listen to the stories told by the older people in the town where I lived. They would talk about the olden days and what their lives had been like when they were children. There was one old man who would often play beautiful music on the violin. I dreamt that one-day I too would be able to make such beautiful music.
I started kindergarten at age 4 because my parents both had to work and had no time to care for my brother and me. I enjoyed going to school even at this early age. I learned to read and write and do simple mathematics. I also learned to play several kinds of musical instruments and to dance and sing. I started primary school at age 6 and I continued to enjoy school and I did very well in my studies. I liked all my courses but I especially enjoyed study of the English language. I hoped that some day I would be able to travel all over the world to see the many of the beautiful places that we learned about in school. I knew that it would be good to have the English language for this purpose. While in primary school my favorite musical instrument was the harmonium. My best friend in primary school was Ling. We became very close and later went to university together and we remain friends to this day.
I started Middle School at age 12 where I continued to enjoy playing music. Some friends and I formed a small band and we would get together after school and weekends to practice. During this time I learned to play all kinds of instruments. The violin was my favorite. When I was a teenager my parents salary was only about 200 RMB so they could not afford to buy me a violin but I was able to learn how to play at school. Every year, there was a talent show for middle school students and our little band would enter this show. I really enjoyed these shows and hoped that some day I could become a professional musician.
I have always loved learning more about different cultures and especially exotic sights. When I was learning English, I found my opinions on many things changed which were different from the ways that I had been taught as a child. I expected to be respected though I was a teenager. I had a big dream of some day going to other countries to feel other people's lives there.
After High School, I was recommended for admission to Mudanjiang Normal College, which was quite far from my hometown. Fortunately my friend, Ling, was also recommended for this college so at least I had a close friend there. We could only go back home for summer and winter vacations. While in college I studied to be an English teacher, which was my father's desire. While at college, I also taught myself to play the piano and I hoped that some day I would have one of my own.
When I graduated in 2000, I first taught in English in a middle school in the Changping District, Peking. Two years later I transferred to a private school in Haidain District, which is famous for education in Peking and throughout China.
I began teaching English at the Central High School in Beijing in 2001. My starting salary was 1200 RMB but this has now risen to just over 2000. My life has made dramatic improvement since I was a child. I admire my parents for encouraging me to do well in school. Now at last have been able to purchase my own piano and I love being able to play it every day. It is not only my relaxation but my meditation as well. As I play at home in the evenings, I swoon with the possibilities of life.
Central High School is where I met my favorite student, Wan Sun. She was a brilliant young girl and she was the top student in my classes. She was also one of the best students in the entire school. I taught Wan Sun English for three years and in that time I came to know her very well. We became good friends and I knew that some day she would go very far in life.
At the time, I didn't know how far in life I would go. Wan Sun's father was a high-ranking manager in the Commission of Education. During the Olympics held in China in 2008, the Commission of Education sponsored teachers from all over the world to come to China for the Olympics and to learn about education in China. A teacher from the USA, Jim Randolf, was invited and he actually stayed with Wan and her parents while he was here. One evening Sunny (Sunny is Wan Sun's nickname) invited me to her home to meet the mysterious Mr. Randolf.
He was an intelligent man and very good looking. One reason that Sunny had invited me was to play the violin for him. He enjoyed my recitation very much and told me that he had a hobby of playing the piano. Soon we were playing music together to the enjoyment of everyone. Jim asked me if I could show him the sites of Beijing the next day. I delightfully agreed.
The next day Jim, Sunny and I traveled all around the city and had a most enjoyable time. We went to dinner at the famous Quan Ju De restaurant. They are noted for their Peking Duck meals so that is what we all ordered. We had a very enjoyable time but during the meal, Sunny blurted out that she thought Jim and I should get married. I was totally embarrassed but when Jim said he thought that would be a good idea, I was totally shocked! Could this be? Could my dream come true? My hands shook so that it was difficult to eat. Sunny had to take over the role of teaching Jim how to eat with chopsticks.
More to come later!!!