Strange Things Will Happen…

This past week, in oral class, we had a lesson called, “What’s on Becky’s iPod?” It’s an occasional class where I play a song, or two and we learn the lyrics and discuss some of the deeper meaning behind the song. This week, we talked about a song by The Radio Dept. called Strange Things Will Happen.
It’s one of my favorite songs of late, but the reason I chose it was to give the students a little kick in the pants. (We all need it every now and then.) The song is about letting go, not hiding from the world, and allowing strange things to happen to you. (And by strange, they just mean different, unique, experiences that add a little color to our daily life.)
The students shared times in their lives when they did something different from the norm, and I got to hear some great stories. One girl told me about the afternoon she and a friend skipped class and sat by the edge of a river, talking and sharing all afternoon. (Can’t you just imagine that? It’s the stuff childhood memories are made of.) Another student told me about a time when she was restless. She hopped on a bus, by herself at night, and went to a city about 3 hours away. She found a hotel, slept the night, ate some expensive dumplings the next morning and came back. Gutsy.
You would think that it is a lesson I wouldn’t need to remember myself. After all, I’m in China for Christ sakes. Strange things should be happening to me on a daily basis. And at first, they were. Every day was a new adventure, a new discovery. I made sure to always say “yes” to ever opportunity that came my way. But, as the months rolled by, life began to get normal. I do the same thing every day: work, eat, sit at the computer. I tend to take the same path everyday to school, and walk the same path back. And despite their being about 30 restaurants right out my door, I tend to go to the same 6. I say no more and more to people who ask me to do things.
It’s just human nature I think. We get comfortable. We don’t like change, and find a routine extremely easy. But every now and then, we need something to remind us to break out, even just for a little bit. Take a different road to work, eat at a new restaurant. Say yes to a new experience.
Inspired by the song, I decided to say yes more and more, and guess what? These past few weeks have been chock full of activity and fun times. Not just big things, but little things as well. For instance last night Ryan and I tried a new restaurant (and made a new friend with the owner) and on our way back we ran into some of my students. “We are going to eat watermelon!” They told us. “Do you want to come with us?” Why yes, yes we would.

 
We went together to the fruit stand, they picked out a watermelon and we watched as the lady cut and sliced it with a huge silver knife. Then we stood together on a busy street talking and slurping and eating our very juicy watermelon pieces. It wasn’t a huge thing, it didn’t change any of our lives, but it was fun, and made for a new memory on a pretty normal night.
And that’s what life is about. The little moment. Try to have more. And remember, “Strange things will happen if you let them.”