6 weeks left

I am notorious for counting down till major, or minor, events. Now we have 6 more weeks till exams are over, and i've already begun reflecting on the semester. Part of the reason the semester has gone by so fast is the fact that Mom, Jim, and McDowell came for a visit a few weeks ago. It was a good visit: We packed in Hong Kong, Hengyang, Yangshuo, and Macau all into 8 days. We took planes, trains, automobiles, and even boats. I THINK my family liked China, for the most part, but you'd have to ask them for their genuine response. I planned for them to be in Hengyang only 1 day, which turned out to be enough because of the lack of English spoken in the shops. Jim expressed his frustration at not even being able to communicate with the shopkeeper enough to be able to buy a drink. I suppose not being able to communicate does present its problems, which is why we quickly moved on to Yangshuo and Hong Kong, where most everyone can speak at least a little English. Yangshuo was beautiful, and we enjoyed a delightful bike ride in the countryside with mountain terrain views. We also took the boat ride down the Li River, which was gorgeous, too. Our last day together was in Macau, where we hiked to the highest point in the city, went to the (fascinating) History Museum, and yes we did stroll through the Lisboa and Wynn casinos. Good trip.
So now our students are watching The Blind Side and putting together skits for class this week. Among others, I know that one of the highlights of these final few weeks of the semester will be spending time with Tina, one of my more outspoken freshmen, and another sister, who is very enthusiastic about influencing Tina. The three of us have studied together once so far, and will continue to do so weekly. I just love our time together.
I hope I can put less energy into counting down and more energy into making the most of these final weeks!