Thank You Speech by a Chinese teacher in Kunming

Today is a special day for me. Standing here, I have so many thanks to say to all of you.

I have taught for 15 years, teaching becomes boring and tiring for me although my students sometimes give me a surprise, happiness and the sense of success. From you, the volunteers, I learned a lot and have changed a lot. You are not professional teachers, but more than teachers. What you did make me feel shamed at my thoughts.

Thank you, Bill and Marissa! You taught us so well. You are kind, patient and hard-working. Thank you for your idioms and slangs. They are so interesting. I’m not a smart cookie, but I learn them for kicks. Thank you for your tongue twisters. Now I can say “If two witches were watching two watches, which witch would watch which watch” well. Thank you for teaching us how to distinguish the pronunciation. Now I know I cook with a pan, not a pen. Thank you for the papers you gave us. I’ll keep them. When I see them, I’ll remember you and I won’t forget the time we spent together. I want to tell you I’m so lucky to be your student.

Thank you, Lee! I tried my best to catch every word you said about law, but I failed to understand because my knowledge about law is so poor. But your speech about American History was interesting; please know I did not fall asleep for that.

Thank you, Helene! From your speech, I know when someone is ill in America, he would call 911, not 120. I also remember you like helping others. You said “Helping others is also helping yourself”.

Thank you, Grace! You are cleaver, active and beautiful. If you lived in China, I think you would be a super girl. From you and Marissa, we learned a lot about American teenagers.

I’m always wondering why America develops so fast, although it has a history of only about 200 years. From you all, I’ve got some answers.

- Kathleen
A teacher from Dehong Prefecture in Yunnan Province of China