Somehow we stretched a fairly routine double--akin to two-hopping the wall in the gap in right-center on a slider that didn't--and managed to get invited back for a fourth year on the faculty at Beijing Foreign Studies University. Of course, the can't-throw, can't-run, can't-hit, why-is-he-even-here popgun allegedly throwing me out of here on an inside-out sharply spanked single the other way by one of my guys, turned out to be even worse than his bleak scouting report. 'He' was actually just some fool from the stands who jumped the fence and stole a uniform, or parts thereof.
What's the skinny? Along with the baseball metaphors that are again sprouting like wild grass in my sundry narratives, I am throwing in a cliche--it's nice to be wanted. This is especially true when fools with blind meanness as their only game have spattered other Internet venues for months with in-the-know proclamations of my imminent disgrace and termination.
Not wishing to sound it more clarion than necessary, but, briefly: foreign faculty in Chinese universities serve almost exclusively under one-year contracts to be renewed solely at the option of the university in the spring of each year. Somewhere, apparently, there is a very permeable sanction from the Ministry of Education, which says that two years in succession at any one university is the 'ground rules' limit for any one 'foreign expert.' There is any number of exceptions to this stricture, a statute folks talk about but no one I know has ever seen. In practice, however, it is so obviously true that folks need not go looking for the doctrine, prima facie or in print; better instead they start looking for another job after one or two years if they don't want to go 'home.'
Whatever, I am happy that for at least another year Beiwai has a place for my services; and a wonderfully broad place it is. At BFSU, I have been allowed, and more importantly, encouraged by my several bosses to use all of the facets of an ongoing life and career that so luckily has included most of the fine arts (but not dance or music; I studied them for degree requirements, but could not do either) and journalism, primarily long-form journalism, creative nonfiction books and occasional magazine pieces.
To go with the new English language drama program gig--that now includes a for-credit English language acting class this semester--there is a nascent English language creative writing society that will soon have a web-site, present poetry and short prose readings on campus, and publish a yearly journal of the best works.
It is far too often said that contemporary Chinese university students lack creativity due to their intense primary and middle school regimen of study, and Chinese society's rampant materialistic pragmatism. It is also just that often wrong. Offer a challenge, and the room to explore the range of its fruition, and Chinese university students are as creative as any students anywhere on this spinning rock we call Earth.
