Dear MeiGui;

Working as an English teacher for me isn’t that bad. The kids are all really cute, and so are my co-teachers. Plus, I work in a private elementary school, which offers an awesome salary along with three months of paid vacation every year. Between the students, the chicks, the money, and the fun, you’d think I’d be the happiest guy on the planet – yet still I’m dissatisfied.

I feel my potential is not being challenged. I wasn’t born to be an English teacher in a foreign country; I was born to be a witty short story writer and novelist. I worry I’m missing my true calling by passing my days here in Taiwan.

If you were me, what would you do? Go back to Seattle to give writing another shot or continue on in an inadequate job.
— Dissatisfied

Dear Dissatisfied;
And I wasn’t born to answer the questions of the self-deluded; yet here I am. I have more questions than answers for you: Why can’t you write in Taiwan?What happened to the writing-thing in Seattle?

Maybe it’s best that I borrow a passage from one who was truly a great novelist: “And you claim you want to be a writer, too. You’re only a (English teacher). An expatriated (English teacher). You ought to be ironical the minute you get out of bed.” — The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway.

— By the way, is your school hiring?

MeiGui

First published 12/21/o8 in The China Post Foreign Community Section.

See Rosanne’s site: <a href=”http://www.rosannelin.com”>www.rosannelin.com</a>