“New School, New Friend,” Friend, July 2022
New School, New Friend
How could Ada make friends when she couldn’t speak Chinese?
“I’m scared,” Ada said. It was her first day of school in Taiwan. But she didn’t speak Chinese like the other students. How could she make friends? Who would she play with at break time?
Mom gave Ada a big hug. “It’s OK to be scared.”
Ada frowned. “I don’t know how to make friends here.”
Mom gave her another hug. “If you get nervous, maybe you can think of a Primary song. Will that help?”
Ada nodded. Then she walked with Mom to her classroom. Her teacher was waiting for her. “Ni hao!” the teacher said. Ada tried to smile. She didn’t know what those words meant.
Ada said goodbye to Mom. Then she found a desk and sat down.
She looked at the other kids. Some of them were talking to each other. Others sat quietly like Ada. Ada was nervous. It felt like bees were buzzing in her stomach.
Then Ada saw a girl who was crying. Ada wanted to help her. But how could she help when she couldn’t speak Chinese? What if the girl didn’t want help?
But then Ada did what Mom said. She thought of the words of her favorite Primary song: “Love one another as Jesus loves you.” Ada knew the Holy Ghost was asking her to help.
Ada sat next to the girl. She put her arm around her. Then she patted her back like Mom did when Ada was sad. The girl stopped crying! She hugged Ada back.
Ada pointed to herself. “Ada.”
The girl pointed to herself. “Mei,” she said.
Ada smiled. She sat by Mei the rest of the day. Even though they didn’t speak the same language, they had fun together. They ate their lunches together. They played together at recess. And Mei helped Ada learn new words in Chinese!
Ada couldn’t wait to tell Mom about her new friend. She knew that if she followed Jesus, she wouldn’t have to be afraid of anything.
Illustrations by Shawna J. C. Tenney