Autumn is a season for change. It’s a time when the air wavers undecidedly somewhere between warm and cool, when leaves which before were green start fading into hues of gold and red, when memories of carefree days of summer start dissolving into the reality of school.
October is, perhaps, the calm before the storm, the last breath before the onslaught of homework, school projects, book reports, SATs and college applications become impending doom. And for these reasons many kids around the world have come to look forward to – even rely upon – Halloween as a chance to play a trick or have a treat without the consequences of either being too grave. Hence, in this issue of tbjkids, you’ll find a step-by-step guide on how to throw a Halloween party and make the most of this brief indulgence.
The month of October is also one of the last chances in the year to soak up fresh air and sunshine before the weather turns too cold, so we’ve taken the liberty of drawing up five worthwhile places in greater Beijing fit for a family-friendly stroll; if you’d rather stay within city limits, we’ve dissected and pinpointed the highlights of the bustling neighborhood of Wangfujing as well. And should leaving the house on those rainy afternoons prove much too difficult a task, then our primer on Chinese-language video games will keep you entertained yet learning still.
As the changing of the season becomes more prominent, you may also notice that tbjkids has made some changes, too, first and foremost in Managing Editor. Other things have been altered as well – columns added, sections expanded, many areas rethought and redesigned. For the moment, we’ll be bringing some Food for Thought to your table, a column that will explain some of those local Beijing ingredients which you never thought of using, or simply never knew how to use. We’re also offering a Blank Canvas to bring each issue to a close, a place where young artistic minds can see the fruits of their creativity reproduced. And we hope in the future to do much, much more.
Most parents secretly wish their little darlings would forever remain chubby cherubs who cling to their sides, but they also want their kids to grow and mature – a process which takes time and patience. These changes are not always easy but almost always for the better, and likewise, we trust the changes at tbjkids will be for the better, too.
We’re still the same magazine you’ve come to know, only now we’re growing into our skin, and we’re confident that we’ll fill out, mature and blossom over time. Yet, while we become wiser with each passing day (just like your young ones), you can at least take comfort that you’ll always have tbjkids to cling onto at your side.
Managing Editor
editor@tbjkids.com