Conclusion to Chinese

Dear China,

We both knew this day would come. Tonight, I’m leaving with a one-way ticket on a westbound plane. Don’t know when I’ll be back again.

I am not exactly ready to close the China chapter of my life, so no doubt you will see more of me. Soon. My money says I will beat that Olympic flame to Beijing.

Late this morning, on my way home from my last exam, I watched you like a nostalgic slideshow--- coasting on my bicycle with music in my ears drinking you in one last time. (In the back of my mind, I prayed your crazy motorists wouldn’t take my life on my final day here.)

We really did have good times. I feel like I was just getting to know you and your people…and that multi-toned language of yours. Whew! I sure did have fun pretending to understand that.

Special shout out, of course, to your food; “Gan bian yun dou” will be missed. As will your various forms of sweet potato (which will now be dubbed digua in my vocabulary): baked, dried, and caramelized.

I am going to miss all the familiar faces and smiles of those I see daily but can’t communicate with, like the little boy with the thick, green, glasses. I’ve been seeing him every day on my morning ride to work. He rides backwards on his Mom’s electric bike and points his tiny silver, plastic gun at imaginary bad guys. On the first day we met, I was sitting on my bike directly behind him at a red light and caught him with his gun pointed directly at me. I threw my hands up, “Don’t shoot!”
Since that day, I have sat facing him at many red lights, many days in a row. And when I was swallowed into the mob of bicycles, and I could see him up ahead looking for me in the crowd. This morning, I wished I could tell him not to look for me after today, that he wouldn’t see me anymore. I wanted to tell him that he was the highlight of my morning.

Well, its time to go now. Intro to Chinese has come to an end, but I can leave with the peace of mind that there will be more Chinese courses in my future.

Thanks again,

Betsy

Changing lanes

“Man zou” is a Chinese expression that I have grown very fond of hearing. It means, “walk slowly” and every time I am told “man zou” as I exit a store or restaurant, I smile because a complete stranger cares enough to remind me to stop and smell the roses. At least that’s how it feels. I wonder if a non-native English speaker feels touched when told, “take it easy”?

In the days after I was told what “man zou” meant, I took it very literally. As soon as I heard the words, I would make a conscious effort to slow myself down in view of the adviser. As I drifted quietly up the sidewalk for a hundred yards, I looked tenderly upon my surroundings. And in those meandering moments, I would imagine a more peaceful version of myself doing everything more slowly…walking, eating, drinking, and cooking---all in sweet slow motion.

Then, to my disappointment, only a couple of hours later, I would find myself at home trying to put on my pajamas, take out my contacts and brush my teeth all at once.

Whose idea was this so-called “multitasking” anyway? I’ll tell you what multitasking has gotten me: burnt lentil soup, overflowing bathtubs, and toothpaste on the keyboard. It’s hard to think of anything especially positive in my life that has sprung from the ability to multitask. What’s the big hurry? In fact, as I recall, one of the most beautiful days I’ve spent in China was the day after a bout of food poisoning in Lijiang. After hours in the bathroom, I emerged out into the city feeling very fragile and wandered around at a snail’s pace. That evening, I remember thinking I was glad I’d been sick; otherwise I wouldn’t have taken the time to see the city so clearly and find, in the smallest of details, such serenity.

When in a hurry around here, it’s hard to see beyond bad traffic, crowded buses and the sheer frustration of a language barrier; it takes a long hard look to find the beauty. But, sure enough, when you slow down, there it is… bare-bottomed babies wading in a fountain, a fruit vendor and her basket of ripe red cherries or a Chinese dog in a stylish sweater.

I am trying to change my ways and not only slow down, but focus on each individual task until it is completed. So far monotasking is proving difficult; I routinely catch myself wandering off to check my email in the midst of scrambling eggs or trying to floss with a mouth full of foamy toothpaste.

So, thank you, China, for reminding me, in your novel way, to be here while I am here.

Man zou, dear reader.

One way or another...

Sleep at last

The past month’s hot weather has brought us unwelcome houseguests. No, not the family. The mosquitoes. Every night before bed, Josh closes himself into the bedroom and goes mosquito hunting. It just so happens that all the doors in our apartment have small windows like laboratories or…an insane asylum--windows through which one can observe a subject. As I brush my teeth I stand out in the hall and observe Josh. He holds completely still in the corner of the room, his eyes pass slowly over the walls and ceiling.

Without warning, he begins to stalk across the room with his fingers wrapped around the handle of a fluorescent orange fly swatter. In a sudden fury, he leaps across the bed and SMACK! Then, he pauses for just a moment before slowly peeling the swatter off the wall to reveal a dime-sized explosion of bright red blood and splattered mosquito parts. This ritual goes on for ten to fifteen minutes.

And most nights do not pass without one or two midnight hunts........I hear a faint buzz, and then I feel a pillow placed on top of my face. A moment later, through my eyelids and the pillow, I can sense the light has come on. I peak out from between the pillow sandwich and see Josh sitting pretzel style on the bed, eyes roaming around the room looking for prey.

Last night at 3am, Josh had had enough. The room was hot, our hands and knees were itchy, and Josh had a long day of work ahead of him.

“Can you get up? I am going to set up the tent.” I could hear the exasperation in his voice.

I stood by the bed squinting and sleepy as he pulled the sheets off the bed and set up the tent in less than four minutes.

Once we settled into the tent, Josh wiggled around on the sheets and made little happy noises like a kid with a Ninja Turtles tent set up on his bed---only now the tent is REI.

Dealing with the heat

Hot weather has brought about a change of scenery around here. Women carry parasols to escape the sunshine and the men, desperate for some ventilation in a shorts-less land, roll up their pants and shirts to bare calves and midriffs.

Last week, my classes met at a nearby sports-field and played (sort of) Kickball. It was a lot of fun. Though some students opted out for fear of what color sun exposure might turn their skin, another group of students, who are often quiet in the classroom, really pushed their own boundaries to communicate with me about the rules of the game.