The advantage of living in a place for an extended period of time is the opportunity to seep into the lives of the locals—not only the people of China, but the
people of Jinhua, China. The smells of China grab my attention all day and everywhere that even my clothes smell like China. My eyes, which originally would stare just a bit longer at any new Chinese I met, have become accustomed to seeing
Chinese people and noticing distinct features. I no longer think I will run into an African American or Latino person down the street. A language that use to sound like a string of accented sounds, now has rhythm and a melody, as I appreciate the beauty of a tonal language. The closeness and touching that the people of China love to offer feels familiar now. If I do not have someone talk to me inches from my face and tug on my sweater the whole time, I would think they were
upset at me. I am feeling much cozier with the idea of myself in China and all I
needed was time.
While the constant inhaling-the-mucus-and-spitting-it-on-the-street and not having the patience to hold onto waste until you see a garbage can ritual makes me gag at times, it cannot be seen as backward, as many foreigners often do. People
have been living in China like this for years and who am I to say it is right or
wrong, when it is not as black and white as the Holocaust being wrong and basic
expressions of humanity being right. Just because modernization has swept the world does not mean that the people of the world have changed their habits to match their environment. The people of China who I have met like to experiment with
symbols of modernity—music, clothing, education—but they are firm believers in passing on the traditions of China.
Efficiency is a word that is not in the Chinese dictionary. The teachers at my school come in to work at 6:30a.m. and go to their homes at 9:30p.m. everyday. While there is some parental responsibility that is passed along to them because the students are essentially at a boarding school from Monday thru Friday, they cannot balance home, work and their social life. About a month ago a teacher I work with received a call from her daughter during our meeting, wanting to tell her mother that both her parents forgot her birthday. The point is less that they
forgot her birthday, but more to what extent their lives are consumed by work—the work that can be finished in hours if they focused and prioritized. Teachers
are highly respected in China and I would say without a doubt that some serve as
second parents to many. I often wonder if I should admire their devotion or question their logic.
The people of China know exactly how to treat a guest, maybe more so than the guest deserves. The numerous homes of friends, students and other teachers I have
visited have showered me with the type of generosity that is expected from family. As I try to drink the green tea they first serve slowly, I am cautious that there are no tea leaves stuck in between my teeth. The dining table is decorated
with colorful dishes and there is no reason for a plate when you can use your chopsticks to grab food right from the beautiful pottery. Meat is what they love,
from any animal and in all forms, and even the vegetable dishes are “sprinkled”
with a little meat because no meat equals unhealthy. No matter how much I engulf they will say I eat so little and push the dishes I have been grabbing out of
the most closer to me. Halfway through the meal, rice is served and their jaws drop when I say I am too full for RICE! The meal does not end without fresh fruits and even sunflower seeds to follow. A Chinese hardly lets you leave their home
without taking something with, whether that be a special gift, some fruits or anything that I mentioned I happened to like. Their humbleness shines through when honoring a guest.
The youth of China is in a very vulnerable position trying to walk on two tightropes: tradition and modernity—not wanting to slip off either. Most of the youth
are not allowed to date after high school and most after college, but one cannot fight with Mother Nature. It is natural that their suppression of interest in
the opposite sex will boil to the rim and overflow at the wrong time. At a Halloween party that the high school students held with foreign-teacher supervision,
most of the questions in a semi-truth or dare game were as follows: “Who is your ideal lover in your class?” “What would your ideal kiss be?” and “How would you speak to someone of the opposite sex when you meet them for the first time
?” The questions were inappropriate for a school event but it was almost as if
they would have no other platform to express themselves. New fads have taken over students, such as college women drinking water from baby bottles and headphones constantly plugged into their ears that their parents do not appreciate. The students here are extremely book smart and can memorize at the speed of light, but put into practical situations they curl up into their shells and are consistently afraid of being wrong. A student in my school was afraid to tell his parents
he needs glasses because he said his Dad would beat him.
Many people in Jinhua do not follow any organized religion. In order for a person to become a member of the Communist Party, he or she has to be atheist. If you
are a member you believe the party has the answers to all questions in life and
as a friend said to me, “If the party cannot provide an answer the party members tell you that it is knowledge that is still to be discovered by them.” There
are fees that members pay as well as homework they have to complete. Each member owns a red passport-like book that is a member ID.
Teaching has been quite a journey. There are days when I happen to pick exactly
the right words for the kids to understand what I am teaching and there are those days when they stare at me dumbfounded. We all get a share of laughs in—them
at my Chinese and me at their English. In an oral exam two weeks ago, I asked a
very clever kid, “What is your favorite vegetable?” twice and he replied, “My
favorite vegetable is ping-pong,” TWICE! I tried to keep a straight face. I try to challenge those students whose English is advanced and work one-on-one with
those struggling, and I see changes. Kids that gave me the “I don’t care about English” looks weeks ago are actively participating in class. I often get caught up in being 12-13 years old with them that I have to remind myself I am their teacher. The best incident was this weekend when I ran into three of my students in the city. I screamed their English names several times before they even flinched. Hopefully like their names, English is not left behind when they leave school.
The temperature has significantly dropped here in the last two weeks. China has
a theory about heating. All the states south of the Yellow River do not get any
heating and those states in the north do. Of course, I happen to live in the south. Who makes up this type of logic? It is going to be a long winter, especially
when it snows!
