What’s Missing?

As I approach the full two-month mark of living here I take stock of things: what I still miss, what I take for granted, what I’ve gotten used to, what I wish would change.

The last one is easy: living on campus. Admittedly it would be much easier to appreciate the college experience if I were actually part of the college scene, and I’m not. I just live with it, and being confined to my apartment after dark unless I have an escort is the topic of a whole other blog. So we’ll leave this one right here and pick up on it later – but not too much later. The next entry will deal with this subject, as a matter of fact.

What have I gotten used to? Food that is either unutterably bland or overpoweringly spicy, and only sometimes hits a pleasant mid-range. My diminutive kitchen where the countertops are not even 4 feet high. I’ve gotten used to cooking on an electronic hot plate, a chore that has gotten a little easier since I bought a stainless steel pot. Now I don’t have to cook everything in my wok, which is a good thing because it is not easy to make soup in a wok. More on kitchen stuff later as well.

I take for granted that, anytime I step out of the confines of my apartment, and any time I leave the safety of the campus I will be surrounded by Chinese people. I am in China and that is part of what I came here for. I was actually truly shocked when I saw some foreigners while visiting a temple – more on that later, too.

What do I miss? Truthfully, not much. My life has not radically changed, even though I am on the other side of the globe. I do miss the good people I used to work with, but I am in touch with the best of them, and gratefully so. I can watch movies in English, chat with my family daily, I have my faithful companion – my laptop, and some good books to read. Food is no longer a problem. I don’t miss driving even though I have not driven anything bigger than the occasional shopping cart in over 3 months. One thing I do miss terribly is interacting with my friends, as opposed to just talking with them online.

What’s missing?

I didn’t realize until the other day – the day of my fateful walk where I ended up making a spectacle of myself in a mud puddle.

About 30 minutes prior to planting myself in murky water, I heard emergency sirens. They actually shocked me out of the thoughts I was having about how to formulate that entry. That was the first time I’d heard sirens since I’ve been here, I realized with shock as I watched the fire trucks go by. My first thought after amazement was that I hope whatever emergency they were responding to would be only minor. They weren’t in any kind of a hurry in spite of their sirens; but then they really couldn’t afford to be with traffic being what it is on this stretch of road.

After they passed by and the noise of the sirens dwindled down, I reflected on this experience. Paltry? maybe, and perhaps not even worth writing about. Still…

I recall hearing sirens at all hours of the day or night in America. Not constantly, of course, but it was literally a daily occurrence for me to hear that particular wail that presages some human drama unfolding. What about you? Do you hear the wail of sirens more often than you’d care to?

Is there no human drama here? Or does it have to be really dramatic in order to bring out the sirens?

The Chinese are a folk who are used to enduring. They take care of themselves and each other as best they can. Calling the authorities remains, in the minds of most, an exercise in folly being as it was not so long ago that manifestations of authority meant nothing good or helpful.

I recall that incident when I saw that woman pinwheeling after being hit by the taxi. If I had been alone to manage that incident, the thought crossed my mind that I don’t even know how to ‘dial 911’ in China. I wouldn’t know how to summon the authorities if I needed them. If my kitchen caught on fire I would have to run out of my apartment screaming. If I had a heart attack I would be out of luck.

Why more sirens in America than here? Is there more misery in America? Why?

Is it because everyone knows help is just a phone call away? Is it because there is more violence in America, more disease, more guns, more cars? Or is it because there is more protection in America, more rigid adherence to the law, more help available, more shelter under Lady Justice’s umbrella?

Does anyone have an opinion?

I hope that, wherever those fire trucks were headed they got there in time to salvage the situation and rescue whomever needed to be rescued.

I have realized I like living in a place where hearing sirens is not the norm.