On the way back from book-study tonight, swinging our umbrellas since it had stopped raining, Fan Tien and I walked home at a leisurely pace. As we strolled along I read one of the English signs out-loud, I can't seem to help reading signs out-loud. "Super Chicken" I said, I was about to say "Sounds kinda tough to eat." I thought that would be funny, but then I thought about it. Maybe he would have no idea what I was talking about. No idea that I was imagining a chicken from the planet Krypton who's powers came from our yellow sun, who's meat would be tough as steel. While I was contemplating this terrible joke of mine, he said "Nǐ y�o chī ma?" Which is one of the very first sentences you learn in Chinese class. "Do you want to eat?" Referring to the Super Chicken stand.
Moments later we had crossed the street and were standing with a small throng of Chinese people on the sidewalk under signs still dripping from today's rain. I lazily allowed Fan Tien to order for me, I told him I wanted "Squid" and made a little pantomime of a squid swimming through the water with one hand, my fingers were the tentacles. He told me this was "Youye." As I was repeating "Youye" to myself I noticed the lone woman preparing our food behind the counter, I smiled because I saw a little leg sticking out of her side, and a little fist sticking out the other side. As she dashed around, back and forth, preparing orders for the 7 people standing on the sidewalk, the little leg swung back and forth as if it was dead, dead asleep. "I love this country" I thought to myself, "Here is a young mother with a three year old kid strapped to her back sleeping away as she works through the night." That kid can probably sleep through anything.
I see that a lot here, parents working away in various shops and restaurants with their little kids sitting in little chairs behind the counter doing their homework, drawing pictures, playing computer games, sometimes you'll see a couple of them playing with each other, probably having much more fun that they ever would at a day care. (edit 325) Permalink