Starting our walking tour
Dancers in the Park
Trying what the locals eat for breakfast
Thawing out with Hot Chocolate
"On Friday we visited FuXing Park. It was
bitter cold but the park was full of people (mostly retirement age)
involved in a variety of activities. Our guide, Lisa, commented that
most households in China include three generations. The grandparents,
who are retired and have a small government pension, care for their
grandchild while both parents work out of the home to provide. Because
the homes are very small the grandparents often frequent the park where
they can find friends and give the rest of the family a little breathing
space when they are not at work. The activities included community
dancing, kite flying, badminton, men working yoyos, a choir practicing
to live music, and several groups of men and women doing graceful,
disciplined and slow TaeChi movements to music. There was also an area
where people congregated and discussed political matters. Despite the
early hour and cold there were people everywhere. We stopped for a
while and listened to the choir and when they completed their number we
clapped for them. Immediately the instrumentalist accompanying the
choir started playing "Jingle Bells" and we joined in the singing. It
was a sweet interaction and we appreciated their kindness to us visiting
Americans.
Much
of what we saw in both the people and the sites we visited was the
Asian people's emphasis on harmony, beauty, peace, longevity, and
resilience. Our guide mentioned the various symbols that represented
these attributes and I was struck by the way the Chinese people have
continued to value these virtues despite the oppression and challenges
they have faced throughout their country's history. Another recurring
theme was that of enduring and persevering and finding a way to overcome
the obstacles that life brings our way. I really came to admire their
culture of hard work, frugality, and courage that I saw throughout the
trip.
You
have probably heard the adage that was prevalent during the Great
Depression: “Fix it up, wear it out; Make do or do without." I remember
my mother telling me that the first time she met John C. Richards, who
would become her father-in-law, she laughed right out loud because he
was using a rope to keep his pants up. It was tied to a belt loop on
the front of his pants and crossed over his shoulder and tied to another
belt loop in the back since he didn't have the money for a belt.
Mother said that Grandpa laughed along with her so I guess he wasn't
offended, but was just "making do". I remember as a child the things
our family did to "make do" when we didn't have the money to buy what
was needed. Well, the Chinese are masters of "making do" and I saw so
many instances of their patching things together to extend the life of a
bike, or coat, or other necessities. It would have been humorous to
see if I hadn't realized that it was because of their poverty. Grinding
poverty truly is grinding.
Another
thing we did was to visit a wet market which was a large open warehouse
where all manner of animals were killed and prepared for selling. We
saw chickens, pigs, eels, squid, and fish being prepared, mostly by
women who were bundled up against the cold, and who wielded huge meat
cleavers and worked with the strength of men. We also saw other women
working with small knives and filleting eels no larger than a thick
strand of yarn. It was a smelly, noisy, and messy place. I was
saddened by the poor working conditions and the work required of the
women"
