You can mouseover the Chinese text below to see the pronunciation and translation, or download a PDF that has the Chinese, pinyin, and back-translated English.

Download: Yazi-Nongfu.pdf

鸭子农夫

从前有只鸭子，和一个农夫一起生活。鸭子要干所有的活儿，农夫只管整天赖在床上。

鸭子到地里把牛牵回来。
农夫嚷嚷：“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
鸭子回答：“嘎嘎！”

鸭子到山上把羊驮回来。
农夫嚷嚷：“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
鸭子回答：“嘎嘎！”

鸭子把鸡赶回鸡舍。
农夫嚷嚷：“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
鸭子回答：“嘎嘎！”

农夫从早到晚躺在床上，胖得不成样子。
鸭子没日没夜辛苦干活，累得快要崩溃了。

“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
“嘎嘎！”
“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
“嘎嘎！”

“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
“嘎嘎！”
“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
“嘎嘎……”

“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
“嘎嘎……”
“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
“嘎嘎……”

可怜的鸭子又困又累又伤心。

牛、羊和鸡很爱鸭子，他们都为朋友感到难过。
于是大家趁着月色，精心安排起第二天一早的行动。
“哞哞！”牛说。
“咩咩！”羊说。
“咕咕！”鸡说。
好，就这么定了！

天还没有亮，农场静悄悄。
牛、羊和鸡从后门偷偷溜进农夫的房子。

大家轻手轻脚进了走廊，踩得楼梯吱吱作响。

他们一起挤到农夫的床下，使劲往上顶啊顶，床开始摇晃。
农夫被惊醒，又嚷嚷起来：“活儿干得怎……”

“哞哞！”
“咩咩！”
“咕咕！”
大家拱起床，农夫叫嚷着。
大家挤挤撞撞把床掀，
农夫轱辘轱辘滚下来，
重重得摔到地板上。

农夫拔腿就跑，牛、羊和鸡紧追不舍。
“哞哞！”
“咩咩！”
“咕咕！”

一直追到小路上……
“哞哞！”
穿过田野……
“咩咩！”
翻过小山……
“咕咕！”
农夫再也没有回来过……

清晨，鸭子疲惫不堪地晃进院子里，
等着听那句——
“活儿干得怎么样啦？”
咦，竟然没有人说话！

牛、羊和鸡回来了。
“嘎嘎？”鸭子问。
“哞哞！”牛说。
“咩咩！”羊说。
“咕咕！”鸡说。
大家把事情的经过告诉了鸭子。

“嘎嘎” “哞哞” “咩咩” “咕咕”
从此以后，农场里充满了欢乐的声音。

And they all lived happily ever after:

“Four legs good, two legs better!”

Download: Yazi-Nongfu.pdf

Other children’s story Chinese translation read-alongs:

• Eric Carle’s “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” in Chinese! 好饿的毛毛虫
• 蚯蚓的日记 Diary of a Worm

We’ve also given some popular Chinese songs similar treatment (plus guitar chords!):

• Chinese Song: 宝贝 (Baby) by 张悬 (Zhāng Xuán) — lyrics & guitar chords
• Brother Who Sleeps in the Top Bunk / 睡在我上铺的兄弟
• Nothing to My Name / 一无所有
• Even in Death I’ll Love / 死了都要爱
• Liang Shanbo & Juliet / 梁山伯与茱丽叶
• Mouse Loves Rice / 老鼠爱大米

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.

好饿的毛毛虫

月光下，一个小小的卵躺在树叶上。

一个星期天的早晨，暖暖的太阳升起来了——啪！——从卵壳里钻出一条又小又饿的毛毛虫。

他四下寻找可以吃的东西。星期一，他啃穿了一个苹果。可他还是觉得饿。

星期二，他啃穿了两个梨子，可他还是觉得饿。

星期三，他啃穿了三个李子，可他还是觉得饿。

星期四，他啃穿了四个草莓，可他还是饿得受不了。

星期五，他啃穿了五个桔子，可他还是饿呀。

星期六，他啃穿了一块巧克力蛋糕、一个冰淇淋甜筒、一条酸黄瓜、一片瑞士奶酪、一截萨拉米香肠、一根棒棒糖、一小角樱桃派、一段红肠、一只杯形蛋糕、还有一块甜西瓜。到了晚上，他就胃痛起来！

第二天，又是星期天。毛毛虫啃穿了一片嫩嫩的绿树叶，这一回他感觉好多了。

现在他一点儿也不饿了——他也不再是一条小毛虫了。他是一条胖嘟嘟的大毛虫了。

他绕着自己的身子，造了一座叫做“茧”的小房子。 他在那里面呆了两个多星期。

然后他就在茧壳上啃出一个洞洞，钻了出来……

他变成了一只美丽的蝴蝶！

Download the text (汉字/pīnyīn/English): HaoEdeMaomaochong.pdf

More Bedtime Stories in Chinese:

• 蚯蚓的日记 Diary of a Worm
• Dr. Seuss in Chinese!

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.

Jessica’s Facebook status after our second night in Vancouver, BC:

Jet-lag with a toddler is the stuff of which bad dreams are made. Except that you’re awake.

It’s 4:37am Vancouver time (7:37pm Tianjin time), and she’s in her crib singing Sunday school songs and Happy Birthday in Chinese and having conversations with her stuffed animals in English. Feel free to commiserate and/or share your advice/secrets/magic tricks below!

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.

According to one of the greeter/usher/crowd-control guys (who just became my best friend for finding me a place — out of range of all the ā​yís and their unsolicited advice — where I could change a mid-Sunday school poopie diaper), the Shanxi Lu Three-Self church can hold almost 1600 in the pews. These pictures are from this morning, half-way through the early (8:30) service, outside the overflow room where people who couldn’t get seats inside the main split-level auditorium or who can’t climb stairs watch the proceedings on a video screen.

Looks like they ran out of stools.

People were even camped out around the corner listening through the side doors and windows of the overflow room:

I would have had better pictures, but these were all I was able to squeeze out of my dead camera batteries if I let them rest in between shots.

Shanxi Lu is the biggest of the four Three-Self churches in Tianjin. “Three-Self church” means a legal, registered Chinese church that is officially under the “Three-Self Patriotic Movement”, which is one of two Party organizations controlling all legal Protestant church activity in China (there are other organizations that control the Catholics). The term “three-self” is a missiological term from the 19th century referring to missionaries’ desires to have local churches be “self-governing, self-supporting and self-propagating.”

ABC News’ “True Believers” feature has recent reportage on the legal, illegal-but-tolerated, and illegal-and-not-tolerated churches in China.

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.

《宝贝 / Bǎobèi / Baby》

According to the internet, 张悬 Zhāng Xuán is an indie artist from Taiwan. Our Chinese teacher introduced us to this cute little pop lullaby so we could learn it for our daughter. 宝贝 means “baby”, but in the sense of “darling” or “little treasure.” The song also uses the term 小鬼，which literally means “little devil/demon/ghost” or “imp”, but it’s a cutesy term of endearment for a baby or small child. I’ve translated it “little rascal” in the lyrics.

One thing about this song is that it provides a contrast between sung and spoken Chinese. You don’t sing the tones in Chinese, but in this song she speaks the word for “baby” 宝贝 instead of singing it, so the tones come through.

If you want more info on Zhang Xuan and her music you can search for 张悬，Zhang Xuan, Deserts Zhang, Deserts Chang, or Deserts Xuan.

You can play the mp3 and follow along below, and download the guitar chords with lyrics in Chinese, English, and pīnyīn:
[Visit the blog to listen to audio]

Guitar Chords & Lyrics

Download: Baobei.pdf (lyrics & guitar chords with pīnyīn/English cheatsheet).

Lyrics / 歌词:
[Intro:]

耶～ 哒啦哒啦哒 / yē… dā lā dā lā dā
yeah… da da da da da

[Verse 1:]

我的宝贝宝贝，给你一点甜甜 / wǒde bǎobèi bǎobèi, gěi nǐ yīdiǎn tiántian
My baby, baby, here’s a little something sweet
让你今夜都好眠 / ràng nǐ jīnyè dōu hǎo miàn
to make you sleep tight tonight
我的小鬼小鬼，逗逗你的眉眼 / wǒde xiǎoguǐ xiǎoguǐ, dòudòu nǐde méiyǎn
My little rascal, little rascal, making you make funny faces
让你喜欢这世界 / ràng nǐ xǐhuān zhè shìjiè
to make you like this world

[Chorus 1:]

哇啦啦啦啦啦我的宝贝 / wa lā lā lā lā wǒde bǎobèi
wa la la la la la my baby
倦的时候有个人陪 / juàn de shíhòu yǒu gerén péi
When you’re tired someone will be with you
哎呀呀呀呀呀我的宝贝 / āi yā ya ya ya ya wǒde bǎibèi
ai ya ya ya ya ya my baby
要你知道你最美 / yào nǐ zhīdào nǐ zuì měi
I hope you know that you’re the most beautiful

[Verse 2:]

我的宝贝宝贝，给你一点甜甜 / wǒde bǎobèi bǎobèi, gěi nǐ yīdiǎn tiántian
My baby, baby, here’s a little something sweet
让你今夜很好眠 / ràng nǐ jīnyè hěn hǎo miàn
to make you have a good sleep tonight
我的小鬼小鬼，捏捏你的小脸 / wǒde xiǎoguǐ xiǎoguǐ, niēniē nǐde xiǎo liǎn
My little rascal, little rascal, pinching your little cheeks
让你喜欢整个明天 / ràng nǐ xǐhuān zhěnggè míngtiān
to make you like all of tomorrow

[Repeat Chorus 1]
[Chorus 2:]

哇啦啦啦啦啦我的宝贝 / wa lā lā lā lā wǒde bǎobèi
wa la la la la la my baby
孤单时有人把你想念 / gūdān shí yǒurén bǎ nǐ xiǎngniàn
When you’re lonely someone’s missing you
哎呀呀呀呀呀我的宝贝 / āi ya ya ya ya ya wǒde bǎibèi
ai ya ya ya ya ya my baby
要你知道你最美 / yào nǐ zhīdào nǐ zuì měi
I hope you know that you’re the most beautiful

[End Chorus:]

哇啦啦啦啦啦啦耶~ 喔
wa la la la la la la yeah… whoa
耶~ 耶 喔~ 喔
Yeah… yeah whoa… whoa
哇啦啦啦啦啦我的宝贝 / wa lā lā lā lā wǒde bǎobèi
wa la la la la la my baby
倦的时候有个人陪 / juàn de shíhòu yǒu gerén péi
When you’re tired someone will be with you
哎呀呀呀呀呀我的宝贝 / āi yā ya ya ya ya wǒde bǎibèi
ai ya ya ya ya ya my baby
要你知道你最美 / yào nǐ zhīdào nǐ zuì měi
I hope you know that you’re the most beautiful
要你知道你最美 / yào nǐ zhīdào nǐ zuì měi
I hope you know that you’re the most beautiful

If know of any good Chinese kids’ music, please let us know!

P.S. – You can watch the music video on YouTube (with subtitles), Youku or Tudou.

More for your karaoke repertoire:

• Brother Who Sleeps in the Top Bunk / 睡在我上铺的兄弟
• Nothing to My Name / 一无所有
• Even in Death I’ll Love / 死了都要爱
• Liang Shanbo & Juliet / 梁山伯与茱丽叶
• Mouse Loves Rice / 老鼠爱大米

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.

Yesterday I played The Poopsmith Song by Over the Rhine (listen / lyrics) for my students before making them compare and discuss Western and Chinese styles of potty training. Had about 30 in the class, in their 20′s to 40′s, and they produced a long list of criticisms: diapers make the baby uncomfortable, they’re environmentally unfriendly, dirty, bad for the baby’s health and skin, too hot, etc. There was only one student who had anything good to say about Western-style (i.e. diaper-using) potty training, and I’m pretty sure he was just throwing the foreign teacher/father a bone. I actually had to explain some of the major differences between North American and Chinese potty training styles because most of the class didn’t know anything about North American potty training. For example, they didn’t know that most “foreigners” don’t know about and have never even seen split-pants.

I’m not advocating one way or the other here, but I am curious about what different families do in China, especially if one or both parents is a foreigner and they’ve decided to use split-pants. I know of a couple expat/Chinese couples that do Chinese-style potty training — in both cases the husband is the foreigner. I’ve got my preferences, of course, but to each their own; I don’t really care how other families do it so long as you clean it up afterward. So, my question to couples who actually considered both methods of potty training: Which method do you use? How did you decide? What are the pros and cons in your experience? I’m genuinely curious. (But don’t worry, mom — it’s only idle curiosity. I know I promised. :) )

(P.S. - The photo is from this gallery: Morning with a village family.)

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.

If you’ve been living in China the last couple days, you might be wondering why you suddenly have to yell in your own apartment just to be heard… again. Last month you had to yell because of the Spring Festival fireworks, but those are long over. This time, it’s due to the ancient Chinese custom of using … wait for it … jackhammers to knock all the plaster and tiles off their concrete apartment walls and floors and re-plastering before moving in. You can’t move into a new apartment without first gutting it completely by taking jackhammers and drills to the concrete from 8am-7pm for several daysweeks.

It’s called 装修, or “renovation with Chinese characteristics.”

It’s bad luck to do this kind of thing (动土) during the first month in the Chinese lunar calendar — actually it’s bad luck/taboo (禁忌) to do a lot of things during the first lunar month, like get your hair cut — but three days ago the second Chinese lunar month began. The dragon has awakened from its winter rest and raised its head (龙抬头，on the second day of the second lunar month 二月初二); the insects are becoming active and the spring rains will fall (dragons are in charge of insects and rain). That means — among other things connected to interesting cultural traditions that I’ll mention in another post if I get time — it’s zhuāngxiū time! The pile in the picture above is outside our stairwell and was extracted from the apartment directly above ours via jackhammer.

Living with the occasional 装修 is part of life in a Chinese apartment building, and it’s normally not that big a deal. This time of year there’s a lot of 装修ing going on, but it’s usually tolerable. From where I’m sitting I can pick out of the soundscape four different apartments all running jackhammers and drills. Three of them are far enough away — in another part of the building or in the building opposite — that they just sound like noisy traffic outside. But one of them is in the apartment directly above us; I think their entire apartment must be directly above our toddler’s room. It’s driving her crazy, and that’s driving us crazy.

Our daughter loved the firecrackers, but she hates the jackhammers. Every time they start cries and buries her head in one of our shoulders. There is no way she’s taking either of her two regular daily naps, or doing anything else. And since it’s almost constant for hours on end, it means all she does is cry and want to be cuddled. Forget playing, or getting anything done. I’m writing this during the workers’ lunch break, because it’s the only time she can take a nap. She’ll wake up when they start work again around 1:30, and we’ll feed her and escape to a park for the afternoon. She’ll be tired and cranky, but better in the park than next to a zhuāngxiū!

We took her up there yesterday to meet the workers and see what was going on (the workers were really friendly), hoping that she’d be less scared if she could see it. Didn’t work. I pity Jessica tomorrow — she gets to deal with her single-handedly while I’m at work! I gotta run — she just woke up with a startled shriek, practically jumping out of her crib. Maybe if we play Raffi at high volume it will distract her…

P.S. — Other Dragon Raising Its Head traditions
We had Chinese class this morning, and my teacher was telling me all about the second day of the second lunar month (二月初二), called 龙抬头, or “Dragon raises (its) head.” This day, which was two days ago, marks the beginning of spring activity and spring rains; no need to hibernate anymore, the weather is warming up and it’s time to get to work. People call dumplings “dragon ears” (龙耳) and noodles “dragon whiskers” (龙须).

The most obvious change you see, aside from the sudden appearance of jackhammers at work in neighbouring apartments, is that everyone suddenly goes and gets a hair cut (剃龙头). There’re line-ups in the barber shops because it’s bad luck to cut your hair during the first lunar month; if you do your uncle will die. At least, that’s what people tell you if you ask. There are actually a lot of taboos (禁忌) to avoid during the first month of the lunar calendar. Our Chinese teacher this morning explained the hair cutting taboo this way.

When the (foreign) Qing dynasty took power from (Han) Ming dynasty around the middle of the 17th century, they made the Han Chinese grow their hair in a long queue and shave the front of their heads as a sign of subjugation to their foreign rulers. Anti-Qing literati greatly resented this, and taught the common people that they can’t shave the front of their heads in the first lunar month because that would make your uncle die — 死舅舅 (sǐ jiùjiu) — and that sounds like 思旧 (sī jiù), which means “miss the former” or “cherish the memory of the past.” The peasants turned it into a popular custom/superstition without realizing its original meaning, because that’s just what peasants do.

The other explanation is that there’s a saying, “Start at the head” (从头开始), meaning to start things in the right place, with the idea that everything starts at and flows from the head. So at the start of the new year’s activity, it’s good to take care of your head first.

Why are dragons raising their heads now?
The legend behind the dragon raising its head is connected to China’s ancient agrarian society. The Heavenly Emperor was unhappy because China had a female emperor, so he said unless he looks down and sees the earth covered in yellow flowers (I don’t know why), he won’t allow the dragons to make it rain. But one dragon disobeyed and made it rain, so the Heavenly Emperor locked him up. So the people all made yellow things to eat, like scrambled eggs, and the emperor looked down and saw all the yellow, and so allowed the dragons to make it rain. Or something like that. One variation was that the imprisoned dragon’s mother looked up and saw her son and cried, and I think her tears had something to do with the rain?

My teacher was telling me all this this morning, yelling it at me across the table, actually, because of all the jackhammering going on right above us, so I forget the details. Does anyone know the full story?

P.P.S. — Happy Women’s Day
Today is “International Women’s Day”, aka “three-eight” (三八) in Chinese because it falls on March 8. Now, because these numbers are associated with womenkind, “three-eight” is more often used as a derogatory, sexist adjective for people, usually but not necessarily women, who are woman-ish in the sense of being gossipy, nosy busybodies with nothing to do except cause problems by sticking their noses into other people’s business and running their mouths. Happy International Women’s Day!

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.

Even though we’re used to hearing and using the term “peasant” 农民 in China, the only other time I’d heard or used the term was in history class talking about pre-Industrial Europe. Just reminds me how — and people really get tired of hearing this — China is big, is changing really fast, and that there are “many chinas”; traveling from Shanghai to the Chinese countryside is like going to the moon.

Family members, of course, are from a different social class:

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.

How Can You Translate Dr. Seuss?

Since Dr. Seuss books were written as English-teaching tools, many of them are pretty pointless in Chinese, especially the ones aimed at the youngest readers that emphasize phonics over story, like Hop on Pop. Aside from providing useful Chinese vocab, the translations aren’t much use; it’s impossible for translate Dr. Seuss’ English-learning magic. However, we’ve found that the longer stories like The Cat in the Hat and The Sneetches are a lot of fun for for us and our daughter as Chinese language learning tools.

When it comes to language and culture acquisition, translated material can’t be as useful as stuff written in Chinese by Chinese for Chinese because a translated story is still culturally foreign in its content. But translations are still good stepping-stones on the language learning path, depending on your level. Also, when you no longer have the luxury of a pre-child, full-time language study lifestyle, you have to find creative and convenient ways to work Chinese into your daily routine (in addition to whatever part-time study you can squeeze in) or your language ability atrophies. So for us, 苏斯博士 is fun and useful for our little family’s Chinese learning.

We have books from two of the three different Chinese Dr. Seuss publications out there, and each seems to have a different purpose in mind. If you’re into bilingual bedtime stories you’ll want to know these significant differences so you can pick the ones that best fit your situation.

1. Chinese-only reading

These extra-large soft-cover bilingual Dr. Seuss books emphasize the Chinese translation. Published in 2010 (with more on the way) by 现代出版社 (Modern Press) in their 苏斯博士最经典童书 (Dr. Seuss’ Most Classic Children’s Books) series, they’re meant to be read aloud in Chinese. We have eight of these, all translated by 馨月, who’s obviously tried to capture the Dr. Seuss spirit by giving the Chinese as much as rhythm and rhyme as possible. The binding is the better-quality Chinese-style softcover foreigners in China will be familiar with — not bad but of course not as durable as the traditional hardcover Dr. Seuss books.

The large pages and prominent Chinese are great, but these aren’t convenient if you want to also read in English because they only provide the English text in the back of the book next to thumbnail versions of the illustrations. I’ve found the odd English typo.

We bought them on sale here and here at 45元/4 books.

Here’s a text sample from 戴高帽子的猫又来了 (The Cat in the Hat Comes Back):

你可知道我是哪儿把他找到？
他正在浴缸里大吃蛋糕！
没错儿，正在大吃大嚼！
他打开了热水龙头，
冷水也在哗哗地流。
我对那只猫说道：
“你这么做真是糟糕！”
那只猫哈哈大笑：
“我喜欢在浴缸里吃蛋糕，
你哪天也该试试看好不好。”

Do you know where I found him?
Do you know where he was?
He was eating a cake in the tub!
Yes he was!
The hot water was on
And the cold water, too.
And I said to the cat,
“What a bad thing to do!”

“But I like to eat cake
In the tub,” said the cat.
“You should try it some time.”
Laughed the cat as he sat.

2. Bilingual reading

These look and feel pretty much identical to original hardcover Dr. Seuss books you’re familiar with, aside from the addition of Chinese titles and text. They were published in 2006 by 中国对外翻译出版公司 in their 苏斯博士 双语经典 (Dr. Seuss Bilingual Classics) series, and use various translators. Each page has both the original English text and the Chinese translation; the English is sometimes slightly re-formatted to make room for the Chinese.

My biggest complaint is the formatting: with squintingly small Chinese text that’s not given a prominent position on the page, it looks to me like they’re aimed at Chinese parents who want to teach their kid English and just need the Chinese as a reference to help with comprehension. But I’d still definitely choose these over the original English-only Dr. Seuss books. They also have a colourful introduction to Dr. Seuss in the front and tips from a children’s education expert on how to use the stories in the back (both in Chinese only).

We found them on Taobao for 110元/10 books by searching for 苏斯博士 双语经典 全10本.

Here’s some sample text from 史尼奇 (The Sneetches):

忽然有这么一天，光肚史尼奇们正像往常一样在沙滩上呆着，无精打采地做着肚皮上冒出颗星的白日梦，一个陌生人驾驶着一辆奇怪的车呼啸而来。

Then ONE day, it seems…while the Plain-Belly Sneetches
Where moping and doping alone on the beaches,
Just sitting there wishing their bellies had stars…
A stranger zipped up in the strangest of cars!

3. ?

We don’t own any of this third kind; we’ve just seen them for sale online.

If you have links to any other great English kids books in Chinese (like 蚯蚓的日记/Diary of a Worm), or if you have particularly outstanding Chinese kids books to recommend, please share in the comments! Same good Chinese kids music!

And if you’ve ever wondered how to say “The Perilous Poozer of Pompelmoose Pass” in Chinese, click here.

Related posts about having a Foreign Baby in China:

• Diary of a Worm in Chinese! (an English / 汉字 / pīnyīn online read-along)
• A Foreign Baby in Tianjin Pt. 1 – is this our future?
• Foreign baby in China essentials: IMPORTED BABY FORMULA
• Foreign baby in China essentials: FACEBOOK SUBSTITUTE (or VPN) & SKYPE
• Foreign baby in China essentials: FRIENDLY STRANGER FINGER SHIELD

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.

When I go to the market with Lilia, she’s the subject of a lot of fussing and clucking and cheek rubbing. Lately she’s FINALLY started to be willing to talk with the ladies…I do think they were starting to have trouble believing me that she talks ALL DAY long at home.

Last week, a particularly vicious mosquito bit Lilia 5 times on the right side of her face. I went to the market, and of course, everybody needed to know what happened. I told them, “A mosquito bit her.” The next thing I knew, I was being chastised…”What? Weren’t you even paying attention at all? How could you let that happen!!!” I told them that I think it happened while she was asleep, and the ladies all said “Oh, you let that mosquito in your house and it got her…you need to pay more attention. Babies have sweet skin.” I wonder…do they think I invited the mosquito in to feast on my little girl’s sweet flesh? :) (I know, they don’t really think that, but this kind of “关心” on Lilia’s behalf did serve to make me feel a little bit guilty about the bites.)

Usually when Lilia comes to the market with me, she’s in the baby carrier. It’s just so much more convenient than carrying the stroller down (and back up) four flights of stairs when I’m just making a quick trip to buy some veggies for dinner. Yesterday I got told, “You really need to let her walk. She’s never going to learn to walk if you keep using that thing!” I tried to explain otherwise, but it seems that my vegetable seller really might just believe that I keep Lilia in the baby carrier all day long, every day.:)

In the end, it doesn’t really matter too much to me what people think, but I sometimes do wonder what impressions my neighbours and the people around me get from things that I never even stop to think twice about (like using the baby carrier). It would be interesting, I suppose, to be able to see myself from their point of view. It’s also a reminder to me that lots of the things I see every day (and which may have even served as a basis for my impressions or assumptions about China and Chinese people) could potentially be the quirks of an individual, or a family and not some widespread cultural difference (as I am prone to assuming). When one is really trying to learn about a place and a culture, it’s a good reminder to be humble…because, try as I might, I can never really see the whole picture.

©2012 China Hope Live. All Rights Reserved.