SOUL in Beijing

There are a lot of things I miss about not going to China this year. Not the "new" things, but those with "soul". There are a lot of things that still have those special feelings of a place, the depth, the beauty, the poetry. Those people who practice the things that you know one day won't exist anymore, so now they are gold in value.

One day in a park I saw this man who was 80 years old, with a glowing smile, beautiful posture, and a gracefulness that only a person in great shape can have. He walked around and around these shaded trees, with a stick, deepening the already written lines that he carefully created to embellish the area, that by now had become "his". The symbols around the trees were explained to me by my daughter. We followed him both with our steps and with our eyes, admiring his silence, his precision in creating such a beautiful design with pure earth, actually, at times with mud. He would add water when necessary, and return often to make sure the lines were deep enough to maintain the many curved lines that he created. He would also brush away stray leaves, anything disturbing the clean design.

It was beautiful in all ways. His devotion to this special dance, this exercise, all of it leading to beauty thanks to his work and passion.

He would get close to the earth to work on the lines, digging them deeper and deeper to make sure they would keep.

A year after we returned to this area of the park.

Only a faint faint line remained. Only an intent eye would notice it, one who was looking for it as I was.

The lines were gone, I imagine, forever.

Sad and disappointed, I searched and found nothing that showed any life of this excellent and unique area.

Was the man gone as well?

Coronavirus -- Some Viewpoints from American mother in Italy, daughter in China

It has been a while since I have written here. I feel it is my duty to do so now.
Being an American who has lived in Italy for 45 years, and having a daughter who has been in Beijing, China  for five years, definitely our latest experience of the Coronavirus has changed our phonecall conversations, and has definitely made it more useful for me to talk with my daughter more often.
She gives me excellent advice, and I listen.
I thought I would share some of it here with you now.

She tells me to be very careful in some situations that we do not especially hear about now in Italy. Let's say, these hints are more specific, and can be easy to do and useful.

One things my daughter suggested is to avoid elevators. She suggests using a mask whenever you are in places where people might be, and now, crowds should be totally avoided as we have been doing here in Italy for weeks. But, today she mentioned this. When one walks into a building, where you must go into someone's home (for example, going to visit your mother or relative who you are assisting), immediately before getting into the building, you should put a mask on. Once in the apartment of the building you can take it off.
The reason for this is that you don't know who was in that building a few minutes before you, perhaps someone sneezed or coughed. The virus is not totally known, and extremely contagious. So, this extra precaution is useful.

Another interesting concept is that fruit and veggies, when possible, should be cooked as a preference.
IF you eat them raw, she suggested to peel them with ONE knife, and then when you are eating, use ANOTHER knife, not the same one. In Italy we shop and chose our produce with a plastic glove supplied by the store. But, if you chose and pick, and people are doing the same, this sounds like a logical idea to me.

You don't want to just bite into an apple in these times. Best to peel fruit. Here in Italy I know that sometimes people have the habit of washing their fruit first, and then peeling. But apples and pears are always peeled.

My daughter also told me that at her last apartment they had a large sign with rules to work by, during these times. If a person worked alone, they were told what kind of rules to go by. If they worked with others, there were other things to respect. It is extremely organized in China, and people do go by the rules.

Speaking of rules, it is so necessary now to isolate, and not to socialize. You just do not know for sure who might have this virus, even without having symptoms. That is the tricky part.

It might be interesting to see what the radio station CRI (China Radio International) has to say and what they post, also regarding rules to follow during this time. This is the Italian link. Definitely all other languages exist also, just Google them. I remember seeing an excellent video made by the Chinese regarding hand washing, but I am sure they have many others.

A smart thing, I believe, is to take the experiences of who has or is going through this before you. Read the experts, I am not one, but being here in Italy I have had a few days more experience than friends in the States. And I listen to my daughter who had even more experience, being in China.

As time goes on, each day passes, our worlds are getting smaller and smaller, we are more limited each day with what we can do outside of our four walls. Actually, lots of good is coming from this, along with the inconveniences. Look for the good, it exists, even in this situation.

Good luck and stay safe!!

In China with my daughter

Here's the Chinese Radio link
http://italian.cri.cn/