Culture: I love exploring new cultures, their music, their food, their ways of living. When I had the opportunity to accompany my boy on a school field trip to see a band from China–a folk fusion band, no less–I couldn’t say “yes” fast enough. Being analytical and curious, I truly enjoy learning what life looks like through the eyes of others. Today was nothing short of a treat as I got to experience our downtown theatre treasure I’ve been wanting to see coupled with a great concert with my son. Since it was a short trip, I opted to ride the bus, with my son’s permission. He’s almost a teenager so I’m careful to tune into how much my kids want me involved in certain things.
The knees on the bus go…
The bus ride was an immediate joy. Sitting down, my knees slammed into the seat in front of me and I was transported back to my own school days when the buses were far too crowded with three to a seat, which meant any corner or slight turn involved gymnastic moves to keep me from falling out into the aisle. Simply put, unless you’re a toddler, there is no room to put your legs. I felt loads of empathy towards the tall boys and girls who must endure this on a twice-daily basis. Once my kneecaps recovered and I found a semi-tolerable sitting position, my son and I started chatting. I may have very quietly in a severely hushed tone asked if he was using those Stridex pads I purchased. He doesn’t need them per se but an ounce of prevention…”Mom!! Oh my gosh! You’re never coming on a field trip with me again!!”
What? Does everyone suddenly have bionic hearing?? This is the same kid who yawned out loud during the sermon in church yesterday and wondered why I wanted to melt into my seat. But somehow my raspy whisper admist a bus full of 60-some kids all talking loudly at once as the bus rattles down the highway is far more mortifying. He immediately apologized because I’ve mastered the guilt look. This is the look the falls upon my motherly face when my kids accidentally insult me or speak too harshly and they’re instantly consumed with guilt about it. The look works. I’m not ashamed.
Such beautiful architecture!
The rest of the trip was fantastic. We poured into this beautiful theatre and enjoyed music from a Chinese band whose members, except for one, don’t speak English. The Chinese young man who was interpreting into English speaks in a British accent. Perfect! They were highly entertaining and we got to learn a little about where they live, in different remote areas of China. One band member lives in a deep valley between two very tall mountains (is there any other kind?) so he sings on the hillside and relies on the echo of his song to communicate with the village on the other side of mountain. How amazing is that? We can send a message with a few keystrokes and a button on our phone, but he sings his message and the echo carries it to others who live a day’s walk away. I take for granted how easy it is to communicate, how with the push of a button or two, this blog post will reach hundreds, possibly thousands of people, just that easily.
Monday pretty often gets a bad name. But today, cultural experience that I could share with my son and a bunch of other youngsters, a crampy bus ride where we laughed all the way back, and a little lesson in not taking things for granted is pretty impressive for a Monday.