China Earthquake

Lately, I've been thinking about China Chinese (ladies to be specific).

I was wandering like a lost sheep at a void deck last week when one China Chinese lady asked me if she could help me (ok, I know she's not local because of her accent). She then directed me to the correct lift to take. That was one confusing block and one helpful lady.

Then I just went through an emailed powerpoint presentation of the recent China earthquake disaster with photos of both rescuers and the rescued. It attempted to reflect the camaraderie of the Chinese folks banding together in a time of disaster; no looting, no fighting, the only focus of the Chinese being to save the unsafe. Accurate reporting or not, it moved me to (near) tears.

You hear all the time about unsatisfactory Chinese foreign talent service in Singapore. I am guilty of that too. It's frustrating ordering something at a restaurant from someone who doesn't even understand when I'm speaking Mandarin (OK, granted my Mandarin is bad but it's NOT that bad), much less English.It's frustrating not understanding what the fair and pretty cashier is telling you at the check out. The word 'Hah?' is now very often part of my daily vocabulary and my eyebrow area shows increased wrinkle activity as I try to second-guess puzzledly, what I've just been told or asked.Just the other day, a cashier asked Mike in surprise if he were from China (oh come on! Because of his features, he's been mistaken for a Malay or Eurasian but China?!). Her reason was the Mandarin phrase he had used, was one used by them back home. I (sincerely and without malice) thought that was adorable (and confusing!), a foreign Chinese mistaking us to be one of them!

(OK, I digress) Watching the Chinese laymen band together in this time of disaster has put me to shame. I silently respect their tenacity and 'hardworkingness'.What I'm trying to say is many of us are guilty of associating our island's foreign Chinese with only certain 'jobs'; Geylang occupational 'therapists', tutors, beer ladies, mail order wives, taxi-driver companions, you get the drift. We see them as mere statistics, mere little red dot fillers where yuppy couples have failed to contribute to the falling population.They are 'China Chinese' because hey, the trueblue Singapore Chinese aren't from the hinterland and we desperately need to make that distinction. Come one, are we not guilty of such thoughts?

The next time I want to explode for lack of understanding my fellow Chinese's communication skills, I will bite my tongue. We need to give them a chance because they are only human and someday they will be Singaporean just like you and I. What right do I have to complain about fellow citizens who show such compassion for their fellowmen when it comes to the crunch?

(PS - I wrote the below post about the lack of school holidays without reading about it in the newspapers first. Had no idea until someone pointed it out to me. I'm glad that there are others like me who feel the same way. I am 'kaypoh' about the welfare of school going kids because I'm a mother myself, I used to be a teacher and I used to love going to school as a student. You could say I've seen three sides of the coin)

Fiona