2008 May

19 may 2008

At dinner a teacher said


"Our government is the best in the world, do you think so?"

I said "I don't know, I don't much about them"

(which is true)

then I said ummm " they responded very well to Sichuan" (the earthquake in May 08)


I know his brother lives in Sichuan so I asked how he is.
He said his brother is helping people.
His brother is in the Peoples Liberation Army.

Today in class I was teaching the word "Province" (which no one ever remembers)

and we listed provinces and cities. etc

talked about countries

Which countries are near Australia?


Which countries are near China?

the students responses were

Korea, Japan, Russia, Taiwan, Hong Kong

I said "Taiwan is a province!!!!!"

they said "no it is a country"

I said "no, it is a province"

I said "Hong Kong is IN China not near it"

anyway, weird

Oh and a friend the other day

we were talking about population

he said during Mao's time

Mao said that "we have to defeat America, we need more people"

and so woman who had many sons were "HERO MOTHERS"

apparently an economist at Beijing University questioned
this logic
saying China will suffer economically with a large population and be weakened

but Chairman Mao said "you are wrong!"


oh and one day I asked students different, same (Australia and China)

they could think of MANY ways they are different

and very few ways they are the same

COPIED FROM ..
http://www.wku.edu/~yuanh/China/proverbs/k.html

No banquet in the world that never ends.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Tian1xia4 mei2you3 bu4 san4 de yan4xi2.)

Nothing in the world is eternal. Friendship, relations and a good time are no exceptions

Crows everywhere are equally black.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Tian1xia4 wu1ya1 yi1ban1 hei1.)
It is a metaphorical statement of "Bad people are bad no matter where you find them because human nature never changes".

Perseverance can reduce an iron rod to a sewing needle.
(Chinese original: 铁杵磨成针Chinese Pinyin: Tie3 chu3 mo2 cheng2 zhen1.)
See the story in my book The Magic Lotus Lantern and Other Tales from the Han Chinese.

Dream different dreams on the same bed.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Tong2 chuang2 yi4 meng4.)
Hide different purposes behind the semblance of accord.

A life with love is happy; a life for love is foolish.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Sheng1huo2 you3 ai4 xing4fu2, wei4 ai4 sheng1huo2 yu2chun3.)

A person moves up while water runs down.
(Chinese original: 人往高处走，水往低处流Chinese Pinyin: Ren2 wang3 gao1 chu4 zou3, shui3 wang3 di1 chu4 liu2.)

One should never give up efforts to improve oneself, whether morally or financially.

A man's greed is like a snake that wants to swallow an elephant.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Ren2 xin1 bu4 zu2 she2 tun1 xiang4.)

You can never tell what one really thinks. Sincerity shows through one's actions rather than words and appearance.
A man's heart is indiscernible behind his chest.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Ren2 xin1 ge2 du4 pi2.)

(A similar proverb: You may know someone by his appearance, but you may never know what he thinks. : Zhi1 ren2 zhi1 mian4 bu4 zhi1 xin1.)
You can never tell what one really thinks. Sincerity shows through one's actions rather than words and appearance.

Learn from other's strong points to offset one's shortcomings.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Qu3 chang2 bu3 duan3.)

The lotus root may be severed, but its fibered threads are still connected.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Ou3 duan4 si1 lian2.)
Something apparently severed but actually connected, such as a human relationship."

A dragon will be teased by a shrimp in a shoal water; a tiger will be bullied by a dog on a treeless plain.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Long2 you2 qian3 shui3 zao1 xia1 xi4, hu3 luo4 ping2 yang2 bei4 quan3 qi1.)
(A similar proverb: A mighty dragon cannot subdue a local snake. : Qiang2 long2 bu1 an4 di4 tou2 she2.)

One thrives in his or her own territory. An able person in an adverse environment cannot bring his talent into full play. Instead, he or she may become an underdog of a less able person who has been in that environment for a long time with a lot of connections.


Some prefer carrot while others like cabbage.
(Chinese original: 萝卜白菜，各有所爱 Chinese Pinyin: Luo2bo1 bai2cai4, ge4 you3 suo3 ai4.)
"One man's meat is another's poison". People's preferences differ.

t is better to start weaving your fishing nets than merely coveting fish at the water.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Lin2 yuan1 mu4 yu2, bu4 ru2 tui4 er3 jie2 wang3.)
One should act than daydream.

Thunder is louder than the little rain warrants.
(Chinese original: 雷声大，雨点小 Chinese Pinyin: Lei2 sheng1 da4, yu3 dian3 xiao3.)
More words than action.

He who stays near vermilion gets stained red; he who stays near ink gets stained black.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Jin4 zhu1 zhe3 chi4, jin4 mo4 zhe3 hei1.)
One takes on the color of his company.

Harmony makes both a family and a nation prosperous.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Jia1 he2 ri4zi4 wang4; guo2 he2 wan4 shi4 xing1.)
 
Pick up a sesame seed only to lose a watermelon.
(Chinese original: 捡了芝麻丢了西瓜 Chinese Pinyin: Jian3 le zhi1ma2, diu1 le xi1gua1.)
Concentrate on small matters to the expense of more important ones.

Aged ginger is more pungent.
(Chinese original: 姜是老的辣Chinese Pinyin: Jiang1 shi4 lao3de la4.)
Elderly people are more experienced.

A friend made is a road paved; an enemy created is a wall built.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Jiao1 ge4 peng2you3 duo1 tiao2 lu4, shu4 ge4 di2ren2 duo1 du3 qiang2.)
How true: friends help while people you offend may turn out to be your liability. We should make more friends than enemies.

A sly rabbit will have three openings to its den.
(Chinese original: 狡兔三窟Chinese Pinyin: Jiao3 tu4 san1 ku1.)
To succeed one must have several alternatives.

A fragrant bloom is not necessarily a beautiful flower; an orator may not be a crackerjack.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Hua1 xiang1 bu4 yi2ding4 mei3li4, neng2 shuo1 bu4 yi2ding4 hui4 zuo4.)
Action is better than oration.


Draw a cake to satisfy one's hunger.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Hua4 bing3 chong1 ji1.)
An unrealistic solution to a problem serves no other purpose than self deception.

Swallow a date with its stone.
(Chinese original: 囫囵吞枣Chinese Pinyin: Hu2lun2 tun1 zao3.)
When someone does this, he is said to read without understanding.

Vicious as a tigress can be, she never eats her own cubs.
(Chinese original: 虎毒不食子 Chinese Pinyin: Hu3 du2 bu4 shi2 zi3.)
Those parents who hurt their children are worse than beasts of prey.

A crane standing amidst a flock of chickens.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pin yin: He4 li4 ji1qun2.)
A crane is too obvious when it stands among a flock of chickens and looks very awkward. It is also true with a camel amidst a flock of sheep and a flea when it stands on top of a hairless head. They all carry a pejorative tone: the thing that out stands others is something awkward if not necessarily bad.

A honeyed mouth hides a daggered heart.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Kou3 mi4 fu4 jian4.)
Beware of this "kiss of death."

Love my house, love the crow on it.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Ai4 wu1 ji2 wu1.)
The crow may be ugly, but love it if your really love my house. A close English counterpart of this proverb is "Love me, love my dog."You can't tell the cost of food and fuel without


YOU cant tell the cost of being the head of a household; you can't appreciate the love of your parents without having children of your own.
(Chinese original: 不当家不知柴米贵，不养儿不知父母恩 Chinese Pinyin: Bu4 dang1jia1 bu4 zhi1 chai2 mi3 gui4, bu4 yang3 er2 bu4 zhi1 fu4mu3 en1.)


Drinking the water of a well, one should never forget who dig it.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Chi1 shui3 bu1 wang4 jue1 jing3 ren2.)
One should always be grateful to those who helped him succeed.


If the lips are gone, the teeth will grow cold.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Chun2 wang2 chi3 han2.)
Two parties share a common interest. If one is hurt, the other will, too.

Respect out of fear is never genuine; reverence out of respect is never false.
(Chinese original: 打怕的人是假的，敬怕的人是真的 Chinese Pinyin: Da3 pa4 de ren2 shi4 jia3 de; jing4 pa4 de ren2 shi4 zhen1 de.)

Don't mention the word "dwarf" in front of a short person.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Dang1 zhe ai3ren2 bie2 shuo1 ai3 hua4.)
Mentioning a person's shortcomings will hurt his feelings. One needs to be tactful or diplomatic when communicating with others.

A mountain of knives and a sea of fire.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Dao1 shan1 huo3 hai3.)
Extremely difficulty and dangerous situation.



Dripping water can eat through a stone.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Di1 shui3 chuan1 shi2.)
Perseverance will lead to success.

A single tree makes no forest; one string makes no music.
(Chinese original: 独木不成林，单弦不成音 Chinese Pinyin: Du2 mu4 bu4 cheng2 lin2, dan1 xian2 bu4 cheng2 yin1.)
This proverb illustrates the significance of team work

Prescribe the right medicine for a symptom.
(Chinese original: 对症下药Chinese Pinyin: Dui4 zheng4 xia4 yao4.)
Take the right measures to tackle a problem to achieve the best result.

On the same boat in a tempest.
(Chinese original: Chinese Pinyin: Feng1 yu3 tong2 zhou1.)
Going through hardships together.

You can't expect both ends of a sugar cane are as sweet.
(Chinese original: 甘蔗没有两头甜 Chinese Pinyin: Gan1zhe4 mei2you3 liang3tou2 tian2.)
You can't have both: In order to get something, you have to sacrifice something else.