Radical Eclecticity

Literally, the title means “long time, no see.” Ironically, this is a phrase that we adapted to our language from theirs and, somewhere along the way, lost track of where it came from. What’s even more ironic is this: Almost every time I leave somewhere and say, “再见,” the native speakers of Chinese will reply, “Bye bye.” This is practically universal, so I finally asked 小季 about it. Apparently, the locals don’t just say it to me; they say it to each other. “Bye bye” is currently one of the most common things to say when parting company in China. Depending on the area in question, it may even surpass “再见.”

This begs the question: As I teach an introduction to the Chinese language and culture next year, what do I teach my kids to say when they part company? Am I really going to ask a bunch of students to practice using the Chinese language for an 80 minute block, and then wave and cheerfully say “bye bye” as they leave?

Heh… like anything else, I’ll probably do what I always do: I’ll explain the whole picture, express my preference, and accept either one as a correct response. This means that, even in the states, I’ll probably still say “再见,” and a bunch of people will reply, “Bye bye.”

But I digress. I used that title because it’s been a week since the last blogging, and as much as I have assured myself that I would write more frequently, I have gotten sidetracked by other things. Insert both a shrug and a heavy sigh here, in whichever order you prefer, and we’ll carry on. The reality of it is, that now that I have had gotten into the swing of things here, there’s less “I’ve got to tell you this really great story!” and more reflections on human nature. The nature I’m reflecting on includes my own, by the way. Reflection takes longer than tales, so that stuff will probably come later. Regardless, there are great stories to tell, and I’m sure I will tell them at some point, too. The longish ones may have to wait until I have more time to type them up. For now, I’ll try to toss out little bits like the one I started with today, and call it good. We’ll see how it goes.