Mother's Day in China - 母亲节在中国

Mother's Day, like Christmas, is a new fad in China.  Besides making or buying gifts for their mothers, Chinese kids were made to do something rather a bit strange.

It was reported that in a small town in Jiangxi Province, one hundred school pupils were rounded up, along with their mothers, to form a formation in the middle of school playing ground, and were required to wash their mother's feet, to demonstrate their love toward their mothers.

In Taiwan, a principle of a middle high school washed his 93-year-old mother's feet in public.

Many students did not feel comfortable in doing so.

The same news segment also reported that in a high school in Guangdong Province, 600 middle school students participated a so called Adulthood Ceremony, by kneeling down to their parents to receive a "Family Letter" to mark their passing into "Adulthood".

Facing some criticism regarding the kneeling, the principal countered that kneeling is the highest honor in China and if children don't knee to their parents, how could they express their gratitude towards their parents?

It's nauseating to see the demeaning of the young and lacking of dignities of all participants.

母亲节, 和圣诞节一样，是中国的一个新时尚。除了为其母亲制作或购买礼物，中国孩子们被要求做一些奇怪的事情。

据报道，在江西省的一个小城镇里，一百名小学生们, 连同他们的母亲, 被集合起来在学校操场形成一个方阵, 为他们的母亲洗脚，以证明他们对他们的母亲的爱。

在台湾，一个高中校长公开为他的93岁的老母亲的洗脚。

许多学生觉得这样做很不舒服。

同一个新闻还报到说，在广东省的一个高中，600名初中学生，跪在地上从父母手中接收"家书"，以通过所谓的成人仪式, 纪念 "成人"。

面对一些就下跪的批评，该高中校长反驳说，在中国下跪是最高的礼节荣誉，如果孩子不跪他们的父母，他们怎么能表达对父母的感激呢？

对年轻人如此贬损和所有参与者的尊严缺乏, 让人很恶心。

Why Needs Map

When I visited my family in China earlier this year, I demonstrated to them the wonder of Google Map with its street views. They enjoyed the views and the convenience but that was it. They don't bother to look at the images from all over the world again, or use any online map to help them to navigate in unfamiliar places.

今年早些時候，我去中國探亲时, 我向他們展示了谷歌地圖, 包括街道图像。他們很喜欢这个便利，但僅此而 已。他們懶得通过谷歌地圖看來自世界各地的圖像，或使用任何在線地圖導航，幫助他們在不熟悉的地方照路。



Many people there do use maps, particularly when they travel, but most don't. They rely on the experiences to find a new place, and landmarks to locate. If they are to meet someone, the usual place to meet is the place at least one of them knew. Instead of "going straight ahead and turn right on A Street, then turn left on C Street. The number is 2652.", you'll hear "going straight till you see a big yellow building, turn right, then turn left when you see a hospital. The place is the third entrance of the pink building, second floor, the middle door."

那里的許多人实际上使用地圖，特別是當他們旅行时; 但大多數不用地图。他們依靠的經驗以及易认的标记，来找到一個新的地方。如果他們要和他人碰头，通常他们去至少是其中一個知道的地方。你听不到 "一直走，右轉上A街， 然後左轉上C街。號碼是2652。" 你會聽到 "一直走，直到你看到一個大黃楼，右轉，然後看到一個醫院時左轉。這個地方是粉紅楼的第三個入口，二樓，中間門。"

Chinese characters are based on pictogram and people still rely on mostly images to navigate. To design a GPS system for Chinese marketing, better utilize pictures as well.

漢字是建立在象形的基礎上，人們仍然大量依靠圖片定位。為中国設計全球定位系統，应更好地利用圖像。

個人主義对应順從 - Individualism versus Conformism

最近，我去了中國, 我认识到中國還是一個讲究順從的國家。我的愛姐告訴我，我戴滑雪帽的方式是“錯誤的”，只因為它以其他當地人穿著方式不同。這是一個典型的個人主義对应順從的例子。

當 我回到美國，我讀了一個故事，俄羅斯要从11个時區缩为九个。美國也有多個時區，而中國雖然涉及土地橫跨 四至五個時區，它使用的時間只有一個 - 北京時間。

真是很難找到一個比这更明了的例子了。

Recently, I visited China. One thing struck me was that China is a still a conformism country. My dear sister told me that my way of wearing my ski hat was "wrong", simply because it was not the same way other locals wore. It was a classic case of individualism versus conformism.

Once I'm back to the US, I read a story of Russia's changing from 11 time zones to nine. USA has multiple time zones as well, while China though covers land spanning of four to five time zone, it uses only one time - Beijing Time.

A clearer case is hard to find.