Saving the Earth

For the last couple of weeks a debate has been raging on the Tainan Bulletin http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Tainan_bulletin/ ; a meeting place for mainly foreign English teachers in Tainan, about pollution.

It started with a message from one member urging all foreigners to take photos of heavily polluting scooters that help make the atmosphere of the city as thick and toxic as it has become. Allegedly he had the assurance that if lots of photos were submitted to the city government office, the Mayor's department would be forced to take action.

Usually the level of debate on this site sinks surprisingly low considering the vocation of most of the members. However, with one or two exceptions, this time it has been good. There have also been several Taiwanese contributors making very good points.

One important consideration has been the recognition of cultural differences and the position of us foreigners as guests in somebody else's home. Who has the right to enter someone's home and start criticise their host's behaviour? My mind jumps imediately to Jesus and his meal with Simon the Pharisee, when he criticised the judgemental comments against the woman who was kneeling at his feet. Well, Jesus was the guest in Simon's home but was not a foreigner and wsa definitely speaking to people whose culture he shared. By contrast Jesus did plenty in his meetings with foreigners to break down the barriers between them and build up relationships even with those considered enemies.

The culture question is raised high when another major polluter, the burning of fake paper money, supposedly to appease the ancestors and bring prosperity twice a month, was cited. Tainan is probably the worst sufferer from this, being one of the most traditional cities in its people's religious observances.

To cut a long story short and to save myself the need to rewrite it, here is the e-mail I posted as my contribution. (Water is the Taiwanese contributor who explained for us the origins of the burning of paper money)

On Saving the Earth

Thank you very much Water for your research. This is very helpful and just what we need to help us weigoren understand the culture in which we find ourselves.

I want to say that I agree about the need to respect Taiwanese culture. I also agree that we, foreigners and locals alike, have a duty and responsibility to save the earth for all succeeding generations. It is not a case of either we say something and upset the local culture or we do nothing out of respect. We can join local people in their efforts to clean up. Please don't think that foreigners have been the first to see the problems.

For instance, one of the most respected religious leaders in the country, Cheng Yen, the founder and Master of Tzu Chi asks all her followers not to burn paper money because it pollutes and has no religious meaning. Tzu Chi has a big recycling program and many members of the organisation in Tainan are actively involved in this.

You will also discover, if you look around, that there are others like members of the the local ornithological society which is very keen to keep the environment secure especially for the visiting black-faced spoonbills which have almost become an emblem of Tainan. The people who go bird-watching see first-hand the terrible effects of pollution in the rivers here. One of my recommendations for a visit is the boat that you can take near the ocean bridge at Anping to see signal crabs and mudskippers in the mangroves. Delightful little creatures that should convince anyone they are worth protecting!

Churches also play their part in cleanups and in caring for their neighbourhoods. Visit the Barclay Memorial Park opposite the Cultural Centre to see one of the important projects in the city where there is now a beautiful green environment on what was almost a dump when I came here four years ago.

I agree that we should all throw our weight into this - but why try to start something new? - We don't need to "reinvent the wheel" as one of my friends loves to say. Let's use our network and our links with the thousands of students we meet to support what is already being done. This way shows total respect for the local community and will do a lot more for the environment than possibly divisive demos or small projects ever could.

But, sorry I can't make the meeting time suggested by Cary - would love to take part, I guess we all have busy schedules. Anyway - I'm going to take what I have just written and discuss it with a group of students later.

John

Now the time for a meeting has changed and it looks possible for me to join it tomorrow night at 10:00pm. I wonder whether there will be enough willingness and stamina to make it worthwhile.

This morning I was talking with a professor of engineering about my e-mail and wondering if there might be some future in drawing in the likes of his university department. I even toyed with the idea of their applying for some of the £3 billion that Richard Branson has offered for research and development in the field of alternative fuels and engines.

I thought I would write this now as part of my preparation for the meeting. So I will put a few other thoughts down here. I thought about the group to which I belong; expatriate English teachers, and the direct contribution we might make through teaching and informing the young people we teach. Many books that we use already include items on environmental issues - perhaps other publishers could be persuaded to follow this example. I must run off an e-mail to Studio Classroom. This is one of the most widely used tools for teaching teenagers English and often includes relevant social issues. I can't remember them doing anything about the environment, so it must be time to do it again even if they have done it before.

Of course our own example is important. My cycling to work seems to be a source of interest among some of my students. The car that I take when it rains is somewhere at the other end of scale of non-green though!

Some of these foreigners really need to take more trouble to get to know the local scene better, not just the pubs and clubs they frequent! I was surprised that nobody mentioned any of the things I did before.

If you have any comments before I add more notes here please add yours too.

Going into the clinic

After a long pause - --
The last three weeks have been busy!!!
Everything seems to be going fine but it hs been eventful. So - back to the story.

Going into the clinic that afternoon was simple but filled with pre-birth, pre-operation nerves together with that sense of anticipation at the final lap of the course about to begin.
On arrival there were forms to be filled. So nothing for me, the illiterate foreigner, to do except sign and give my thumbprint.

But - what was the meaning of this form? - Peiling was told to decide which formula feed she wanted them to give! "But I plan to breastfeed - I don't need this." "You have to decide!" - was the firm reply from the nurse-turned-bureaucrat, "We have to fill in the form!" There was no space for "No bottles - breastfeeding only!" It was not an option. So - something that has been done by mothers from prehistory is now officially against the rules of at least this clinic - and how many others?

Had Aldous Huxley's Brave New World really begun in Taiwan? That dragon was certainly breathing its fire!! And this dragon (the baby's father) was about to begin a battle.

This morning's dream will tell you how much the subject has been on my mind. I don't remember many dreams and I can't remember what I was dreaming about until two minutes before waking but in the final scene I was sitting in our living room when the door-bell rang. I opened the door to a tall nurse (in a green uniform). Without a word she strode past me and on into the bedroom where mother and baby were. She was carrying -- a FEEDING BOTTLE!!
The shock woke me up.

Poor nurse - the real one at the clinic - pretty girl - she didn't look at all like a dragon.

Welcome Daniel - our Baby Dragon!

The last week has been the first week of our son, Daniel’s life. Welcome to the world, Baby Dragon!

Wow! What a week!

Fighting dragons! Challenging culture! Meeting old wives tales – and old wives! Struggling with emotions – hopes concerns, life and death decisions – maybe. Watching and waiting! And intense prayer!

What were the dragons? Perhaps the first blog will not reveal since there is so much to tell along the way. But first – the story of the day of his birth.

The cast:
Dr. Wu
For months we had visited Dr. Wu’s clinic for women. He had been the one who confirmed the news of pregnancy and he had been the one who spent a lot of time explaining everything along the way. I will always hold him in very high regard and feel greatly indebted to him for all the advice and practical medical help he has given – not least for his expertise in performing the delivery. I hope he becomes a long-term friend.

Peiling
My wife who has shown more patience and courage through this experience than I ever imagined she would have. Already she is a wonderful mum and the world should know it! A brief introduction – you will understand I could write many pages about her – and will when time and blog space permits. I think you will get to know her better as we continue.



Daniel
He has had the name since Monday – ‘God is my judge’. His story has only just begun – he is now one week and 3 hours old. Already he shows strength of character in getting what he needs! Parents will understand. I leave you to decide from the pictures how handsome you think he looks!

Visitors
There have been many – especially Peiling’s family and friends and friends from church who have all been so kind in their loving concern.

Dragons?
Here I shall use the metaphore in the western sense which views dragons as basically fearsome, dangerous and even evil beasts. Not that any of the ones you will encounter in the story breathe fire – but the ultimate effect might turn out the same. If you keep reading for a day or two I hope you will agree with me and maybe want to join Saint George in the fight against them.

Birth eve – Thursday 7th September 2006
It began with the decision about when he should be born. It seems strange to me but, yes, we decided; as you can if the birth is to be by caesarean section. While many people in Taiwan use this as an opportunity to find the most auspicious moment after consulting their future-teller we simply accepted the doctor’s first proposal that it be before he began his other work on Friday morning.

Even from the early stages of pregnancy at the regular monthly check-ups when the doctor had done a scan he had said “The baby is BIG.” And he reported the same in his notes each time until we reminded him that he had already said it. Peiling was starting to get a complex about producing a freak giant! His due date was around August 26th and by then he was way over the average size for Taiwan deliveries. Then he seemed to decide to stay in the womb. A week later he was estimated on the scanner to be about 4.6kg. We had gone specially to see if there were any signs that he might be coming that weekend. We saw another doctor on that occasion and returned two days later for our own doctor’s opinion – which was that we could still wait since there were no signs of an immediate onset of labour, concluding that Taiwanese data did not match western babies and this weight must be normal for my part of the world. I had to accept this having known several babies born at that kind of size. Four days later Peiling still felt no immediate signs although the mucous plug was dislodged in one big piece. This was much to her concern – though I was able to say I knew about these things and it was perfectly normal! I was starting to feel I was the expert in all matters concerning pregnancy and birth.

We had been hoping so much that it would not need an operation because Peiling suffers from a condition which causes bumpy scar tissue to develop even from a minor cut. She had even been warned in the past against getting pregnant in case she needed surgery for the delivery. But, as every woman who has been pregnant knows, those last few days can be a very testing time. Add another two weeks past the due date and you can understand how Peiling was getting somewhat desperate. Add to that the dire warnings the doctor had given about the giant that was about to come into the world and how much risk a normal delivery could carry and you can understand too why Peiling was ready to accept even the scars.

So, on Thursday, we went to the doctor again ready to share this decision. Though he said we could still wait it must have been a tremendous relief to him that finally we had seen sense to agree with his gently put advice and he immediately made his action plan. Stay or return to the clinic later in the day and the operation would take place after 7.00 in the morning.

Thar be dragons!

Wow! I didn't expect to be found so soon:- even before letting anyone know where this blog is I find I’ve had a visitor.
Congratulations Peter for getting there so quickly.

Here I am with a few extras on the site - and a dragon! This one comes from a temple in the centre of Tainan. I'll have a look through my collection to see what others I can find and maybe post them on the Flickr page.

Many of the dragons on rooves of temples look very similar but I'm always on the lookout for different images. I would like to make a collection of stories about these mythical beasts too.

In the West we know about fire-breathing dragons but, although they look quite fierce, I understand Chinese ones are more peace-loving. In England we know the story of Saint George who rescued a princess from being sacrificed to a local dragon which had been terrorising the people for the price of one human sacrifice each year. The Welsh have their dragon on the national flag and I was just reminded of the Lambton Worm which is sung about in a folk song in the north east of England. In the Bible there is reference to Leviathan which must have been one of the species. I had a look at the first website Google found for me and came up with some stories

But I’m really looking for stories of Chinese dragons – so if you have time please let me have them.

Starting out

With blogs and bloggers all around me I've succumbed to the fad. At least, I think I have. I'm not sure how it will progress but here is the first posting.

Who am I? Two days ago I went with my wife to register our marriage in the local office. It can't be done without a Chinese name so I stuck with one I had been thinking of for some time; "Long". It means dragon and is an acceptable name here. John can be made to fit Chinese characters so that's me now; Long John - the surname comes first.

Registering the marriage? That is a long story, much longer than it should be, and it is all told on my wife's blog (in Chinese if you are interested). She has become something of an expert on the matter and her blog has attracted many engaged couples.

It started earlier in the year after we had decided to 'tie the knot'. Should we get married here? It seemed the obvious choice and the traditional one as my fiancee had grown up here and her family would be around, even if mine were far away. Where is this? Sorry, I didn't tell you, did I? Could be anywhere, couldn't it? With a Chinese name you've narrowed it down to the Chinese-speaking world. Actually it's Tainan city in Taiwan - former home of the Oscar-winning director Ang Lee. So, no mean city! Maybe you are looking at a piece of Tainan right now since many of the world's LCD screens are made in the high tec industrial area here.

Back to the question - where to get married? I looked on a website, what should British people do to prepare to marry here? First get a certificate from Britain showing my single status. Easy? No. It's like making application to marry in England; I would need to be resident there for three weeks while the application was posted at a registry office; - to get permission to marry in Taiwan! For a start, I didn't want to be away for that long, couldn't afford the time, and, anyway, I had only just been there to visit my family. There is an alternative: The Hong Kong authorities do not need such a certficate. We could get married there and register in Taiwan on our return. At least that was how it seemed from the first information. To cut it short; it's what we did - back in February, and then two days ago in August we completed the process. The rest of that story can wait till later if I still have the energy and memory to write it down.

Now it's time for a short rest before I go to work. Where? When? What? Why? How much? ......So many questions.....wait.........please.......if you really are interested then I'll keep writing. Bye for now.