I'm currently on an Experiential Learning Trip with 7th graders in Anhui Province near Huang Shan (Yellow Mountain). It's beautiful here, not only in nature but in the infrastructure that the government has put into place, to glam up the area for the millions of visiting tourists that pass by here every year. If I squint, I seriously would mistaken myself to be in Markham, Ontario and not in rural China.
Our trip here has largely been focused on environmental conservation in an area known as Jiulong Peak Conservation Area. We started the morning learning about the conservation efforts that the local rangers put into preserving the environment. They did everything from animal protection, public education to local sustainability projects in the area. I was blown away by the very thoughtful and passionate energy that the rangers had. And the area was definitely beautiful.
When we stopped for lunch, we came to a local restaurant where the toilets were clean squat toilets, with shorter walls, so that you could see your friends as they were pulling up their pants. Lunch was communal, and we all got scoops of food placed in our bowls. There wasn't really anything out of the order about this ritual as I have been through this many times before but what WAS interesting about our lunch experience was that we all had to wash our dishes after our meal instead of leaving it for somebody else to wash for us. We had to go to an outdoor sink and instead of using dish detergent we used a brown powder to make mud-like coat on the dishes and to degrease the bowls. It was a natural biodegradeable cleaning method that didn't affect the environment as much. It was fascinating to me that in this rural restaurant in China, we were experiencing this.
Apparently it's Tea powderAfter lunch, I took a student to the hospital who was having tummy issues. Although I was missing out on the experiential learning with the rest of the group who was learning about being a ranger, I was having my own experiential moment myself...visiting a hospital.
The hospital was a local public hospital. Immediately we had to cue in line and pay a fee before getting a number to see the pediatric department. The fee for registration - 6RMB (less than 1 USD). We then proceeded to the pediatric clinic where we waited for the doctor to return from his break (it was 2pm). When he returned, a flood of patients and parents rushed into the 4 metre square office. It seemed like one big chaotic mess where patients were served somewhere between the process of first come first serve and loud come first serve...I couldn't tell which was which. But thankfully the tour guide was with us, and he informed me that we did in fact have a number and there was order in the chaos. It seemed that the doctor served numbers in order, but if you were not in the room when it was your turn, then the next number would be served. So everyone stayed on top of the numbers eagerly by reading over the doctor's shoulder and monitoring the numbers on the screen.
While we waited, we ALL got to see the patients along with the doctor. We saw a little boy have his pants pulled down in front of all of us and have his private parts examined for all to see, while his mother smiled shyly explaining her concerns to the doctor. We watched another little boy have a thermometer stuck in his bum and waiting patiently on the side, while the doctor gave prognosis to another concerned parent. I was appalled by the lack of privacy of the situation!
....and that's when I paused and realized my Western-ness creeping in. Western society values individualism, privacy, confidentiality and individual rights. Chinese society values family, community and national unity and rights. In this very cramped hospital room, I was seeing my internal western-ness judging an environment that actually had very strong communal and community connectedness. The doctor in front of all these people had a very paternal role, and the community watched together in concern for each and every patient being served. There was no judgment about the illness, but the story was shared in front of all, and if I took my own western lens away from the situation, it was actually a very beautiful thing.
I think I'm going to have more and more of these moments while I'm here: Understanding how banking and healthcare works in China and the rational behind it. Learning about education in China. Dialoguing with teachers about their pedagogy and methodologies. Before I judge with my Western mindset, I'll need to empathize with an Eastern mindset.
