Reflection
As I took two steps forward towards the court, my heart was racing. Normally, I would be nervous to play the game anyway, but this was not like any normal time. For one, the three of us looked different than everyone else. As we stepped on the basketball court, everyone’s heads turned. Here we were, three foreign girls approaching several Chinese men's teams. We didn’t know if any of them could speak English. Nervously, one of us asked some of the older men, “我们可以跟你们一起打篮球吗?”, meaning “Can we play basketball with you?”. They were so excited that we were playing with them that one of the guys decided to be our coach. They asked us in Chinese where we were from and then the game began. As we played, our new teammate and "coach" used what little English he knew to say "Good defense" or "shoot, shoot!".We passed the ball and made shots, all the while several other people came over to take pictures or watch.
The Basketball Team
We could tell the men we were playing against were having a fun time. By the end of the game, we had all worked hard and were sweaty. We took a picture with the group and talked a little bit. There was a new energy in the air. Though it was hard to communicate fully, the Chinese that we knew and the nonverbals of playing a popular sport helped us work together and meet new people. Never have I walked away from a sports game so alive and excited regardless of the score. The whole trip we had been saying we should join a basketball game and we finally did it. I knew at that moment that I would remember this experience forever.
Roughly nine years before that, I couldn’t even imagine that I would have had the opportunity to go back to China again. Here I was a little 6th grader just excited to see my aunt, uncle, and cousins who lived in China at that time and take a family trip. We had never done a big trip like this before -- let alone travel to a foreign country. I remember being excited just to ride on a plane and taking pictures every second that I could (as I still do to this day). My aunt and uncle had been living in Hong Kong for a half a year now and knew all the places to take us in the week we were visiting them. The only Chinese word we knew was, “谢谢”, meaning “thank you”. My uncle taught us to say it so that we could know how to be polite. I remember feeling adventurous because I was seeing so many new things and meeting so many new people. Every day was a new experience and my eyes felt forever opened.
When it came time to decide which language to take in 7th grade: Chinese or Spanish, I instantly knew I wanted to learn Chinese. After seeing the culture in person I wanted to learn more about China and be able to speak the language. When I made that decision as a 12 year old girl, I didn’t know that learning Chinese would continue throughout my college life. I remember being proud when I could write my first characters, “你好”, “hello”. Later on in high school, I remember making friends in class, the skits we would have to perform, and the cheesy textbook videos our teacher would show us. I also remember doing fun things like learning tai chi and a Chinese tongue twister song. I was lucky that Chinese was even offered at my high school. Sadly, they might not have the program anymore because of having so few students.
Looking ahead to college, I only looked at schools that offered Chinese in case I decided to continue learning Chinese. As a freshman in college, I didn’t like the thought of not taking Chinese after being involved in it for so long. I wanted to become even better and be able to use my language in real life someday, so I added a Chinese minor. When I transferred to St. Olaf, I placed out of my foreign language requirement and the minor wasn’t an option for my year. It was tough to squeeze in two majors after transferring, but I was determined to figure it out and make the planning work. I finally declared my double major in Chinese and Computer Science and was on my way.
Studying a new language isn’t always easy, especially when I don’t need to use it in my everyday life. But, I realized how much I still have to learn when I had the opportunity to go on the AsianCon’s 2019 Interim trip. When we first got to ShangHai, it was overwhelming because I had been studying in a classroom for years, and now Chinese was everywhere. This was my moment to put my learning into real life practice.
It was intimidating at first trying to speak at all. I was subconscious about saying something wrong or not being able to understand what someone spoke back to me. I realized there were so many characters that I didn’t know. I was constantly trying to understand everything I saw and heard. One time I went to a smoothie stand to order a smoothie. When I walked up and ordered in Chinese, I could tell the man running it was surprised. He asked if I was a student and said, “你的中文很好!”, that my Chinese was very good. It gave me the best feeling when someone was so enthusiastic and excited for me to learn his culture and language. Even though I was worried about my Chinese abilities, I was so happy with the progress that I made. I have put effort into this and I have come a long way! Even being able to order completely in another language felt like an accomplishment.
Being able to pursue my Chinese major has meant so much to me and added way more to my college to degree than I could have asked for. Not only did I learn a new language, but I met so many new people, had the opportunity to take an eye opening trip, and used my language in real life. It changed my world perspective by learning about a new culture and important world matters.
Before Chinese, I never realized how much a different language can create different thinking. It is so interesting to me when one language has a word for something that the other cannot describe in a single word. It is also interesting to me how English has so many adjectives for things while Chinese is more simple and structural. For example, I have never thought too hard about saying things like, “kill two birds with one stone”, before until I realized that is something so dependent on language. In Chinese such an idiom would make no sense. However, they have their own idioms such as “马马虎虎,” Which is the characters for horse, horse, tiger, tiger, but it means something is “so so.”
Not only does each language have their differences, but the history behind a language and the linguistic significance of a language can tell a lot about a country and what it has been through. I never realized this until taking a linguistics perspective on Japanese in one of my AsianCon classes. This class taught me the significance of the longevity of the Chinese language and the similarity between Chinese and Japanese within its character writing. I also never fully comprehended the issues that go along with choosing a national language in a country that encompasses so many individual cultures or the tough choices of how to preserve a local language and identity all while not inhibiting the opportunities for future success on a global scale.
This major has also taught me more about religion, food, and worldly issues. I had the chance to explore religion by taking a class on Buddhism for this major. This class gave me a new perspective on nonviolence and living in a mindful way. I have been exposed to new foods and new ways of cooking, all because of this class and my trip to Asia. Now, I have a broader perspective on important issues such as gender inequality, free speech, and nuclear warfare. I never fully appreciated being born into a country of free speech until I learned more about that lack of it in China.
In terms of nuclear warfare, I know the horrifying story of our involvement in war in the past, but never has it touched me so much as getting the opportunity to stand in person and hear about the bombing of Hiroshima from a survivor. Seeing the haunting remains in person, the history was no longer just a picture. When we heard from Kieko, telling us a horrifying first hand account of the events, I can never forget such a thing. Kiekos dad couldn’t read English and so he accidently picked up cherries from the donated food shelf. He didn't know he brought back a sticky desert item and not real food. This is what motivated Keiko to learn the language, because of this she was here that day telling us her story. My mind could not believe it, the frustration and anger from Keiko's painful past, and her courage to learn English welled up in my soul and tears started streaming down my face. Never had history felt so real before to me. I now have such a more passionate connection to wanting world peace.
Hugging Keiko After Her Story
Overall, everything I have learned through my Chinese major has given me a new perspective on the world, my own values, and has made me more aware and more curious about the world. I feel that it has made me a more well-rounded person and a better citizen.
After college, I plan to be a software developer and have accepted a full time position in St. Paul. Although I will not get to use my Chinese at this company, I will forever remember what values and insights I have learned in this major with me. I will be able to consider issues of usability and now have a better understanding of how people come from different backgrounds when engaging with people at my company.
In the future, I have new goals for myself. Learning more about Asia has inspired me to learn more about the countries I don’t know much about. Someday I would love to work for a multinational company and use my background to be as helpful as I can. I don’t know what further connections I will make to Asia, but I know that I plan to travel back someday -- whether it is for fun, volunteering, or work. The world is a big place and I am inspired to make the impact I can. I am so thankful that I decided to learn Chinese as a 12 year old girl and that I was able to continue it in college. This major has added so much to my knowledge and personal development and I can’t wait to see how this background influences me in the future.
