Mr. C gave me the idea for the title of this blog by leading me to the poem below. I remember when I used to actually attempt to dig holes to China, so it seemed fitting. As it is, I'll be taking a slightly quicker route by flying over the north pole in exactly 28 days.
I'll be using this blog to update those of my friends and family who wish to know what I'm up to in Beijing. I'm bringing a digital camera and will try to include pictures with the posts (save myself a few thousand words) and there's a chance for the occasional video.
I'm expecting to update every other day, at least, when I'm in Beijing, and if anyone cares and I slack off you should yell at me to stop being lazy. There won't be any posts from now until right before I leave, though- this post is just to make sure that people know where my blog is and how to access it.
I'm already having trouble with the blog-writing-engine-thingy. I can't make all the fonts the same. Oh well.
Digging For China
“Far enough down is China,” somebody said.
“Dig deep enough and you might see the sky
As clear as at the bottom of a well.
Except it would be real–a different sky.
Then you could burrow down until you came
To China! Oh, it’s nothing like New Jersey.
There’s people, trees and houses, and all that,
But much, much different. Nothing looks the same.”
I went and got the trowel out of the shed
And sweated like a coolie all that morning,
Digging a hole beside the lilac bush,
Down on my hands and knees. It was a sort
Of praying, I suspect. I watched my hand
Dig deep and darker, and I tried and tried
To dream a place where nothing was the same.
The trowel never did break through to blue.
Before the dream could weary of itself
My eyes were tired of looking into darkness,
My sunbaked head of hanging down a hole.
I stood up in a place I had forgotten,
Blinking and staggering while the earth went round
And showed me silver barns, the fields dozing
In palls of brightness, patens growing and gone
In the tides of leaves, and the whole sky china blue.
Until I got my balance back again
All that I saw was China, China, China.
– by Richard Wilbur
Language Update- My current grasp of Chinese lies entirely in the phrase "I would like a beer." Hopefully I can get a few more words under my belt before I leave.
