Me and Shushu, Part 2
Previously, I provided a glimpse into life with my Chinese family (Me and Shushu). The novelty of being treated by Shushu like a budding movie star quickly wore thin, however, when his penchant for excessive affection made me feel uncomfortable. Shushu’s affinity for me was apparent from the first time we met. He had a weird way of expressing it when he told me that I resemble President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan. A couple days later, he determined I actually looked like Yasir Arafat. The irony of Shushu’s discerning a resemblance between a big-nosed Jew and a dead Palestinian terrorist was not lost on me or his 30-year-old son. Shushu’s inexplicable lust for touching my skin is made more dubious by the ostensible lack of affection in Chinese culture. I cannot recall having witnessed a single hug or kiss by another Chinese person during my three weeks in Beijing. Pleasantries in my home are rarely, if ever, exchanged.
I also became tired of hearing Shushu yell at Ayi. One night, in a fit of rage, he overturned a bowl of food just as we were about to sit down for dinner. He then stormed off into his room and refused entreaties for him to eat. Ayi later displayed her disgust to me by pointing toward his room and making a face. After similar antics by Shushu tonight, Ayi’s mother, a rare dinner guest, responded in a similar fashion, jamming her finger in the air and scowling ferociously. She also appeared to use a hand gesture to suggest to me that he had been drinking.
Evidently impressed by my natural acting ability, Shushu is still nagging me to shoot more movie scenes. One morning on my way to school, he stopped me on the staircase and convinced me to re-film a scene in which I happily exclaim in Chinese that he and Ayi are my teachers. Now Shushu has begun pleading with me to return to China after finishing my Masters to become a movie star. When I confirmed this with my “Chinese brother” in English, he told me his father had said that I am “good in action.” Shushu says I could make big bucks by teaching English while I improve my Chinese. The discussions enabled me to add the word “middleman” to my vocabulary, but yielded little else. My suggestion about possibly working in Mexico (the only Latin American country whose name I know in Chinese) did not go over too well.
Fortunately, Shushu has recently spent limited time at home. Apparently, he has been busy acting for some television program. I have happily substituted time with Ayi for time with Shushu. Treating me as though I were her own son, Ayi has single-handedly made my experience in China a memorable one. More on Ayi in a future post…
Joe
