Wednesday, September 22, 2004
CHINESE AND THE VIEWING
Tomorrow's memorial service will feature me as MC, where I will have to speak in both English and Chinese. I wrote out what I want to say in English and Raymond translated it and read it back to me. It's a rather daunting task considering I'm really out of practice in Chinese and even have trouble reading pinyin. But I'm just going to do the best that I can and hopefully don't end up changing the tone of the words too much because that'll completely change the meaning of the words. I don't know how many times Raymond has said, "You want to say, 'Dear God' and not 'Dear Bamboo.'"
On a more somber note, tonight was the viewing. The make-up on my grandmother's face made her look more like the grandmother I've remembered all my life (and not the one whose been lying in a coma for the last 6 months. However, that also made the reality of it all hit me like a ton of bricks. It's one thing to know in your head your grandmother has passed. It's quite another to see her lying in a coffin, surrounded by flowers, in a mortuary. Plus, it's an awkward time of hugs, laughs (at times), cries, and silence. It's such a mixed bag of emotions there that you're left emotionally,mentally and physically drained.
I have plenty more thoughts, but I better stop so I can practice my Chinese. Or sleep.
Tomorrow's memorial service will feature me as MC, where I will have to speak in both English and Chinese. I wrote out what I want to say in English and Raymond translated it and read it back to me. It's a rather daunting task considering I'm really out of practice in Chinese and even have trouble reading pinyin. But I'm just going to do the best that I can and hopefully don't end up changing the tone of the words too much because that'll completely change the meaning of the words. I don't know how many times Raymond has said, "You want to say, 'Dear God' and not 'Dear Bamboo.'"
On a more somber note, tonight was the viewing. The make-up on my grandmother's face made her look more like the grandmother I've remembered all my life (and not the one whose been lying in a coma for the last 6 months. However, that also made the reality of it all hit me like a ton of bricks. It's one thing to know in your head your grandmother has passed. It's quite another to see her lying in a coffin, surrounded by flowers, in a mortuary. Plus, it's an awkward time of hugs, laughs (at times), cries, and silence. It's such a mixed bag of emotions there that you're left emotionally,mentally and physically drained.
I have plenty more thoughts, but I better stop so I can practice my Chinese. Or sleep.
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