We were taking a peaceful stroll to the park with our four-month-old girl when an old lady shuffled up and accosted us. She berated us in a thick Beijing accent for taking such a young child outside and emphasized her words with vigorous wind milling movements of her arms. "What are you doing? It's too cold! Go home, quick!"
We initially thought she was mad and since we were relatively youthful managed to outflank her. We returned home soon after, chastened and wary of further attacks from senior citizens.
To be fair, there was a sharp wind and our little one wasn't comfortable. It wasn't an ideal day for perambulations and we realized the old lady only had the best interests of our child at heart. She was probably a mother herself and worried our babe would catch a cold, Chinese friends later explained.
But, I don't think this would have happened in many other countries. In the West, perhaps, people might think the same way as the old lady but they would not make their thoughts public, as it would be considered none of their business. The point is, she cared enough about a couple of strangers' kid to make a scene about it. Her attitude, we have found, is the rule rather than the exception. Beijingers go gaga over kids. We don't know why for sure, but various reasons have been proffered.
These include natural sentimentality, the one-child policy, a child-centered approach to society and Confucian values.
Shamelessly, we have taken advantage of the situation. People are much more accommodating if we bring along the baby. Even bureaucracy's frozen heart thaws slightly. In a social situation, if we show a picture of baby, the ice breaks. As a parent, it is one of the best things about Beijing.
(China Daily by Jules Quartly January 14, 2008)
