One World, One Dream

Photo: Wu Hong/EPA

I’ve tried, Folks, but I can’t imagine how important the Olympics must be to Beijing and the rest of the Chinese people. I mean, how important is it for any proud, developing nation to present a clean and harmonious face to the World? The only thing comparable we have in Mount Shasta is our Fourth of July Walk/Run event, complete with parade and ‘fireworks’.

Oddly enough, we also had to contend with dirty air this year because of the Northern California Lightning Fires. The same questions loomed large as the ‘big’ day was drawing near: Should the organizers (Mountain Runners) cancel the yearly outdoor athletic event and lose out on all that revenue because of the pollution danger? Should the Veterans against the Iraq War be allowed to march in the annual Independence Day Parade down main street?

For me, the last question was a no-brainer. I’ve always thought our nation was founded on the basic principals of mindful dissent and free speech. And If those who served our country in battle can’t speak their minds, then aren’t we lost as a nation? The first question was more difficult, though, and I was mighty pleased not to be involved in the final decision ( to run or not to run?…). Almost miraculously, though, the air cleared enough for that fateful commemoration of a fateful day.

Speaking of fateful, 8/08/08 is one of the most auspicous days imaginable in Chinese culture, not because it kicks off the International Olympics, though. The number 8 (ba) logs in as one of the most revered in Chinese Numerology. When drawn, it finishes with an upward curve, symbolizing continuous progress. When spoken aloud, I’m told that 888 in Cantonese sounds like ‘business will easily prosper’ or ‘thrice prosperous’. Hence the reason that many Chinese businesses flocked to the San Gabriel Valley of Southern California, the area code in that vicinity being 818 or “prosperity guaranteed prosperity!”

All in all, It’s pretty easy to see why Chinese Olympic organizers chose this numeric combination for Opening Day. For them, it was just a ‘no-brainer’. As Westerners, however, we still might wonder why anyone would choose a time of the year famous for its horrible pollution and temperature inversions, especially since athletic events thrive on clean air. The answer is still the same, though: The Chinese believe in the power of three eights and they were willing to bet the bank on it.

Even mothers of newborn children got into the act. By Chinese estimates, 500 “Olympic babies” will be born in Beijing on Aug. 8, as many as two thirds by cesarean section. I have to wonder, folks, if that much good fortune extends to babies who are cut out with a knife. As I understand it, a sharp instrument in plain view changes the Feng Shui of auspicious moments. I’m no expert, but it seems like babies who come out on their own are more apt to get the thrice blessings.

Now here’s a silly thought: Turn the clock back nine months; can’t you just envision thousands of young, Chinese women, all with a mad driving desire to copulate. I bet thousands of lucky husbands were counting their many blessings too. It’s interesting to me, though, that so many women would knowingly use-up their one-time government sanctioned right to procreate, as China only approves of one child per family. For good or ill, taxes are levied on families who break the one-child rule, though there are ways around the law if one is resourceful enough.

Speaking of resourceful, a 32-year-old Chinese woman named Zhang Lingyun one-upped all the other new mothers by naming her newborn daughter “Olympic” in Chinese. Zhang Yuanping (the Haidian Maternal and Child Care Hospital president in Beijing) said ” ‘rationality must not give way to Olympic enthusiasm’, but no one had asked to undergo a caesarean section at 8:08 p.m. tonight, he added.

Chinese officials reported similar enthusiasm at the marriage registrars office. Many young couples wanted to stamp their union with the Olympic or 8/8/08 seal of approval. More than 1,500 new couples applied to be married on Friday, almost three times the daily August average. “To cope with the influx, the staff was able to reduce registration time from seven minutes to three.”

WOW! Seven minutes to three minutes! Those workers deserve a big round of applause for shaving so much time off an already concise registration procedure. I can’t imagine any of our government workers being able to do that in a crunch. Didn’t I tell you the Chinese were resourceful?

Laura signing off.

p.s. Click for Chris if you want information on sendoutcards or you’d like to make your own. So many images and so little time!

pre-show pic by Robert Deutsch, USA Today