At a China earthquake benefit concert last week, I bid in a silent auction for a wall hanging with the Chinese character for 'Patience.' I thought it would be an appropriate addition to our home but we were outbid. I've been browsing the internet for other options and came across this explanation of the two character word. "Patience" is made up of two characters. The top character is a combination of blade and heart, literally the pain of being stabbed in the heart, meaning the bearing of pain or endurance. The bottom character literally translates as now and law, implying an imminent situation that cannot be escaped. Taken as one, this character means patience in the sense of bearing the burdens of life or accepting our destiny.
Some days the top character is more relevant than others. For example, the day last week when I ran into another school mom at the gym who asked, 'Have you heard anything about your little girl? I remember hearing about her when our kids were in Kindy (she's from Australia) and now they're going to 2nd grade!'
Yep, thanks for the reminder, lady.
My standard reply has become, "No, we're still waiting. ...and I promise we're not making this up!"
2 comments:
What a bummer that you were outbid! It sounds like a cool hanging. Thanks for sharing the explanation - that makes SO much sense!
I got a couple of similar questions/remarks this week. I think people have just heard we went to China, then see us with no baby, and ask the question.
Hey Jen,
I found your blog randomly through James'. If you happen to see this please visit my blog and leave a message. I'd love to find out what you've been up to...besides blog postings:)
Shannon (Justice) Eberhardt
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