Moon cakes, meditation & the Mid-Autumn Festival

On the 15th day of the 8th month according to the Chinese lunar calendar, the Mid-Autumn festival is celebrated throughout China and several neighboring countries.

月饼 (moon cakes) filled with anything from the traditional red bean paste, egg yolk and pork to the very un-traditional fillings of ice cream and chocolate are sold in nearly every store. Lanterns are lit (though I didn't get to see any) and everyone takes a day off from school or work to celebrate.

Legend has it that Chang E, the Chinese goddess of the moon, wanted to protect her husband's elixir, so she ate it and flew to the moon. Ask someone else and they may tell you a different story - there's an array of origins to choose from.

But at the heart of this holiday are three universal concepts: gathering, thanksgiving and praying. Gathering, such as family and friends or harvesting crops. Thanksgiving in honor of the harvest. And praying for a good future, good health, etc.

Amidst the many moon cakes, this holiday was also an occasion for me to reflect - a month into this year long adventure in China - to meditate on the places I have gathered, reasons for thanksgiving and requests for prayer. 中秋节快乐 (Happy Mid-Autumn Festival) and happy reading...

Gathering

I am reminded every day, not just during the Mid-Autumn festival, that I am surrounded by deeply nurturing people - those who long prepared for my arrival and those who, on the spot, welcomed me with open arms.

And as I sat in a circle with twenty other Chinese people this past weekend at the Zhi Mian psychology workshop, I was far from feeling alone. Even amidst the language barrier and cultural differences, I was welcomed with open arms.

This gathering led us to discuss our emotions, our human tendencies as well as Chinese education and parent-child relationships. At times, I just wanted to give up. Being unable to truly express my point of view was more than frustrating.

"No that's not what I meant, I just don't know how to say it properly in Chinese!"

Sometimes I just couldn't understand. Why is China the way it is? Why is tradition so influential? Why can't children have less educational pressure? Why can't this life just be simpler?

But at times, I just needed to listen. To leave behind my blinded stereotypes. To stop thinking about myself, my culture, and engage with the different views of those around me.

To listen to the struggle of my roommate who is a junior in high school, feeling the highest level of stress possible as she prepares for the 高考(College preparatory exam) and lives with her parents' expectation. And then to listen to her parents' point of view, to hear the love in their voices that is often accompanied with expectation for their daughter. Both parents and child sharing their feelings amidst tears.

And in this gathering of people, I learned that we are all human. Simple, I know. But in a culture that at times appears to have it all together, or at least all contained inside, this was an important realization. To recognize that culture is a very universal, yet divided concept. But our humanness brings us together.

Thanksgiving

And for that, and so much more, I am thankful.

For those at the Zhi Mian psychology workshop who asked me questions and listened to me stumble to create sentences to express my opinion, I am thankful.

For my friends from India, Costa Rica, South Korea, Romania, Switzerland, Poland who vulnerably share their culture as we study Chinese together, I am thankful.

For my Chinese friend, 花花, who showers me with encouragement, but who is also very real.

"You are very bad at making decisions, just make one," she said. "That is part of growing up."

For my teachers, my roommates and so many other people I encounter each day, I am thankful. I am thankful that they take interest in me, challenge me and share their culture with me.

I am learning each day that people give meaning to this life - their stories are the best lessons.

Prayer

Then there is prayer - the recognition that I still experience those moments of loneliness, homesickness and purpose-seeking.

A very wise mentor shared these words with me the other day, "I am a human being, not a human doing."

So this continues to be my prayer - to be okay with just being. To stop worrying about whether I should take more classes, how I am struggling in my language classes or how I can make more Chinese friends.

Less doing, more being, Mackenzie.

So if you're reading this, I give you this request: Pray that I can just be, that when I am sick and tired of Chinese food and just want to run for miles amidst the Lancaster County farmland, when I am homesick for the people that know me best, when I feel that I have lost my purpose, or don't even know what that purpose is, that I will be reminded I am only human, that I can trust what emerges as all I need for the day and that China still has more to teach me.

Finally, may 中秋节 (Mid-Autumn Festival) remind us all that gathering comes with thanksgiving and thanksgiving with prayer. May we find that balance and strive to live in it.