When I lived in my own apartment I usually ate a western breakfast and lunch and a Chinese dinner. Breakfast varied from cold cereal, toast and fruit to eggs, toast and fruit. For lunch it was usually a sandwich and fruit. Moving from my apartment to the home of Jiajing’s parents changed what I ate. When I first lived there it was Chinese for all three meals, but as we got used to living together I began to prepare a western breakfast and eat alone at times. I tried to do the same for lunch, but was not very successful because Jiajing’s mom came home for lunch and she found it difficult to see me eating a cold sandwich in a cold apartment when we could be eating hot Chinese food together. There was no question that her hot lunch was better than my sandwich.
Before going to bed one night I was told not to eat breakfast in the morning because they wanted me to join them. The first thing that was served was made from dry noodles veggies and some meat and is seen in the following picture.
It is really good but does require some liquid to go with it. That need is met by the second dish that was added just after I took the picture and put the camera away. That dish is prepared by starting with some water and bring it to a boil and then add some left over rice from the night before and an egg to poach for each person. A little sugar is added for flavor. When the egg is done what is in the pan is divided into three bowls like you would soup. We began with water that was unsafe to drink, but in the process of boiling it to cook the egg and warm the rice it is now safe to drink and can’t be wasted. The bowl with the egg, rice and sweetened water is placed to the left of the dish of noodles. You put your chopsticks in your right hand to eat the noodles and a spoon in your left hand to eat the egg, rice and water. It is a very efficient way to eat a very good breakfast. I wish I had taken a picture of both items, but I didn’t.
Let us now look at my great western breakfast that they can’t imagine I could possibly eat on a cold morning.
As it got colder on the outside and thus on the inside, because we have no heat, my breakfast became less and less appealing. Back in the states where we spend money for things like heated buildings, I am back enjoying a cold breakfast. Economically the Chinese model makes more sense. It may not be as comfortable, but maybe the comfort we seek in the states is part of what is drawing us away from our walk with God.
