Christmas 2015

It is Christmas Eve and the US embassy sent out a terror threat warning that foreigners may be targeted at a popular shopping area not far from where I live. First time I’ve received such a warning. We put on masks to protect against the pollution and walk to another popular shopping mall. Along the way we see police holding rifles which, btw, is not normal. Inside the mall there are Christmas decorations and even a line for children to sit on Santa’s lap and make their Christmas wishes. But the line is mostly filled with young women wanting to capture a WeChat moment with Santa. I suspect Santa did not mind.

I wake up Christmas morning, get dressed in the dark, and go downstairs to make myself two scrambled eggs. The small plastic tree that Elisa decorated a few weeks ago leans against the wall with no hints of presents underneath. My kids also wake up, but they are 1800 miles away in Sanya.

I am in a surprisingly content mood given it will turn out to be the worst air quality day since the government started tracking air quality a couple of years ago, the terrorist threat, and my kids are so far away. I think my content mood may just be from getting over jet lag and starting to feel human again. It may be from taking the day off work. It may be because I am entering a more relaxed state in general.

Even though my kids are not with me on this day, I am not alone. Shilan is around and after morning coffee I announce to her that I will make my mom’s lasagna for our Christmas lunch. The ingredients for lasagna can be a bit tedious to get here and we end up going to two supermarkets that cater to foreigners to get everything. It came out good.

After the afternoon dinner we walked in the AQI 500 smog and had a Christmas ale at a local brew pub. I was expecting to feel melancholy, but for some reason wasn’t. I went with it.

It is strange, this new normal that is such a cliche.