better city...

"the expo is coming! the expo is coming!" it's almost like paul revere's famous midnight ride...minus the redcoats and add a lot of chinese. less ominous, more hopeful anticipation. plus one big blue gumby impostor dubbed "haibao".

12 days until the world expo officially opens, drawing years of preparations and months of drilling and construction to a close, only to kick off six months of events, visitors and orderly "civility." all 11 subway lines are now open, sprawling like veins under the surface of the city. each subway station is equipped with a bag scanner and guards directing passengers to toss their bags onto the painfully slow conveyor belt. some guards are more vigilant than others; at one particular security checkpoint, i recalled guards who looked no older than 16, bored and inattentive as i glided past the machine with my tote still firmly strapped on my shoulder.

i have to admit: i am not at all excited about the expo. annoyed would be the more apt adjective. i am dreading the influx of visitors (predicted to consist more of chinese from around the country than overseas tourists), the heightened security, the inundation (aka propaganda overload) of the mantra--i mean, motto--that is being chanted, posted, plastered, flashed everywhere: "better city, better life."

in the midst of all my complaining, i am trying to figure out how to love my neighbors more. not just the sweet family that lives down the hall from me or the couple at the vegetable market that i buy all my produce from, but the people i pass every day on the streets and in the subway cars. i don't want to murmur, "love thy neighbor, love thy neighbor," through grinding teeth as i endure the push and shove of crowds in mass transit or dodge a speeding taxi as i scramble across the road. i want to say it, believe it, breathe it. i want to mean it.

so i'm taking baby steps, exercising my tolerance as i brace myself for the masses that will descend upon this city in the coming months. and one thing i've discovered: starting small is good. and the simplest start? smiling. just smiling. smiling when someone cuts me in line. smiling when i get an elbow to the head during rush hour on the subway.

smiling is disarming. popping a smile instead of a frown, a string of obscenities, or the middle finger certainly does more in defusing a potentially tense situation. smiling at perfect strangers somehow eases down the guard, shortens the distance, reminds us that we're human and allows this inexplicable connection to happen. i've been trying it recently--even and especially when i don't feel like it--and i've felt the difference. i may not always feel the love. but it's a movement towards love, an act of volition and a step of faith.

on another note that is semi-related, the urbanity project continues, full steam ahead! we've been able to receiving substantial funding for the project, thanks to generous donors and foundations, and submissions are pouring in. we bumped the deadline back to may 1 to give everyone (including yours truly) more time to finish work for submission.

i've been privileged to meet some amazing people during this process of promoting the urbanity project and sharing ideas with others. one such person is the photographer and writer behind the beautiful blog, shanghai street stories. definitely a blog to keep an eye on:

http://shanghaistreetstories.wordpress.com/


cups of coffee: 2

mood: o spring, where art thou? please don't be a tease.