It all began with a glitch in Netflix. The Octonauts was her favorite show and she was excited to watch another episode. Curled in the easy chair, she hit play but the sound was different. They weren't speaking English.

"MAMA!" She had bellowed as she crept across the floor toward the TV. She was fascinated. The sounds made her feel warm inside. Good. They felt right.

Her mother ran into the living room. "Are you okay?"

She nodded her eyes never leaving the TV. "What are they saying, Mama?"

"I don't know, baby. I think they're speaking Chinese."

"Chinese." A soft whisper. "Imma talk Chinese, Mama."

"You can do anything you set your mind to, baby."

She was five years old.

Over the next twelve years, she read stories, histories, current affairs - anything she could find on China. Living in a small town made it hard to learn Mandarin Chinese any way except on the internet so that's how she did it.

There were days she screamed and hurled pencils across the room unable to master whatever goal she had set herself but she never gave up. It was too important. Too vital.

As the years passed, life happened. Her parents divorced. It made her sad but they were both so much happier with themselves and with each other, she couldn't stay sad for long. She and her Mom lived simply and happily. Weekends were with her Dad. Both supported her 'Chinese Obsession'.

Foreign Exchange Student. It was a magical phrase. She was thirteen the first time she heard the term. With decent grades and a good interview, she could go to China at age seventeen. She would live with an Exchange Family in China. Just the idea was enough to send her back to her desk to study. It was her goal and she had set her mind to accomplishing it.

At fifteen, a miracle occurred. They got new neighbors. The Wu family had immigrated from China. She gravitated to them like a moth to flame and found the teachers she needed. They were kind people and at sixteen let her work at their restaurant as a waitress. Between the support from her parents and the Wu family, she flourished.

Her mother had asked about dating when she turned sixteen. Was she interested? She tried to explain how she felt to her Mom. She had never met anyone who made her feel... Breathless? Warm? Hopeful? Whole? Her Mom had been surprised to say the least. These were not concepts sixteen year old girls considered when thinking about dating. She had just hugged her daughter and smiled. "You'll find the right one, baby."

Two months before her seventeenth birthday, she recieved a letter saying her application for the Foreign Student Exchange program had been accepted. Her interview would be in three days via computer. She had cried.

She threw up twice the day of the interview. All of the hard work came down to this moment. At exactly 1:15 pm Eastern Standard Time, the interview began. She greeted them formally in Mandarin Chinese and repeated the phrase in English. She tried to truthfully answer every question set to her but when they asked her why she chose China, she was silent for a moment.

"Because studying China always felt good. It was right for me." They had nodded, and thanked her for applying. She would recieve a letter regarding her acceptance into the program within the next ten business days. Smiling, she thanked them for their time and efforts. The video call ended. She threw up in the waste basket.

They say time is variable. Having fun? It speeds past you with a laugh on it's lips. Washing the dishes? It just sits on the counter and whines without moving a jot. Waiting for the culmination of years of work? It becomes encapsulated in lead. Each day was years long.

When it finally arrived, her hands were shaking so badly her mom had to open it. Under the excited eyes of both her families she read it out loud. She had been accepted and would be placed with a family near Beijing. She had screamed while running in place then broken into tears and laughter.

That night they celebrated at the Wu's restaurant. Her Dad had shown up with a new suitcase for her. On the side was a frog so there would be no way she could lose her luggage. She loved it and it made her smile every time she looked at it.

A month later she was at the airport waving good bye as she passed through the security. A short hop to Detroit and she'd connect to her thirteen hour flight to Beijing.

The flight was long but she only got a few hours of sleep. She was excited, nervous, thrilled and anxious. It swirled in her stomach. Underneath it all was something else though. A deep yearning for... something.

As she had grown older, she began to practice meditation. It was part of Chinese culture which meant she wanted to understand it. As time passed, the yearning had come into being and it had grown. But she couldn't figure out what it was she was yearning for. Yes, she wanted to go to China but this was different. How it was different she couldn't exactly say. It just was.

The plane bounced three times when they landed. Her smile got broader with each bounce. Inside the airport she filled out the required forms stating she wasn't bringing in illegal substances etc etc etc. The guards were startled when she asked them where she should go next in excellent Chinese. She began to believe the smile was permanent.

Finding her Exchange parents wasn't as difficult as she feared. They had a card with her name near the baggage claim. She had bowed and greeted them formally. Her new mother had swept her into a hug, charmed with how seriously she took being polite. It made her feel at home.

The ride after the airport was eye opening. Beijing traffic had to be experienced to be believed. Bicycles, scooters and motorcycles just went wherever they pleased. Between the cars, on the side walk, any where they could fit. People were no different. They might cross in mass at the corners but there were always one or two trying to dodge their way through the stop and go traffic. She kept waiting for the thump of a pedestrian on the hood.

Leaving Beijing, they headed for the small town her Exchange family lived in. Only a million residents. She laughed and told them her small town had 11,000 people in it.

"Here that is not much more than a village." her Exchange father said.

As they entered the house, she could hear running footsteps. A ten year old boy slid to a stop in front of her.

"Hi!" he almost yelled in English. She couldn't help but laugh.

"Hello, little brother!" and she scruffled his hair. He just grinned at her.

"Where is your sister? Is your brother home yet?" his mother asked.

"Sister is on the phone and Brother isn't home yet." He giggled at his new sister while answering his mother.

The house was busy but happy for which she was grateful. Mother had brought her new sister in and was about to introduce her when she heard the front door open and close.

"Ahh, here is our eldest son, XiangCheng." Father told her.

As she turned, a warm voice said in perfect English, "But my friends call me Bo."

She looked up at him with ocean-colored eyes and smiled.

~♡~♡~♡~

Frogs are symbols of health and toads are symbols of immortality in the Chinese culture.

I hope you enjoyed my story. Be well and stay safe!

❤🍫🫖❤