Mandarin

Chinese woman ~ North Melbourne. Photo: Julie Clarke, 2010

I don't know this woman's name, but I've seen her nearly every day for the past four years. We both catch the 402 bus that runs from Footscray to St. Vincent's Hospital via North Melbourne. As we're often the only ones waiting for the bus we'd try to communicate, which was difficult because she speaks Mandarin. I found myself performing over exaggerated non-verbal communication to explain the way I felt about the weather, or I pointed to things and named them so that she would learn a few words in English. Over the past four years she's learnt ~ cold, hot, sky, wind, tree, car, bus, bus coming, late, go, jumper, ticket, shopping, hello, goodbye and Julie. She always touches me on the arm or hugs me enthusiastically when she sees me and she's always smiling. Someone told me that she's in her late 70s and she has no family in Australia. I think she's amazing - she can communicate with me in English, but I have learnt absolutely no Mandarin! When I got out my digital camera a few months ago, she began to giggle and fixed a curl on her forehead. I figured this was her way of giving me permission to photograph her. She has a gentle face and gentle manner. I hold all these moments precious, because over the years a number of elderly people I've regularly spoken to on the bus have suddenly passed.