I did a week-long bike tour through rural and mountainous South-Western China. There were two other Canadians with me and our tour guide, Farmer Tan. Measuring in at ~5ft tall, Farmer Tan was a farmer in a village near to the city of Yangshuo before he became a tour guide. He was incredibly well-meaning, unintimidating, and eager to please us. During a dinner in Butterfly Valley, we had a charming conversation.
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| The chairs were a foot off the ground and used by adults. |
“How long have you been married?”
“20 years. I met her June 26 1992 and we got married about a year later.”
“That’s a very exact date.”
“Yes, I remember it very well…”
In my village, everyone was a farmer. My parents were farmers, my brothers were farmers, I was a farmer… I was very little, even compared to my brothers, and this made things very difficult for me. My brothers would try to show me how to farm, and many times I was too small to do things properly. Back when I was 25 in 1992, I was about three inches shorter than I am now. I thought I would never get married. Who would want to marry a short man like me? I can’t do work like other men!
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| Mountainfuls of rice terraces. |
On June 25, 1992, I was working in my field. Like usual, the water buffalo wasn’t listening to me as I was too small to direct him properly. I was struggling with the water buffalo, up to my shins in mud, when three huge foreign men came up to my field: a German, a Dutchman, and a Swiss. They spoke Mandarin and wanted directions. I looked like a mess - I was just over four feet tall in the mud and my shirt sleeves ended well past my fingertips. I talked with them awhile and then they helped me with the plowing. We plowed the whole field! I was so happy!
They asked if there was someplace they could eat and stay the night. I brought them back to the house where my family lived and I was very excited. I told my parents and brothers, “they plowed the whole field for me!” They had dinner and stayed the night.
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| Misty morning in Butterfly Valley. |
The next morning, the foreign men asked me to bring them into the city. They bought me a bus ticket and we went to the market. Because I was so short, the city people didn’t realize that I was just a farmer. I couldn’t be a farmer. Everyone thought I was a tour guide from the city.
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| River rafts near Yangshuo. |
That day, my future wife (who was also living a farmer’s life with her family) was visiting her aunt in the city. She was intrigued by the foreigners, introduced herself, and had a conversation with them. She invited them to eat and stay with her family and they accepted.
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| Dr. Seuss-esque mountains. |
She asked me what I did for work, and I said that I’m a tour guide! We arranged to meet again. We met up again and again until we arranged our marriage a year later.
“Is your wife taller than you?”
“Yes, even after growing a few more inches to how tall I am now, she’s still taller than me.”
“And who is the most successful in your family?”
“My brothers are doing well, one is a carpenter and the other two are farmers. But I’m the most successful. I love my job!”
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| Farmer Tan's house. |