Adaptation and Assimilation--- Possible?

Assimilation infers complete immersion, loss of one’s own culture in exchange for another. I think perhaps this is not a country that would allow that. We will always be outsiders here. However, adaptation is another thing altogether. This is possible, with patience, humility, and a willingness to learn. I believe China will permit us this. We have already been learning to adapt in many ways. The Asian toilet was a huge step forward. I guess that’s forward. Most of our cooking has been Chinese as well. Learning to do without a fridge as they do, has taught us simplicity and contentment. What we don’t have to eat, we simply don’t need. We like rice and that is non-perishable. We are given practical wisdom on a daily basis to use what funds we have in the best way possible. What to buy, what not to buy, a simple issue of contentment. There is something to be said for a simple life. Stress free for the most part, leaving more time and energy for the most important things. Walking everywhere keeps us healthy and allows time for meditation as does riding the buses. The language barrier keeps our minds active, searching for ways to chip it away.
It still surprises me how easily I have adjusted to city life, riding buses alone, walking for miles on my own in areas I have never been before. I am seldom fearful, lonely perhaps, but I can find my own way. I appreciate the air of small town life here though; the market where I can buy fresh cut meat and vegetables with garden soil still clinging to them, the little dogs and cats running free, and especially, the sound of hooves on our street in the wee hours of morning as the local horse-drawn taxi passes slowly by, merging with more modern traffic and disappearing into a cacophony of horns, security alarms and sirens. We are adapting, slowly. If we and they remain willing, I believe we can find our place here.
Mandy
While we fully expect continued strength in our operations going forward, course correcting adaptations are vital to the execution of a focused agenda,”
Barry Diller

“Contentment is not the fulfillment of what you want, but the realization of how much you already have.”
--Anonymous