Hot Man the Hero Informant

On the flight to Xi'an (she-on), I sat next to two gentlemen who proved to be informative! Hot Man and Daniel. 

Pause.

When Hot Man first told me his name, I thought it was a Chinese name I was struggling to pronounce. Something like "hwautmawn". It took me thirty minutes into our conversation to realize he was saying, Hot Man. Only after he wrote it down, actually. You'd think I'd learn after having a guide on a trip whose name was King Kong. 

He totally knew what it meant too Hot Man and King Kong for that matter. Once he saw the ah-ha look on my face, he got all proud telling me how cool that name was. Meanwhile, I do not think I have ever experienced a moment where it was so tough to hold in laughter and I succeeded! Normally I'm with children when that happens and I turn my back or go rushing out of the room! 

Hot Man gave me a Chinese paper written in English. It was good to read about things our president is doing in other countries that our media never tells us about. You know, important things like world affairs. I found it ironic in that often I can best learn about China's politics through foreign websites and there I was learning about my nation through a foreign source. Then, of course, Hot Man brought up Trump and Hillary. Other topics of conversation: guns, NBA, Reagan, communism and socialism, Obama, Chicago, provinces in China, and if I am a republican or democrat. It was one of the best flights I've had!

Hot Man and Daniel figured I was going to Xi'an for the typical tourist stuff. When I told them of the mountain I was meeting up with a friend to climb, their eyes got wide. It's amusing. My doctor, his nurse, and my translator had a similar reaction. It ended with my telling the translator to be quiet because she was freaking me out, with the doc telling me I won't make it, then becoming WeChat friends with my translator so she could prove to the doc I made it. I mean, come on, does he not know to never tell a woman she can't do something!?  

Daniel told me, "In China, a man cannot be considered a hero unless he has climbed Mt. Huashan." Whoa. Suddenly the reports of this hike seemed all the more legitimate.

He told me the Chinese word for "male hero." 

I asked, "What would a woman be called for climbing the mountain?" 
He blushed and giggled - yes, giggled then pondered for a moment............."A female hero!" 

My newfound teacher self stated: "We call a female hero a heroine in English." 

Except, that proved to be a challenging concept I quickly diverted from upon realizing it sounded very similar to heroin! I briefly attempted to explain the difference but that would take far longer than a plane right across half of China. 

We stuck with female hero.  Since sharing that little tidbit of English language confused we've decided it simply means women are addictive. Obviously, in the best way possible!

Daniel and Hot Man I could say that man's name all day long, it never ceases to make me smile! searched their mental vocab for what I could be referred to upon reaching Mt. Huashan. Here is what they came up with:

Regardless, as we stood in line for an hour to hike the sketchiest section of the mountain, many people celebrated their impending heroic status. We joked about it on the mountain and the entire trip. It was humorous to say, "Now I can leave China a hero!"

Yet, when when I think of heros and heroines I think of :

• Men and women who have died to fight for their country
• Men and women who have risked their lives to rescue enslaved children
• Men and women who daily declare Him to be Ruler of their hearts even in the midst of fierce oppression and victimization
• Men and women who leave all comforts and everything they know to spread the Word to people who would otherwise not hear 

Those are just of few of my heroes and heroines.