Have you ever had that dream where you’re in the middle of class with no pants on? Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be famous?
Well, I got a taste of it. As I walked into Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, I was simply trying to focus on the history with my new group of friends when it started to feel like people were hoarding around me. It felt like every pair of eyes followed my every move, my slightest gestures, even the way the wind blew my hair. That’s when I started noticing people taking pictures and videos of me. At first, I thought they were doing so of the area around me, but as they became bolder and moved closer, it became obvious that I was the zoo exhibit they were all looking at. I tried ignoring it and started to write in my journal. Only, this had the opposite effect than what I had hoped it would, as I was drawing more attention to myself. It soon became incredibly clear my journaling was not going to be finished that morning.
That’s when it happened. I was still trying to write in my journal when—plop—there was a baby in my lap. Absolutely astonished, I looked up frantically, trying to find the parents. The baby’s mom was standing right in front of me, taking pictures of me and motioning for me to kiss her baby’s head. Once I kissed the baby on the head, the mom quickly grabbed the baby, thanked me, and walked away.
I went back to writing when I felt a tug on my hair. At first, I ignored it, thinking it must have been my imagination or the wind, but then it happened again. So I turned my head to see a woman putting my long blonde hair on top of her head while taking selfies. As I looked at her, frozen with disbelief, my notebook and pen were taken from my lap. While my hair was still in the middle of a photo shoot, I looked for my notebook and found a man writing in it. Then—plop— another baby.
My mind was racing as to what could possibly compel these people to do these things in Canada…. That’s when I realized, I wasn’t in Canada anymore, I was in China. I was experiencing my first blight of culture shock, and I didn’t want to miss it; I wanted to embrace it. I shook my head and did exactly that. I rejoined the world around me, taking in this incredible experience with pictures and videos, all while signing things and holding babies! This was the first moment since we landed in the Beijing Airport that it had really hit me: this was the beginning of my journey, the beginning of my one year trip around the world.
By Jessica Patterson
