The Language of Help

“Chris Lanning! Please come to my office!” said the PA system. ”What did I do?”  Chris wondered. He started on his way to the office. Chris was a man with brown hair, big green eyes, and was about average height for a man of 23 just starting in the workforce. He worked at a construction firm that sold materials and funded construction companies. 

When he finally reached the office, he sighed and knocked on the door. 

“ Come in!” said a voice in the office. Chris opened the door. 

“Ah, Chris! Thank you for coming. I hope the trek here wasn’t too nasty for you,” said Mr. Newson. Mr Newson was a short man, wore a gray business suit, and had hair in a ring like a monk’s. 

“ No, thank you. What did you call me for, sir?” asked Chris. 

“ I need someone to go to China to get some materials for a company making a temple, and they need bamboo for the table and more waterproofing solution from China,” explained Mr. Newson.

“ All right, I think I can ask a few people I know who speak Chinese and would agree to go.”

“ I was actually thinking of you, Chris.”

“ Me? Sir, I don’t speak Chinese and I probably wouldn’t survive!”

“ Well, I’m sorry but you’ll have to figure that out for yourself. You’re the only person who can go at this point.” 

Chris sighed. “Well, I guess I’m going to China.”

“ Hahahaha! I knew I could count on you to go. Thank you very much! The company will pay a little extra in this month’s pay because of this trip.” 

“ Thank you, sir. When do I leave?,” asked Chris.

“ Tomorrow. I’ve already got your boarding tickets and put you on the leave schedule.” 

“ Tomorrow! I haven’t packed!” 

“ You can do that tonight.” Chris nodded.

He left the office early to pack. At home, he packed enough things for 8 days, just in case something happened. He also downloaded an app called Translator Chinese in case he ran into a translation problem. 

The next day, a shuttle came by to pick him up at half past 7. Bright and early for Chris. It was a 45 minute drive to Dulles Airport. When the drive was finally over, he thanked the driver, gave him a very generous tip of $20, and then finally checked in to the airport. After he checked in, he heard on the PA system, “All passengers going to Chengdu, China, please come to gate G2.” He checked his boarding ticket. Chengdu, China, Gate G2. Chris ran at the fastest rate he could go to get to the gate. He made it just in time.  When he boarded the plane, he sat in the middle seat, which made the grueling 12-hour flight most irritating. 

When he got off the plane, he was surprised at how many Asian people were there. “But then, what can you expect? Asia is the largest continent in the world,” Chris thought. 

Thankfully, no one talked to him at the airport, but he had his app on his phone just in case. 

When he went to check into the hotel, that’s where his troubles started. When he got to the front desk, this happened. 

“ 你是 Chris Lanning, 吗？” asked the front desk employee.

“ Is Chris Lanning dead?,” said the translator app. 

“ Uh, no? Chris Lanning is alive. I’m Chris Lanning,” Chris said. 

“ 你是李中尉吗？”

“ Are you Gucci?,” said the translator app. 

“ No!  I’m Chris Lanning.”

It took 2 hours to get to his hotel room. He wondered why the translator app was saying all the wrong things. 

The next 3 days were horrible. He used his translator app and when he thought he was ordering bamboo, he got a whole box of dead rats. On another occasion when he was ordering breakfast, he got spoiled dinner. His translator was constantly running into problems and not getting him what he needed. 

On the 5th day, while he was ordering breakfast, he met a woman named Li. 

“ Hello! My name is Li!”. Chris was stunned to see an Asian speaking almost perfect English. 

“ Uh, Chris. Hi!”

“ Would you like me to help you order?” 

“ Sure. I need all the help I can get!” 

After Li helped order Chris’ breakfast and got her own, they got to know each other a little more, and Chris explained why he was in China. He explained that his translator app wasn’t working and that he was constantly running into problems with it. 

“ Well, I could help you a little bit. I’m really good at translating and you wouldn’t even have to pay me!,” said Lin. 

“ Oh! Well, thank you. I’ll pay you a little bit at least.” They agreed and every morning, they met up to discuss what they were going to do together. 

Li and Chris worked together splendidly. The rest of the trip went by very quickly. 

When it was time to go, Li came to say goodbye. 

“ Make sure you keep in touch, okay?”

“ I know. Thank you very much, Li. And here, $50 for helping me. “ Li reluctantly accepted the money. Li thanked Chris for the money. 

“ And make sure to get a translator next time you come to a foreign country.,” said Li, chuckling. 

The rest of the flight home was spent thinking about his trip and making sure he had all the materials. 

When he finally got back to America, Mr. Newson asked him, “Thank you for the materials. How was your trip?” 

“ It was very good, thank you. I learned a lot and had help too. Overall, a very very good trip.”

Chris told him everything about his translator app and about Li to Mr. Newsom. Mr. Newsom was very intrigued. After about half an hour, Chris was finished telling his story. But he never forgot about Li and how she helped him. After a few years, Chris learned Chinese and soon quit his job to be an international translator, all because of the influence Li had on him translating for him.