URS “Asian Hospitality”
Reggie 叔叔的故事：亚洲人的热情好客

Translation By: Quan Keming

Asians love to express their hospitality in many interesting ways.
亚洲人喜欢通过许多别开生面的方式来表达自己的热情好客。

Barnabas, a missionary to tribal groups in the mountains of Northern Thailand, had many heavy meals of special pork. It is a habit of many tribes to slaughter a pig for visiting dignitaries. Normally, they do not have much meat, but during such visits the pig becomes a great sign of their warmth and hospitality.
在泰国北部山区给部落群体传道的巴拿巴牧师饱餐过很多特别的猪肉宴。杀猪迎贵客是许多部落的习惯。平时他们没有多少肉吃，但在迎宾客时，猪肉就成为他们热情好客的一大标志。

The pig, which is really a wild boar, is finished off by a spear to the heart, sometimes right in the middle of the church yard, allowing the blood to drain into the muddy channels of the church grounds. Then the villagers take a torch made of twigs and branches to singe off the hair. Finally, they take a scraper of metal or wood and scrape off the hair (sort of). Then the meat is cut up in chunks of glistening fat, plus the skin and even some authentic hair. This delicious pork is served especially to the distinguished visiting guest, and the visiting pastor is often the recipient of this generosity.
一头真的野猪有时就在教堂院子的中央由矛穿心刺死，让血液排入教堂地面泥泞的通道。之后村民们用树枝制作的火炬来烧毛。最后他们用一个金属或木质的刮具把毛刮掉（差不多都掉了吧）。肉随后被切成闪闪发光的肥块， 夹带着猪皮甚至猪毛。如此美味的猪肉仅供高贵的客人，而到访的牧师常得此殊荣。

One day, just a few days after we had left Thailand after a short term mission trip there, I called up Barnabas on the phone and asked him how he was. He said that he was feeling some chest pain and was driving now to the hospital. Sure enough, he had a heart attack. It was finally brought to the attention of the villagers that being so generous to your pastor might lead to heart attacks. After many educational DVDs, the villagers have begun to recognize that generosity has limits.
在我们泰国短宣后不久的一天， 我给巴拿巴打电话问他怎么了。他说他感觉有些胸痛，正开车去医院。果不其然，他心脏病发作。村民们终于注意到对牧师的款待还会导致他的心脏病发作。看过许多教育碟盘后，村民们开始意识到慷慨应有节制。

For years when we went to the Yunnan town of Luquan and Xundian, we were given feasts of fried bees. One time we were given fried bees on seven occasions in 10 days. The villagers were showing their greatest hospitality by offering this rather expensive dish. We learned to dive right into it and found out that it’s really a fantastic food. The key is not to eat bees with mature wings, but to gobble the bees down when they are in the larva stage! When asked what does it taste like?, I often reply that “it tastes just like fried crickets”. Which, if you have never eaten it, simply means that you have been “culturally deprived”.
曾有几年每次去云南的禄劝和寻甸，人家会给我们吃油炸蜜蜂。其中有一次，在十天内我们吃了七次油炸蜜蜂。通过提供这个相当昂贵的菜肴，村民们表达出他们最盛情的款待。我们试着吃起来，感觉这真是一个美食。关键是不要吃已有成熟的翅膀的蜜蜂，只吃那些还是蛹的蜜蜂！当被问及什么味道，我常回答：“它的味道就像油炸蟋蟀。”要是你从来没有吃过油炸蟋蟀，那你见的世面就太少了。

At the end of my internship, we were married immediately, and my new bride and I promptly proceeded on our quasi-honeymoon trip to America. We stopped by in different cities, along the way. In Tokyo, we were the special guests of a friend who invited us to her home for a spectacular dinner. All the family members were sitting around the table, on the ground. In the middle of room was the best dish of all, raw fish – sashimi. Except that I had only recently finished medical school and, in my eyes and in my brain, were floating all kinds of ugly tapeworms, including fish tapeworms. I gulped and stopped and stared, and finally, I blurted out a really shocking comment to them like: I’m so sorry, I can’t eat raw meat.” There was stunned disbelief and silence of all who were there. I did not know how to disappear into the ground. Totally red, embarrassed and really ashamed of the situation, I managed to keep a straight face. The hostess composed herself, and sent someone out who finally came back with an American McDonalds hamburger. It was the lowest culinary blow of my life, and I have never forgotten it. From that point onward, I knew that I basically had to try to eat whatever was laid before me, which is what the good book says actually….. Secretly however I have dropped some special foods to pets and eager wandering dogs. They deserve good food too.
我和我的新娘在我的实习结束时马上结婚，开始我们到美国的准蜜月之旅。一路上，我们在不同的城市逗留。在东京，我们作为一个朋友的特别客人，被她邀请到她家吃了个丰盛的晚餐。 全家人围着桌子席地而坐。 屋中间是最好的菜-生鱼片。只可惜我最近才医学院毕业，在我的眼前和脑里浮现的是各种丑陋的绦虫，包括鱼绦虫。我吞了吞口水、停下来、愣着，最后脱口而出一个令人震惊的评论， 像是：对不起，我不能吃生肉。在场的人难以置信、无言以对。我面红耳赤，羞愧难当，不知道怎样才能钻入地缝里。 在这样的情况下，还要设法板着面孔。女主人平静下来，打发人出去， 那人最后买回来了一个美国的麦当劳汉堡包。这是我在饮食文化上最沉重的打击，我从来不会忘记它。从那时起。我知道我基本上不得不尽量去吃摆在我面前的食物，这其实也是好书里教育的。。。不过背地里，我也丢一些难吃的给宠物和垂涎游走的狗。他们也该享受点美食。

With an open attitude, things such as fried rats, boiled white earthworms, wriggling fresh live shrimp, and yes, fried crickets can be enjoyed, although really cooking it well, and especially frying it crisply, is definitely a great enhancement of taste.
如果有一个开放的态度，哪怕是油炸老鼠、煮白蚯蚓、扭动着的海鲜，对了，还有炸蟋蟀都可被享用。 配上好的烹饪，尤其是把它用油炸脆，则能大大地提升味道。