ESSAY
3 )"I Was Only Trying To Help!"

       It was mid-August in the capital of Taiwan. The road was crowded with cars and the streets were full of noises from the people. I was with my oldest sister. We decided to leave the apartment and go for a little sopping around one of my favourite shopping centers. The day was humid and extremely hot. There was just a quick shower before we left, but the ground shows absolutely no trace of it. My sister decided to get us some bubble tea – a very popular drink amoung all Asians. She told me to wait for her by this large CD store. I knew it would be a long wait because there is usually always a line-up for "quick" drinks, and I was right. I stood there waiting for a long time watching the gobs of people walk by. I bought a pack of gum with sympathy from this old lady near the end of the block. She didn't look too wealthy and I would always see her there selling packs of gums and tissue papers. While I was unwrapping a piece of gum for myself a Caucasian guy in his mid-twenties caught my attention. He was wondering around everywhere, looking puzzled and frustrated at the same time. He kept walking back and fourth until about the 4th time when I've finally decided to go up to him and help him, thinking he must be lost or something. I just simply couldn't bear watching him wondering around like that, so call me nosy if you wish. I walked up to him, tapped him on the shoulder and asked in perfect English, "Excuse me Sir, is something wrong? May I help you?"

He turned and looked at me surprised and didn't say anything. After about twenty seconds with no response I decided that he was confused, probably because I was talking too fast, so I repeated myself, slowly, this time. Now he looked even worse. He looked like as if he’s in trouble or something. I looked at him with an odd expression, not understanding his strange actions. After about a minute of irony he started to stammer in bad English, “Me…uhh… I don't…ehh….know you talk!”

This time I was surprised. He doesn't know English! So without knowing what else to say to him I mumbled to myself in mandarin with my head down from embarrassment, "Damn! He doesn't speak English!"

Then I heard his voice above my head complaining in fluent mandarin, "Hey Miss, if you know mandarin why didn't you use it? We're in Taiwan, am I suppose to know English or something!?"

I stood there in shock while he said all that and finally asked in mandarin with disbelieve, "You know mandarin but you don't know English? That doesn't make sense!"

"Are you dissing me?" said the guy with annoyance on his face.

"Well, no…I just thought that you were lost or something and couldn't find your way since I didn't know that you understood mandarin and…" I continued to blabber on trying to explain myself in great awkwardness and embarrassment. After all, I was only trying to help.

       The guy and I talked until my sis found me, she misunderstood too when she saw me with him. She thought he was trying to 'pick me up' or something. I had to explain to her what happened. She started laughing at my stupidity and told me a lot of Caucasians actually grew up in Taiwan these days. We broke up with the guy after a friendly talk and me apologizing. Even today I still remember the awkwardness I felt, and that kind of made me learn to think twice before I act, even if it was meant to be a good deed.