I was talking to a couple of Chinese people the other day and was told I had a Mao head.
Is this a good thing? I had my doubts, although according to official Chinese Communist Party doctrine the chairman was right 70 per cent of the time and wrong 30 per cent of the time.
Actually, I was informed, it was more to do with my rather high hair line which was supposedly similar to Mao.
This was a ‘good thing’ because it showed I was wise, just like him.
Mmm.
I tried desperately to heed the advice from people about not to get into political discussions with the Chinese, and decided to let it roll.
But later on when I went to an art shop and was shown some poetry by the leader known as Zedong to his friends, I had to say something.
“What’s the poem about?” I asked. “Oh, it’s about winter and the countryside and a wall and is a message for how he is going to rebuild China.”
“But did he actually write it himself or did he get someone else to do it and he got the credit?” I inquired further.
“Oh, I think someone actually painted the characters, but he definitely wrote it,” came the reply.
So does it rhyme then? You know, like snow and go and flow. At which point I met with a completely blank look and decided to change the subject to something a bit safer.
It’s pretty clear that more than 30 years after his death Mao is still venerated in China today.
And it is probably best not to criticise even his poetry.