A Northern Light

by Chu Jiwang

In April 2013， a group of three， my son Chu Jiang， Chief Engineer Zhang Ticheng， and myself， paid a visit to my clients in Turku， Finland. Turku is the second largest port and a major industrial base in Finland. It was also once the capital centuries ago. The Aura River runs through Turku， the oldest city in the country， before emptying into the sea. Along its banks are pleasure boats， but passengers can hardly be found. We saw only a few pedestrians as well. Early in the morning， a handful of people were jogging for exercise. Our hotel was secluded and tranquil.

Despite Finlands population of less than 5 million， the country is one of the worlds wealthiest. As our client explained to us， no one is extremely rich nor poor. Officially the Republic of Finland， the country is known for its thousands of islands and world-class forests. Living in sync with nature， the citizens enjoy fresh air and green vistas.

Nevertheless， not everything about life in Finland is sunny： With parts within the Arctic Circle， it gets extremely cold， and the seasons bring big time differences between day and night. In winter， night lasts as long as 20 hours， leaving only four hours of daylight. Summers， of course， are the opposite： 20 hours of daylight and only four hours of darkness. It took us a long time to get used to the situation. My first business trip there was during summer. I was shocked that it was still sunny at midnight. The fleeting hours of night only exacerbated my jetlag.

When we arrived in Turku， my son reminded me that I had been before， but I didnt remember anything – maybe Im old， or maybe Ive traveled to too many places. Each time I visited， I was in a rush. Im so devoted to work that I seldom find time to enjoy exotic scenery or learn about the local cultures in the hundreds of cities across more than 70 countries Ive visited. This， not the ice， kept everything fresh for me in Turku. And this time it was spring– the Aura River flowed gently through the city， the tall deciduous trees had yet to sprout， and snow remained piled along the roadsides.

Its easy to see how people could live happily in such a place – quiet， clean， aloof from worldly glitz – but Im not easily convinced. Coming from China， the lack of people felt lonely to me. The locals are hospitable and easygoing. They take their time and frequently just hang around. They seem used to tranquility. I， on the other hand， long for festive crowds packed onto a bridge in my hometown， Ninghai. Despite my age， Im still enthusiastic about getting together with friends to chat and laugh. The contrast made me ponder： What is happiness？ Satisfaction and hobbies， I guess.

Our client welcomed us with a big reception dinner at Turkus most famous restaurant. The waiter introduced us to the restaurant and its most outstanding dish： an internationally-renowned， award-winning steak. We felt honored.

However， Engineer Zhang， who was not used to Western food， suffered badly from the hosts kindness. He threw everything up when we returned to the hotel. “I should have brought more fermented bean curd with me，” he lamented. At supper， he even stirred and mixed rice with bean curd he scraped from the bottom of a bottle.“This is the best rice Ive ever had，” he gasped. “This is my happiness.”

For some， steak is happiness， and it would be hard for them to fathom that for others happiness might be fermented bean curd. Happiness is completely different for each person. Being content with what you have leads to happiness.

I still remember the question raised by my client in Turku when we chatted about happiness. “Mr. Chu， at your age， you still dont stop traveling abroad. Is that your happiness？” “My happiness lies in a harmonious family， with my children becoming useful people， and their children enjoying their lives as well. For me， happiness is also employees with enough work ethic and income to live contently. Im happy that my products are sold in every corner on the planet， Im happy to be a major tax payer， Im happy to contribute to charity， and Im happy to see ever-lasting prosperity from my business.”