He Junhua

    The lips of the backpacker were almost cracked when he suddenly found that the herdsman yurt of Alatanula’s was left unlocked.

    Not even a single drop of water could he suck up from the kettle. If only the thirst had not been that unbearable, the backpacker would not have broken into Alatanula’s yurt in such a rude way. As he pushed the door open, the backpacker found a kettle of milk tea on the stove that was still hot. He hesitated for a second before he lifted the kettle. He then drank the milk tea in the kettle up in one gulp, like an aged horse that had trudged over one thousand miles across the Gobi.

    The backpacker left 20 bucks on the table at first, but then he decided it was a bad idea and decided to wait for the host.

    He hadn’t expected that he had to wait for a whole day.

    Alatanula took his sheep to the faraway Urigen. He didn’t hurry back home until it was totally dark outside.

    Hearing a sound outside of the yurt, the backpacker at once stood up and hurried out. He said apologetically, “Grandpa, I am awfully sorry. I saw your door was not locked, and boldly broke in. I am sorry for it.”

    Alatanula seemed so concentrated in driving the flock of sheep into the sheepfold that he totally ignored the backpacker.

    The backpacker, who thought what he had done could have irritated the host, dared to move but stood where he was, awkward like a Japanese iris in the autumn.

    The host kept silent until he settled down his sheep, “What is lock?” he finally voiced.

    The backpacker then realized that there was no lock at all on the door.

    The backpacker was in total shock. It was incredible that there were people who did not know about locks in the 21st century. He then tried to explain to the host what a lock was, which was, however, a mission almost impossible. How could you explain to someone who had never seen a lock? It was like explaining how to lasso a horse to someone who had never seen a horse. So he answered, reluctantly, that a lock was a tool to install in the door. When the door was locked, no one could enter the room until you opened it with a key. A key can open a lock and only the lock.

    The host immediately shook his head, “How is that? Absolutely not.”

    The backpacker said, “why not, and it can make others unable to enter the room.”

    “Is it a good idea? What if the herdsman who is passing by gets thirsty? They can’t get water in the room. Where can they find kumis to keep themselves warm if they are caught by a blizzard? Where can they take a rest when they are exhausted?” the host asked the backpacker, confused.

    So the door was open to provide convenience for people as thirsty as the backpacker to “steal” water.

    The backpacker became completely speechless. More than that, he was ashamed.

    “We herdsmen usually set out to pasture from the east in the morning and can’t come back home from the west until the evening. It is a long journey. Everyone will end up hungry, thirsty and exhausted, no matter how strong you are.”

    “Why not return from the same direction?” the backpacker was puzzled again.

    “Genghis Khan said we shouldn’t tread on the same piece of land twice in one day. Monke Tengri bestows us the vast grassland as a blessing, not something to spoil.”