My own private tea ceremony at work

I have to see her every day at China Daily. Her smile ignites my optimism and banishes the gathering storm clouds of the, here I resort to Rumsfeld-esque prose, expected unexpected events that will soon preoccupy the newsroom. I try to talk in Chinese but stumble awkwardly over my words, my tones, no doubt, setting the wrong tone.

She is unerringly polite but pays little or no attention to me. She does not know that without her my day would not be complete. She must have this effect on so many people.

She is incredibly popular. There are times when others are talking to her that I get impatient, I want her attention to myself before the pressures of the day tear me apart from her. I don't think she even knows my name.