"Why is she in London?" the familiar British voice demands, testing my comprehension of the preceding passage in Chinese.

The Chinese CDs play in the background while I work. The same dialogues repeat daily, slowly burning into my memory. Like with music, I listen again and again, memorizing the lyrics without initially understanding the meaning. I sometimes catch myself murmuring the phrases along with the CD. Occasionally it catches my attention on a more concious level and I'll understand what they're saying or look it up if I don't. The few words in English have a tendency to stand out, and the question "Why is she in London?" almost always gives me pause. 'Why is she in London?' I wonder, having missed, once again, the explanatory passage that came before.