（But you probably won’t like them）

Dear Ayi， I’m a young professional looking to buy a house and put down roots in Beijing. People are saying property prices are going down， but with my current salary， I can only afford to buy two square meters of property in the city！ Is my generation looking at a lifetime of renting？

Weiwei， stuck in the grind

Two square meters， huh？ Sounds like you can afford a luxury shoebox！ But don’t fret too much. Back in my day， we didn’t have much space either， but we still managed to survive. If you 吃點(diǎn)兒苦（chīdiǎnrkǔ， endure some hardships） now and save up more， maybe one day you can afford a broom closet with a window！

In the meantime， embrace 租房（zūfáng， renting）. Renting gives you freedom. You can move around， experience different neighborhoods， and avoid the 房貸（fángdài， mortgage） trap. Besides， you 年輕人（niánqīngrén， young people） are known for being flexible and adaptable. Save wisely， invest smartly， and don’t lose hope. One day， you’ll have your own 小窩（xiǎowō， little nest）， even if it’s just a bit bigger than a bird’s nest！

I took my son， who is in elementaryschool， to Chaoyang Park the other day. When we saw a beautiful white swan on the lake， he seriously asked me why pigeons enjoy swimming. Kids know nothing about nature anymore these days. What should I do？

A concerned parent

Ah， kids these days. They mistake 天鵝（tiān’é， swans） for 鴿子（gēzi， pigeons）. Blame it on those 電子產(chǎn)品（diànzǐ chǎnpǐn， electronic devices） they’re glued to all day. They probably think a sheep is just a fluffy cow！ It’s time for some serious 自然教育（zìrán jiàoyù， nature education）.

Start with the basics： Take him out more often to parks， zoos， and nature reserves. Show him the difference between a pigeon and a swan in real life， not just on a screen. Explain that not all birds are the same—some swim， some fly， and some， like him and his classmates， bury their heads in the sand！ With time， your 熊孩子（xióngháizi， good-for-nothing child） will learn to appreciate the wonders of nature.

– Illustration and design by Cai Tao and Gao Fei

Got questions for Agony Ayi？ Send them to agonyayi@theworldofchinese.com