THE rooster's contribution to civilisation is telling the time - and rousing somnolent souls to the reality of day.
The big question for China this year is: can Deng Xiaoping seize the day? Or has time and its tribulations finally caught up with him? On the face of it, Deng is ready, to use an old Chinese proverb, to dance to the first notes of the rooster. The old man displayed his footwork on the eve of Lunar New Year, when he told Chinese Communist Party cadres in Shanghai to ''seize the opportunity''.
''I hope you won't lose this opportunity,'' the patriarch told his compatriots, especially those along the south-east coast. ''For China, there aren't that many opportunities for major development.'' Deng went on to point out that one notable ''opportunity'' consisted in the tens of millions of huaqiao, or ethnic Chinese residing abroad. He particularly admonished the denizens of Shanghai, ''who had already worked hard for one year,'' to ''brave the wind and ride the waves'' for another year.
It is obvious, however, that, at least compared with his nanxun, or ''imperial tour to the south'' a year ago, the patriarch is less sure about time being on his side. In January 1992, Deng almost singlehandedly rekindled market reforms when he urged hiscountrymen to seize the hour.
''Without high-speed development, [economic] growth and reform run the risk of retrogressing'', he said. ''We must cross a new threshold every few years.'' For Shanghai, he had this to say: ''Have a facelift once every year, a major transformation once every three years''.
Speaking last Friday, however, Deng was more cautious. ''It is necessary to look back after taking a step forward'', he said. ''Pay attention to being stable and evenly paced. Avoid losses, especially big losses.'' For Deng-watchers, the terse statements in Shanghai, yield fascinating insights into the paramount leader's statecraft, including his intriguing sense of timing. The New Helmsman's body clock seems to be wound to three different measures: the fast-forward mode; the one-step-forward-half-a-step-back, or now-left-now-right mode; and the procrastination, only-time-will-tell mode.