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Contents
• Regulars- English Society: Editorial Foreword P.3-4 The Portraits in Words P.5-8
-Want to get a clearer picture of our EXCO members?
• The Retrospect P.9-13
-Come have a glimpse of our past events!!!
• The Confessions P.14-17
• Features- Love and Loneliness :
• The Pandora’s Box-Creative Writings P.18-36 • The Interview - the Author, XuXi P. 37-40
-Xu Xi shares with us about her views on love and loneliness, her works, her solitary profession as a writer, etc.
• The Recommendations : Films/Music/Books P.41-49
• Appendix-
• The Singtao Subscription Plan Application for HKU students P.50 • Upcoming Publication Series and Events Notice P.51
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Editorial Fore-
Dear LINK readers, The World is stunning, for the sight from the infinity of the Seas and the immensity of the Continents that shape it. Nonetheless, the ultimate spectacularities lie in our hearts with the innate ability to feel sorrows, joy, thrills, piagoncy, whereas the essence of all these is in the sharing with our intimates. I am glad that my fellows from English Society have become ones of them. And I am sure you will find your intimates too. That is Love. Love takes a lifelong lesson that goes with loneliness, so perhaps the classroom remains in our heart and we carry it everywhere as we wander in the world. It travels across the space and penetrates through time. Human hearts are fickled, and puzzling to ourselves and the others. Yet such complexity gives rise to the invaluable treasure of humanities, ‘Love’. Love and Loneliness are interdependent, and without each of the two, you can never understand another, or, they can only coexist with each other.
-Editor, Kim Chan
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Twelve people, binded on One heart. Twelve months to go, One year to thrive. Twelve minds, yet One resemblence, that is, we are from...
English Society
To the End of Sophistication.
-Motto of English Society, A.A.H.K.U.S.U., 2012-2013 Some people ask about the meaning of our motto, and here is the explanation. Two inference meanings of the word ‘Sophistication’. 1. High level of complication. It indicates the emphasis of our society on our finest style and the pursuit of betterment each time in organizing our events. 2. Rich experience in life with strong insight. Engaged with the mission of promoting English language, literature and culture, we opt for the word ‘Sophistication’ to indicate our emphasis on Depth as a society of Arts. It implies the self-motivation of our society to urge ourselves to the aim of achieving the finest quality of events and organization. The strong progressing sense indicates our absolute willingness to grow and develop and the continuous improvement of our Society. The continuous growth of the Society will push the team beyond the limit.
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T i
The Portraits in Words.
Kathy Lam Cheuk Man - Chairperson
Want to get to know more about our society executive committee members? Here you go! Each of us has our own unique traits!
Noreen Wong -External Vice President
Joyce Pang -Internal Vice President
The Ardent Loyalist. The Warm-hearted The Life Stylist. Joyce acts in deference to the Kathy is all-time ready for any Feminist. sensational possibility in life, inShe is devoted to her obliga- expectations from her relipossession of the strong affin- tions and duties, preserving gion, family and seniors. ity for the Beauty in tastes, fra- her decency even in times of She possesses the life values grance, postures, sights... She dynamics. She is a Doer who deeply rooted in Christianhas the laid-back way of living, never leaves her actions in ity since young, and is full meanwhile she is in quest of dwelling thoughts. Regard- of strong conviction on success and admiration. Fre- less, she protects the secretive righteousness and ardently quently meeting her firends ideals in her heart, with the devotes to friendship. With who shares her joy with, she is fondness of dreamy clothing, disciplines and integrity, she also in need of space to keep fine make-up, gourments and fulfilled her duties with comdays to spend with her dear mitment. one of her sides to herself. 5 girlfriends.
Leo Chan Kai Yiu -General Secretary The Music Addict. Despite Leo’s indifferent appearance and is moody at times, he is kind-hearted. However he is able to recover himself with adequate selfassurance. He especially believes in the dialogues of music to let out the talks of the hearts. He has that ambition to look for recognition and self-improvement. Carmen So - Financial Secretary The Sensible Optimist. Carmen is an optimist, and of the capacity to understand both the relations of facts and people at the same time. She is satisfied with a simple life of occasional surprises and delights. She seeks the stability of life to allow certain autonomy for herself, with the sincerity in meeting her obligations from the others. Priscilla Chung Ho Ning -Promotion Secretary The Devoted Caretaker. Priscilla is a pragmatist but also a treasurer of friendships. She is considerate to her peers to the fullest. She deals with the matter-of-facts well with patience, and unconsciously overextends herself in the overload burden due to her kindness. She is in pursuit of the peace from simplicity to share with her lifelong buddies, falls in love with enticing food and all types of good bargains. 6
Jestina Tang Wing See -Promotion Secretary The Persian Cat. Jestina appears reserved with her mysterious elegance. The cat smells with detective nose, hears attentively and sees clearly in the dark. She paints arts with her strong senses. In her meekness, she looks needless of attention on first acquitance. Yet genuinely she longs for a sincere company and a warm shelter to turn to. Her tranquility rests in her subdued but delicate heart. Kim Chan Ping Ting -Publication Secretary The Deep-Sea Explorer Kim owns three treasures: to know, to feel and to think. She is willing to explore the world by diving a little deeper into it, be it bright side or dark side. She is in search of the authenticity of truth but enchanted by the aesthetics of illusional beauty; she requires independency but looks for harmony; she turns her daydreams into realities. She cannot live without originality and intensity. Daniel Suen Cheuk Hang -Academic Secretary The Value Protector. An absolute perfectionist in search of preciseness. Daniel has that mysophobia of imperfections in everything from aesthetics, languages, justice to spirits. Being a Christian with ceaseless faith, he upholds his principles and vallues at his assertiveness.
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Barry Wong -Social Secretary The Mascular Carfreer. Barry is light-hearted, direct and adaptable, with complete flexibility. Despite his traits of masculinity shared with his brotherhood, he has the love for his family members. With the high potential to be enculturated into different social fields, he is progressively changing to a team-player but still, he is eager to be a carefreer. Christopher Yiu Tsz Chun -Programme Secretary
The Safe-playing Achiever. Christopher is in need of independency, self-sufficiency, and privacy. He has clearcut priorities in life, with the dominance of rationality at core but concealed emotion at heart. In possession of the high vigilance to his surroundings, he is aware of the inter-relationships of different things and is visionary about the future. Constantly figuring out his position or status, he locates himself in a sound track of life. Sandy Chan Sin Yee -Marketing Secretary The Self-controlled Idealist Sandy seeks certain space to deal with the complexity at her heart but she manages to tackle with it by toughness, faith and hopes. While having the accepting character to welcome the diversity of people, she retains her own ego to herself and never easily divert it to the others except the beloved. Feelings are always embedded deeply, with the serenity in her appearance that put people around at ease. 8
The Retrospect.
Looking back, it was not at all easy...
We have left trails everywhere but we walked through all these challenging or difficult moments altogether. The foremost challenges for us was the Mock Campaign, from 30th October to 1st Novermber, and also the Annual General Meeting from 17th to 18th Novermber. Twelve of us have endured 70 hours of no sleep in total and received challenging questions form our former EXCO members. However, with diligence, collaboration and passion among us, at last we made it and we became the legitimate EXCO members of English Society, A.A.H.K.U.S.U., Session 2012-2013.
November: Mock Campaign/ Annual General Annual Meeting
After the 40-hour AGM, all of us were in thrills, tears, and also most of all, joy, to welcome the tasks ahead of us in the coming year. Above is the photo taken with our former EXCO.
These two activities gave us memoriable experience to get to know about ourselves, our fellow EXCO members, as well as our former EXCO better. Indeed it was rather tiresome to keep your mind alert to answer the critical questions with nearly no sleep at all, it pulls our patience, understanding, and assertive-
Without doubts, it is such an invaluable experience for you to face your real selves and the others in front of twenty or 9 more people! ness beyond limits.
The Inauguration cermemony of English Society was held on 29th November. We November: were glad to see different representatives Inauguration from various societies in University of Hong Kong or even from other universiCeremony ties attend our ceremony. The ceremony is the crucial moment of the year, as it signiPIC: fies the starting point and the establishment Joyce Pang, of our session. At the same time, the former Internal Vice Chairperson EXCO can embark on their new journey after the transition of the two sessions. The transition is not
only about the flow of job duties, but also the inheritance of English Society’s spirits and values.
Our chairperson was giving the thought-provoking speech about the expectation of the whole society in the coming year. She ignited the pas-10 sion in our hearts with her words.
February to March: Annual Bazaar
The Preparation Period
This promotion photo of Annual Bazaar, was taken after the shooting of the promotion video. With the the backdrop decoration and corkboards, the background in the historical main building in HKU, dressing ourselves up in the preppy style, wearing fancy vintage accessories, as well as putting on our beaming smiles, we have successfully created the preppy college style to mark a start of our annual bazaar! The video was a successful hit too, which included the casting of all of our EXCO members. The fun-loving and witty promotion video has also won lots of applauds and customers to come around and choose their products! We all found this an interesting experience to make a video and publicize our activities!
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The On-Sale PeriodAll of us have been exhausted for the whole three weeks
of time. We started each day by hauling the boxes of goods out of the society room in the morning, rushing to our own lessons and constantly coming back to help out at the booth. After a whole day’s duties, we still got to load the goods back to society room after the sun set.
Indeed it was kind of a torture during the three weeks’ time, but after the event not only did we feel relieved, but also found it deserving to have devoted our time and efforts in this event. What made the event most memorable was the fun time we spent together at booth everyday for three weeks, as if it was our home!
When asked about the feelings of organzing Bazaar, our PIC of the event, Barry, finds it rewarding and a sense of achievement but also relief to have finished all the complicated tasks of procurement or consignment negotiation, marketing, selling, and coordination of all the EXCO members, during the process of running the event.
PIC: Barry Wong, Social Secretary12
Our Upcoming Event! Join us ASAP!
Creative Writing Competition 2013The Bloom of Imagination
All of us share one thing in common, yet unique in its own—Imagination. EVERYONE can do it— Just let down your guards in reality, allow your sentiments to flow, blend it with senses, flavor it with exotic ideas and color it with possibilities of life. Welcome the bloom of imagination. Topic/Theme: No restriction Format: No restriction (Some suggestions would be: short story, personal essay, article, poetry, memoir, mini play, letter, diary) Word Limit: 3000 words Submission Deadline: 21th June 2013 Prizes: 1. $500, $300, $100 book coupon for the first, second and third place 2. Certificates of recognition 3. The winning entries and some of other chosen best ones will be on display in our Annual Journal, which will be published in August, 2013! Please submit your work to engsoc.cw2013@gmail.com on or before the deadline. 13
The Confessions. English Society has a special meaning to us all. Throughout the days, it shapes us and changes us. Now, hear about how EXCO members feel about English Society!
‘‘Identity. Acknowledgement. Kinship. Intimacy. Complementation. Equilibrium. Sensitivity. Inspiration. Emotion. Accommodation. Genuineness. Fate. This is English Society and this defines us.
Identity and acknowledgement. We experience self-conceptualization and re-establishment. Kinship and intimacy. English Society is part of me, jongyaus consume me. Complementation and equilibrium. When one falls, one rises, maximizes at the equilibrium. Sensitivity and inspiration. The tenderness and sensitivity bestowed incites imagination. Emotion and accommodation. In this dear harbour, emotions stir and we accommodate. Genuineness and fate. That is here we belong, so be pure, be true, be us.’’ -Carmen So
It is quite unexplainable. Not only about being an exco member in an a soc, nor meeting different people in the university. Actually I didn’t think much at the time of applying for my place in the society, randomness decided everything. It turns out to be deserved. I met great people here, learn together, grow together, know yourself more together… i didn’t expect I can get that much here in the past. Feeling grateful to fight for everything with all of my jongyaus. It’s always great to follow your heart, even if you feel lost sometimes, you may be told by yourself, you have fall for this whole-hearted once. thanks for everything, treasure to be a freshman,enjoy our days. -Sandy Chan
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“Alone we can do so little; Together we can do so much� --Helen Keller Night-long chats in Tsim Sha Tsui, near the Victoria Harbor. 2012-12-24
I left trails on different places in the imagination of myself as an exotic traveller wandering in foreign countries. We make friends by learning their dialects, understand their inner universe , and very often with our true selves hidden as anonymity.
Yet, the subtlety of this Society makes a difference where I caught myself in no insecurities but similarities to let my voices echo with their heart beats. -Kimberlie Chan
Coincidence. There are too many coincidences to bring me here, English Society. Running the Society is never an easy job. Looking back, we 12 committee members have gone through stiff challenges like the mock campaign, AGM, the inauguration ceremony and the annual bazaar. Although these are exhausting, I will never regret the decision to become an executive member of English Society and to know my fellow jongyaus, who educate me a lot, bring new insights to my thoughts and give me loads of support. The chemistry between us has definitely affected me a lot, since I understand myself much more than before, as well as what I am pursuing in my life. I bet it goes the same to my jongyaus, and we can keep on the momentum to make the upcoming year flourishing to both the Society and us. -Leo Chan
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I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my
(THESE PEOPLE DO. English Society is a place where I found people who can handle me. That’s it.) best.
English Society is an experience as much for me as it is for our members. I decided to join the executive committee simply because I thought it’d be fun and I’d learn something from it. I could have joined any other committee. I chose English Society just because it felt right for me at the time, and I didn’t even try out for other societies. Looking back, I am definitely glad I chose English Society as I have received so much love from my fellow executive committee members. It sounds cheesy I know, but I honestly think it’s all meant to be. -Noreen Wong
-Priscilla Ning
It is already halfway through the session. Twelve of us have been racing against time; our events happen and end one after another. And now when I look back on this half-year, I find myself unable to articulate the feeling. These amazing people walk in my life coincidently. Because there’s an artist in all of us, we are all so unique in some senses. If it is true that every one you meet is meant to teach you a lesson, I guess it would be one of the most inspiring and amusing lectures I have ever had.
Indubitably, there are multifarious choices and multitudinous chances to establish one’s own self and find somewhere he or she belongs in university. To me, English Society is a place for me to establish my sense of belonging. Unlike the banal but focused life in secondary school, a university life is entirely defined by oneself. As a part of English Society, I could finally figure out the intrinsic essence of university life, which is kaleidoscopic and meaningful. I could spare no effects to organize worthwhile activities with bosom friends to the end of sophistication.
-Jestina Tang
-Christopher Yiu
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I have yet to make the answer clear to myself. As first I thought I sought for a place to belong. Nothing more. Just somewhere I would feel proud to be in, adding a sprinkle of light onto myself when I stand in the crowd, strange to the new environment and clinging to no home. And indeed, it became my address, my identity and my pride. But more precisely, this account is false, for it has not been the Society that became of me, but the people of it. It has not been the pride English Society that lightens me but the care from and for the people here. The grins, the sorrows, they mean to me the right to care and to be cared. -Daniel Suen
one sentence concludes everything,
“English Society, is where I belong. -Kathy Lam
I think English Society is my new family. Originally, we are twelve strangers with different backgrounds and personalities. Yet, we grow, we learn, we have fun together in this lovely family. At the very beginning, it was difficult for me to get involved in this newly formed family but I am so blessed to have lovely jongyaus who understand me, support me and comfort me in times of hardships. At this moment, I can firmly say that “We have strived through a lot and we will continue to walk hand-in-hand to the end of sophistication�. Me gustan mis jongyaus! -Joyce Pang
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The Pandora’s
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It took so long just to feel alright By Kathy Lam Cheuk Man
Someone asked if I know you A million feelings A thousand thoughts A hundred memories Triggered the tears running down cheeks
Gazing at the chandelier with broken strings of crystals Fingers clutching at flickering light Dust floating in the air Coating the tongue, dimming the eyes The puff of breath on the earlobe Mist of phantom cologne Twisted with shadows of the past “I know you, I used to,� Yet now, We are nothing but strangers Intertwined in nostalgia Dispersed in thoroughfare
Intersecting locus People change, feelings fade There comes a point in life when you get tired of fixing things I do count the clock that tells the time, but then I realize When people grow, they grow apart Clinging to the past Ages it took to calm the ripple of my heart Regardless of the times Coins I toss Fingers I cross After soberness comes the piercing solitary Sharp as a razor, numbing as psychedelic 19
Aroused By Daniel Suen Cheuk Hang I clicked the switch, letting the small bulb under the vintage lampshade glow. With the ceiling illuminations out of order, the shadows of the furniture under the dim rays covered my flat with a mysterious colour. But nothing on Earth could be named mysterious when compared to him, the man helping me take off my grey sweater. I gave a slight shake as the cold air kissed my pale left shoulder, where the warmth of his lips swiftly fought the chillness off. In his breathe was the aroma of beer we had earlier that night, which combined with the pleasant stink under his shirt to form an enchanting fragrance, uniquely designated for such an unpredictable man, like him. He let me go, as I started struggling my way out of his reach, gently. I knew I need a break from his irresistible charm. Into the restroom I rushed, seeing in the mirror my face blushed from the slender alcohol and the close distance his face of beauty was to me. This was not the ordinary me. This was the ‘me’ being enchanted by the atmosphere the man outside, who was now playing an acoustic and singing Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton, naturally brought. I splashed cold water to my face, ignoring what disaster that would do to my make-ups, trying to sober up from alcohol, or from him. But the effort was proved to be in vein as the arousing scent broke into my nose as he stop his song and moved in his elegant pace towards his own reflection. I quickly got rid of the mess or fluid make-ups on my cheeks, and turned to see his gorgeous brown eyes through his sleek black glasses.They were so deep I thought I couldn’t see the back of his eyeballs. His tinted hair was incredibly easy, boosting his charisma. As the atmosphere suggested, his soft lips reached for the tiny droplet of water left on my forehead. I smiled, and I felt his smile, as I leaned on his chest and gently pushed our way though the doorway, back to the dim lighted living room. I raised my left hand, and removed his pair of glasses, hoping to observe without any obstacles the dark bottomless pupils of his, understanding more of his clouded mind. I had hardly made any progress before he reached for my lips. 20
The scents of spicy Russian Borsch and the creamy Spaghetti Carbonara still lingers on his lips. I savoured the flavour of alcohol and bitterness of coffee as we exchanged our breathe. The strange combination suddenly drew tears from me. He didn't seem to notice, but the tears and awaken the hatred within myself. The hatred to him. I froze there, unable to make myself react to the sudden emotive depress. Seconds went by, or maybe minutes. The tear drops drew their trace down to my lips, moistening his. 'Kate, are you alright?' Eventually realised something wrong had crashed into me, he whisper softly, pending for my smile. No, I was not. From that point, the mysterious colour he had painted himself was not pleasing any more. Just like a counter spell had been cast, memories flashed out from his ever dark pupil. The childish temper he had, when we were having a fight on my hour spent on working affairs instead of the lunch he thought he had booked with me. All the ugly girls around him, I could never know who had had or who was having a relation with him. He just didn't seem to care how I would have felt when that bitch leaned against his shoulder and he wasn't showing a slightest disgust. And those pictures. How could he possibly take pictures with those ugly women at those poses? They were almost getting their lips onto those I had just tasted! And I could never know just a bit more pass the mysterious mask he had placed on his face. Neither could I get pass the boundaries he had set, to peep the so mysterious thoughts of his uniquely crazed mind. My unmeasurable loathe to him had given me an urge to slap him hard in the face twice and to shout in his ears that we weren’t known to each other from then on. Yet, I could not. I simply could not. I had tried once, to pretend I had never known him. But the pain that tugged my heartstrings was even greater. Every time I see a man pass by I thought I saw him, and that pain was just like a jagged knife piercing though my breast into my heart. I could not bear missing him when he just popped out anywhere, but not saying a single ‘Hullo’ to me. Maybe if I left, without leaving any chance to meet him somewhere around, I would feel better. What if...? Flashed in my mind was the light of the perfectly silvery keen chopper bought two days ago, lying in the unlit, crowded kitchen. If he could never meet any other girls, I would feel much better. And I might slice open his heart and see if I had really occupied a tiny part of it. And he would be in crimson red, that would look smart, although he never liked the colour and refused to wear the crimson blazer I bought him two years ago as a birthday pres21
'Kate, you sure you don't feel sick?' his arousing hand aroused me from the imaginary crimson scene as he tried to wipe my tears away. Still searing in fury, I glanced upwards and met his sorrow eyes. His sorrow eyes. He was worried about me, so worried. And suddenly all the unpleasant feeling vanished, as if they had never existed. 'Kate...?' I kissed his lips on tiptoe, not allowing him to finished the question. I clicked the switch, letting the small bulb under the vintage lampshade die. With the ceiling illuminations out of order, the shadows under the dim rays covered in a mysterious colour could hardly been seen.
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The Long-lost Letter By Noreen Wong Dear I have to be honest; it was not love at first sight for us. I did not start out liking you, and I suppose you neither. Our first encounter was unintended, though I now think of it as pure serendipity. It was a weird beginning for us; I tried coercing myself to fall for you fast, but I probably tried too hard. Just when I thought that our relationship was going nowhere, sparks flew in the least anticipated manner. Something just clicked between us and soon after, we committed ourselves to embark on a journey together. A journey to the end of sophistication. It was definitely not just rainbows and butterflies along our way. There were hard times, but I am proud that we survived. I remember feeling tired of your seeming obsession with photography and quotes, but it did not take long for me to realize just how passionate of a person you are, and I applaud you for your devotion. I recall finding you hard to reach out to every now and then, but in the end, your kindness and genuineness outweighed everything else. There were instances when I fell short in my duties, but you were always there, covering for me like a younger sibling I always can depend on to get things done. When we came across difficulties along the journey, you could always be trusted to carry through your responsibilities without fail. Sometimes you even surprise me with a token of sweet encouragement. 23
I will not deny that at times I found you a tad too frank, but in fact I salute you for that quality because I know I won’t have the courage to be as true to oneself as you are even if I try. I really appreciate the deep talks we shared and the reassurance you offered me on my peculiar preferences. You helped me to better understand myself. Until I met you, I have always deemed myself a perfectionist. You made me realize that one can always do more. There is nothing wrong with overachieving.
When we first met, I thought you were just too laid back for my liking. But then it did not take long for me to realize how strong you actually are. You have brought so much laughter to this relationship and I really need to thank you for that. You are also one of the most diligent people I know. Whatever it is that you want to achieve, I sincerely hope you get it. With the amount of effort you have put in, you deserve it.
Finally what also appeals to me is your genuineness. You treat me with such openness that my feelings about our relationship changed.
You probably do not know this, but not long after we commenced our journey, there were a couple of times when I was so hesitant about where we were heading that I considered walking out. I merely decided not to for an utterly selfish reason—I refuse to be a quitter; quitters are weak. Now that I come to think about it, that is perhaps one of the wisest choices I have ever made. I would have missed out on the many great things to come if I were to choose otherwise.
If you have ever thought me as undedicated, I apologize for appearing that way. Commitment has never been my forte and it takes time for me to feel comfortable opening up. Love, Noreen
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Departure By Leo Chan Kai Yiu
Arrival With a smiley face, they met. The sky was blue, and the sun shone on the earth, without any clue of sentiment. They remember every heartbeat they experienced, the temperature of each other’s hands. Their world froze at this moment. Yeah, this is how you came to my life. I felt the warmest I ever do. And that’s how I fell for you. Departure And, yeah, everything ends. This comes to our destination, where you step out of my life. Tears run off from my eyes, Could I let all these memories: laughter, words, promises, and a few quarrels, maybe, die in emptiness? No, I’d better learn, learn how to live without you, because the world you’re not there shouldn’t be mine anymore.
Learn how to stand, because you used to catch me when I fell. So, I’ll say, ‘Bye, my old friends. Best wishes!’ without any clue of sentiment.
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The Wife by Kim Chan Ping Ting
#1
It is another night of insomnia. She looked out of the window and tried to spot a full moon but she could only see a waning one depressing in its size, dim and gloomy. Bad try it was for her to count for days merely anticipating a full moon to come. Sadly the attempt was at all fruitless. She had been longing for the full moon, for so long. ‘Hey, my dear, you are still awake? Come on, get yourself some sleep. I got some work tomorrow.’ Her husband fumbled, covering his head with his wrists, and turned his back on Belle, burying his head under the blanket. No sooner she heard him snore again. Once again it proved how his mind could settle itself so quickly. ‘Does my sleeping affect your work?’ Belle thought sarcastically. She slid herself onto the bed once again. With nothing else better to do, she gazed at the back of her husband. Behind her back, the raindrops, as disturbing as her heart was, incessantly knocked against the window. She crouched herself tightly as a bit of solace throughout the night but she failed and remained insecure. Putting her arms around her husband’s waist, she yearned for his temperature to soothe her. Yet the cuddle failed to do the connection that she was left more distant and deserted on her own in the tremendous pitch-darkness.
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‘My heart keeps thumping hard. I want to stop it.’ She whispered to herself. Actually, she did not attempt to talk to herself but the one lying beside her. Her husband was in deep sleep again, not hearing nor responding a bit. She started to weep uncontrollably, that awakened her husband a bit. ‘Why are you crying, dear?’ He muttered in his half-way sleep, patting her on the head and made his hand travel through her hair. ‘Go sleep, there is nothing to be afraid of.’ She got out of his reach and turned her back on him, facing the window once again. She kept looking at the moon. It was another night, again, no different from any other ones. No sooner she noticed some streams of twilights ray across the dusty cobalt sky and heard birds squeaking and flapping their wings. A splash of relief went over her body along with the sight from the crack of the dawn, and finally her weight upon her shoulders and limbs start to loosen. Her eyelids became heavy and fell into sleep with the assurance of the dawn.
#2 ‘Mum!!! Where is my skirt! I’m going to be late!’ Her kid, Bonnie, yelled and dragged her consciousness away from her dreams. She started another day with the usual morning mess of searching out for his skirt, cooking bacons and sausages and lifted them on dishes, watching Bonnie run out of the door. Her husband pecked her on the cheek, hurried out of the door in no hesitation. With the two big slams of the door, she was left in the house again, all alone. Looking at the flowery wallpapers, she sank into deep thoughts with scenes in the past helplessly popping up in her head. She thought about all those unfulfilled wishes when young. 27
#3 All started with the desire to call her father ‘daddy’. In primary school, girls all loved to talk or boast about their Daddies. ‘My Daddy bought me the new Barbie yesterday.’ ‘My Daddy and I went hiking on the weekends.’ ‘I love my Daddy for his big palms, wide shoulders and his grins!’ ‘I want to marry my Daddy when I grow up. If not possible, I will just marry someone identical to him.’ She was bewildered about why being able to understand the impossibilities of marrying your Daddy since childhood, strangely when her fellows were still caught in fantasy about future marriage. She had always credited herself with rationality as she seemed to be exempt from those impractical longings. Soon she figured out the truth was completely on the reverse. One Psychology class in secondary school struck her with a lightning of realization. “Father-daughter relationship is the foundation of the opposite-sex complex of love.” She highlighted the line as she was told to. The highlighted bit of the text imprinted a scar on her heart. That was the moment when she realized how drastically different people respond distinctively to solely one sentence. The others were still daydreaming, chatting or listening to the teacher whereas she was stiff and devastated at the spot. She truly felt and learnt the diversity of the world at that instant. Without a father, no wonder she has no marriage to envisage, not because of her good senses, but her inability to project a potential image of her lover. She was impoverished of the right to dream about a fancy future.
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The feeling of loss of childhood hit her unalarmed. The utmost absurdity lied upon uncovering the fallacy in your belief which you have adhered to for so long, especially when it is a belief that attributed to one of your prides. Silliness was the most unbearable hurt in her eyes. Her house is full of second-hand electronics, furniture and even some food leftover from the restaurant given to her Dad. She was always jealous of the others calling their fathers Daddy, and associated it with the scene of a white-collared Daddy coming back home, hugged their honey daughters, and earned a yell of ‘Daddy’ with a Barbie on his hand. It contrasted with her last glimpse of her father, who appeared aloof and selfabsorbed; his back stuck at her and her mum, not saying a word, and strode out of the door. Her mum had always claimed, ‘It’s me who abandoned him, don’t blame your Papa.’ She used to believe her, but now she wonder if it was only self-deception. Her mum announced his death a few days later, to her neighborhood and relatives, and even put the black-and-white photo of him in the living room. She never dared to say a word of Papa or Daddy. The words were easy itself, but each time she thought of the intensity of affections it creates when binding those letters together, she could not stand it. It was utterly mismatched with the emptiness of our relationships. The inauthenticity was just intolerable. She was just in kindergarten that time.
#4 She treaded around the room and saw the picture of Bonnie. A surge of jealousy came up to the chest that she could merely breathe. She held her fist tight and tried to hold the moist around her eyes. Indeed fortunate was her daughter, unlike her. 29
She gave the best in life to Bonnie, because she has endured the worst in it. You have gone through miserable encounters once in life, you improved on it, climbed the ladder and no longer in the well. By then you were old enough, every crucial moments were gone. The only means to again revive an adolescent hood is by having a child. That was why she got married with him.
#5
She did fall in love. It was not her husband though, and it had never been. No father taught her how to love a man. She ruined it, because she loved him too much. Out of mind, she has her world centered on him. She started to realize that she could not marry a man she really loved, for she would overextend him by unrealistic expectations, and got tensed by everything he did. She could not relieve a second. Zealous love would not last but only perish. Perhaps we were too busy when young,so busy that we dont even have the time to spare for love. It was luxuries. You would sacrifice so much, maybe in turn just for so little. Or even at last, it extinguished over one night. We would all regard it unneccessary investment, and switched to things more responsive and workable than Love was, or the things that you could control. She did not have fights with her husband, no pushes and pulls anymore, no ambiguity with a marriage certificates which was legitimate. Yet, she lost the passion and power to love, and all were turned into dullness.
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#6
A telephone call abruptly clicked in and stopped all the self-pity. She answered the phone grudgingly but tried hard to lift up her voice with all her might. ‘Hello!’ ‘Oh! Sue! How are you?!’ ‘Hey tonight is our secondary schoolmate gathering. Are you coming? Don’t skip this time as I miss you so much!’ Sue has always been an oppressive, being too pushy at times, for ten years. ‘You know I am not very keen on…’ Belle intended to turn down. ‘I don’t care about it. Only one thing, you must come.’ Sue cut off her sentence and made her last contention, and hung up at once. Belle had no choice to say no. ‘It’s been a while!’ Belle was best-dressed, with her make-up and good poise, and came to the dinner and greeted her old mates. Gatherings, at this age, were nothing about fooling around with buddies anymore. ‘How’s your daughter, Belle?’ Conversations about daughters or sons had replaced their girls talk and it was always a never-ending topic. They talked about kindergartens and primary school, as if they are reconsidering preparatory schools once again. They exchanged name cards, and Belle received a pile of them. Each of them gained at least several titles, and from these titles you could imagine how stuffed their schedule had been throughout the years. All these years accumulated were the titles, the company names and the triumph. In a splash of time a wind blew over and the cards were flown off her hands, with the waiter stumbled over and stepped on them. She felt rewarded about finally attending the dinner. The loneliness vanished at the sights of her used-to-be friends. ‘Maybe all of us are the same, in a pitiful way.’ 31
The Memoir
by Anonymous
I still remember that rainy night in 1989.
‘My love for you has faded away. See you next life.’ I wrote the last line of the farewell letter and burst into tears. Self-deception— it is the last bit of pride that I can create when someone does not love you anymore. ‘Without him, life is weary. I am losing interest.’ I sobbed. All of a sudden, a dwarf appeared out of nowhere. He got close to me, with his eyes rolling and looking into my face. I was dumb-founded. ‘May I help you? The relationship doesn’t work out. But don’t worry. You can start over with him next life. I will let your memories stay eternally, beyond the boundary of life. Die, and you will make it.’ He laughed. I could see his face seamed with wrinkles, with a wicked smile and a pair of sharp eyes. I dithered, that sounds a thrilling idea though, to start over with him. ‘Love is bravery.’ He persuaded with his eyes on fire. I held the knife with my fiercely trembling hands, ready to slit my wrist. I felt suffocated and an unbearable pain, and fell into complete blankness.
---
One day I walked past the Modern Education Center and spotted a man inside, in black suit, with a familiar face. I stopped at once, and rushed into the center. I looked at his face—the pointed chin, the piercing brown eyes, the wide cheek bones and his signature dimples. ‘Lawrence! Finally! I found you!’ I screamed out of excitement. I grabbed and looked at his hands. I spotted his unique mole in the middle of his palm. ‘You are really Lawrence. I have been looking for you for my whole lifetime!’ ‘Did you make a mistake? I am Chris Chung, the English tutorial teacher here…Who are you?! And I’m not any Lawrence that you know! I got a lesson right now. Please don’t waste my time!’ He ran away furiously, being totally indifferent to me. I rushed to the registration counter. ‘Excuse me. I want to apply for C. Chung’s class at once. At once! ’ 32 ---
Throughout the lesson, I had my full attention on him. He spoke English with the British accent that I used to enjoy hearing. I immersed myself in the endless memories of our good old times. At the end of the lesson, there is an assessment quiz on creative writing. Well. I wrote a love story of us, me and Lawrence, and also about me having the memories of previous life. I wonder if those particular bits would provoke his PREVIOUS memories and remember that I was her girlfriend? I handed in my work. I saw him flipping through the pile of sheets that the students handed in, and stopped suddenly, when looking at my pink foolscap sheet. He concentrated on reading it. He glimpsed and frowned at me. ‘Maybe he starts to remember our past?’ I murmured with a subtle joy from my heart. After the lesson, he approached me. My heart was beating so fast. ‘Look, I had a dream last night. I saw you. And your story reminded me of our past. ’ ‘Plus, your words are beautiful. I am stunned.’ ‘Yea, I won the champion in inter-school writing competition. Well, English is my only expertise.’ I noticed his eyes glowed and I regarded it the passion of love. ‘Please stay Ellen. I need you. You should tell me more about our past. Perhaps, you can be my team member? C. CHUNG ENGLISH TEAM. Be my helper and we can have more time to spend together.’ I nodded without second thoughts.
--I spent my whole A-levels period to help him. I skipped lessons, worked shifts to prepare notes, scripts and attended lessons to help out. Love is sacrifice. I have never felt so content before, to be a woman behind the successful man. I could not stand the absurdity of my classmates. They spent all their golden years, pulled all-nighters to fight for merely a ‘motionless thing’—the A-level Exam. For me, I am fighting for the noblest value on Earth—Love. I was even absent in the exam, because I came to life not for Exam, yet for Love, the most superior value of all. I felt so wise, destined to devote my whole life to him.
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He was a busy man but he squeezed time for me. Each time he was so in a rush that we had to end our dates abruptly. It didn’t matter. Instead it seemed so precious due to the scarcity of his time. It made every cuddle count. I made him brownies. I liked how he gently kissed me on the cheek and praised me for making those brownies for him. I would blush and grin unconsciously, whispered near his ears, ‘Just think of me whenever you sniff the aroma of the brownies each time—as sweet as our love.’ He told me to make them three times a week, which is a lot. He seemed to crave for my desserts. I tried hard to tell him about every detail of our past life. He listened attentively but usually fell asleep soon. Probably it was because of the heavy workload. Luckily he prepared that recorder pen to collect all the memories. ‘I would listen during my free time, honey. Just tell me every moment of our life.’ He assured me.
--The season of A-level exam soon elapsed. ‘Like what I said, Exam goes away someday. Unlike true love, which is spiritual, lingers forever and never vanishes.’ I assumed myself having made the right choice. C. Chung’s intensive courses were hits under my help, with mock questions similar to the real ones, tips accurate and useful, as well as correct prediction of the exam trends. It triggered a series of news coverage. Reporters kept coming to interview Chris every day. However I would just dedicate all the honors to Chris and be someone anonymous, although the success is mostly born from my efforts. What I wanted was not fame, money nor recognition. I came to life solely for his love. ‘Only your existence could lead me away from solitude. That’s all I ask of you, and nothing else.’ I told him. 34
I expected summer course to start soon so I went back to work. ‘Sorry you are fired, Miss Lee. You don’t have to come back to work anymore.’ ‘WHAT?! FIRED?’ I shouted. ‘Impossible. I am her girlfriend!’ ‘Impossible. Mr. Chung has a WIFE for five years already.’ She gazed at me but then was distracted by the footsteps behind. ‘Ellen. I’m sorry. But I guess it’s time for you to quit after A-levels. My wife is coming back from New York to assist me.’ Chris said calmly. ‘We are and we were in love, now and in the past life! You are not supposed to have a wife!’ I yelled. His words and that solemn face got on my nerves. I was only a tool for money making. My heart ached and I tried hard holding my breath, but I could not and my tears started brimming and dripping down uncontrollably. Soon I started howling and throwing her papers off her table. ‘Call the security guards and the police to stop her!’ He ordered, as if all planned. No sooner a few guards and the police came in to get hold of me. ‘This woman is crazy. She claims herself having memories of previous life and said that I am her boyfriend. I have a wife for 5 years already! She disrupted my classes, kept disturbing me and my family by intruding my place. I have recorded all the evidence here’ He put out his recorder pen. ‘All are her nonsense talks about some weird and ridiculous afterlife stuff! She should be in mental hospital!’ Feeling powerless at his words, I was dragged away and pushed into the police bus. ‘Thank you for your brownies though. My four kids all love it.’ It was his last whisper to me through the bus window.
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T
--Now I am trapped in this ward. The only things left to me are: a bed, four empty walls, and as always— memories. Well, also a newspaper on the floor. I picked it up and saw the headline written ‘Chris Chung’s Marriage and Career Disrupted by the INSANE Girl.’ I scanned the passages; ‘She is trapped in her imagination and has gone insane, diagnosed by the psychiatrist DR. Wong.’ ‘Her mother said in tears, “I should have corrected her thoughts since young… She has insisted in having the memories of previous life around four-year-old. She is always searching for her love, her boyfriend in the past life all the years. Perhaps it’s because she lost her father since young…It’s all my faults…”’ ‘Nonsense! No one believes me, just because they have never felt the same way as I do, gone through the same experience as I do, or realized the same picture as I do!!!’ I could only yell. The dwarf came out of nowhere again. ‘Sounds like memories are torturing, huh? This time, don’t let memories remain anymore. Extinguish all of them. Drink this soup and you will make it.’ He laughed again, holding a bowl of water from the Forgotten River.
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The Interview.
Xu Xi is an Indonesian-American born and nurtured in Hong Kong. She is a Hong Kong author of her novels written in English. I am very honored to have interviewed her, and received some inspiring responses from the half-hour talk with her. She has great insights into the issue of love and loneliness in the world, particularly in Hong Kong. In her books, she has written stories about women’s encounters in life, love affairs, careers, etc.. Now, let’s hear what is her points of view about the issue of Love and Loneliness! -by
Kim Chan
XU XI, the Author
Xu Xi has been in the international marketing field in multinational With her strong intuition, striking insights into firms for 18 years, while retaining life, perserverence to outshine the others, and, parallel career to write and publish she has issued nine books of fiction and essays. fictions. It is quite rare for a local writer to write the works in English, yet Xu Xi dares to break the norms and creates her own world in the books. -Writer-in-residence in City University of Hong Kong -English Language Novelists -Her works often appeared in Muse, the Hong Kong multimedia based publisher -the Hong Kong regional editor of Routledge’s Encyclopedia of Post-colonial Literature -the editor or co-editor of the following anthologies of Hong Kong writing in English: Fifty-Fifty: New Hong Kong Writing (2008), City Stage: Hong Kong Playwriting in English (2005), and City Voices: Hong Kong Writing in English Prose & Poetry from 1945 to the present.
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Interviewer: Kim Chan (K) Interviewee: Xu Xi (X) -The writer’s intropsection of Love and LonelinessK: How do you interpret the relationship between ‘love’ and ‘loneliness’? X: People all have the idea that love solves all our loneliness but I just think the opposite. On one hand love means feeling close to somebody else, be it your family, lover or husband and wife. On the other hand, you never really know other people one hundred percent. Each person is an individual. We all die alone! So here is a strange aspect to intimacy, closeness and love. The closer you are to someone, the more you are aware of how separated you are. Shakespeare said it nicely, ‘Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments.’ Sometimes you might have more in common with a colleague of yours than the person you are in love with. Love has very little bit to do with how similar or compatible people are. Some of the most incompatible ones in the world fall in love and get married. It obviously contributes to the isolation, and the loneliness that comes.
One thing about Hong Kong women, especially the ones I write about, and predominant in my work, is very similar to the experience I had—educated women, women who have professions. And I will give my last novel as an example. It is about an investment banker, a divorced woman. One of the reasons I find her a compelling character to create is that I was working at that time in 1997 when I first started thinking about the book. I noticed many of these professional women I knew in Hong Kong, are suffering from encounters of divorce. In each case the husband has left her for another woman, usually a younger woman. They all have children and the women are the ones who became the single mothers with the child at home. And the husband occasionally comes or whatever. But the women have responsibilities for that too. It is the curiosity about the more advanced a city where the women have more opportunities. Work life in HK more fulfilling than that in New York, although the laws in New York are better in protecting women. In Hong Kong, opportunities are better and there are equalities you can feel at the professional level. Yet I do not think it is true if you are talking about the working class. For the working class, America is way ahead of HK. Back to Hong Kong, opportunities for the women at professional class are actually quite good. However the love life of women is harder.
-The Love and Loneliness in Hong Kong in her WorksK: Many of your stories are about women in Hong Kong, their encounters and love relationships. How do you feel particularly about the love of women in Hong Kong? How do it differ from that of the others’ countries?
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K: How do you feel about the feminism in Hong Kong in relation to feminists’ love and loneliness? Feminism has taken rule in a very odd way in Hong Kong. Women are quite independent they make their money on their own get well paid. On the other hand, they want their husband not only equal but even more superior than they are. However, these men may be only for wives who just sat at home and had babies. It brings certain loneliness to them when searching for love.
-The Solitary Profession as a WriterK: What kind of traits is important to be a writer? I guess that relates much to the self, and the loneliness that comes out of it. Yes. Part of being an artist is selfishness or self-centeredness. Ego – You have to take care of the ego, because without that you cannot be an artist. Of course there is a negative side of it, but it is not negative if you have an expression that is positive and you do something that is meaningful out of it. K: As a writer, you get your work published, but before that you need to spend so much of the time writing on your own, and that very much contribute to solitude. How do you feel about solitude? Once I talked to a writer friend about this question of solitude. But as a writer, we like to spend time alone. It’s true! If you are a writer, you find spending time alone a very natural thing to do. People who want to be around people are probably not very permanently suited to be a writer. The writers deal with great deal of solitude but we never find that negative. My mum was like “Oh! Why don’t you go out and play with your friends?” Yet I want to sit at home and read a book! To me that wasn’t suffering. So, I think it depends on the personalities. I told my students who want to write about that too. If you can’t spend time alone, you should ask yourself if writing is really the right profession for you.
-Being a NovelistK: Writing a novel, or for the theatre or film, can be very different. How do you feel about the difference? People who want to write for theatre or write for films have collaborative experiences, which are not solitude. Your script is going to be changed in the hands of the others, so you should not be writing for full. You learn the kind of things that work for you, but in novels, it is different, it is okay to just write on your own. I spend lots of time alone when I am writing. However, if you write for the theatre, your work gets revised a lot during the rehearsal, so you need to be more collaborative. It is very different from writing a poem or a short story. K: Short stories are all from your imagination, you are composing with no limitations. Do you prefer it to writing for theatre? I did act a bit and I thought about plays. I like theatre very much. But it was not something that drew me but after I got a little bit in theatre. I find that it is not really an interesting thing for me, not like poems, novels, stories. K: So, does it reflect again, that you care very much of the self in you as the prominent characteristics as an artist, that you cannot be limited by the others? Well, there is another side of it. Once you publish your work, there is an Editor and he can suggest changes. The point is they can really improve your work. I don’t have troubles working with Editor. Some writers find that difficult. To me, editing is part of the process, the professional part of it. Sometimes you cannot see things that the editor can see.
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K: Do you think the editors lend a helping hand to you? Yes of course, a good editor, really can get to what your book can do. Like when I’m teaching creative writing, I talked to my students like, I can’t really teach you, but I can sort of be a coach, and show you something that might help you, such as making suggestions. In the end, it is still up to the writer to make their own decisions. That is something true for novelist, poets, or fiction writers. An editor has a role to play in the professional field.
-The Literature Recommendations from the Writer to find out more about Love and LonelinessK: Could you recommend some literary books or writers with the theme of love and loneliness for our readers? Love in the time of Cholera, by Gabriel García Márquez, would be an interesting one to look at. Also, the Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Stetson, which is a classic feminist short story. It is about a woman who is progressively going mad in her room. I think a lot of the early 20th century and late 19th century work speaks about women in that way. Think of Anna Karenina, she commits suicide at the end. And also Kate Chopin’s the Awakening, probably the best around that time. They all have more or less the same idea about the women committing suicide, in unhappy marriages or doubts of affairs. That speaks very much about the changing powers of sexes. These are the women from the early days, but if you move to the modern times, where you have something like Bridget Jones Diary, which is just the complete opposite and, it is a comic piece! Or even, the earlier version of that would be Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen. These are all very interesting studies of love and frankly, the loneliness that comes with it!
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Music Playlist by Kim Chan
- Dillon This Silence Kills A Brazilian born singer and a pianist, being a truly gifted artist. ‘Deadly stylistic’, I would say. She reassures us the rarity but unique beauty of genuine love in this deserted city,through the exoticism and velvet-like texture of her voice. Try it. I’m addicted to looking at her piercing eyes on the album cover while listening to her songs, the beauty is just as striking as her full creativity. - Laura Marling Once I was an Eagle Top choice—if you are looking for something folkish or acoustic. Undoubtedly soothing it is, yet thought-arousing at times. I suggest listening to Laura at midnights, with memorial fragments. Be prepared to experience streams of conciousness from your reminiscence. - A Fine Frenzy One Cell in the Sea Experience the tranquility and tenderness she has in her delicate vocals, for her voice spectacularly lingers, revolves, and persists itself. Such aerial kind of music is healing, and hereby I especially dedicate it to those broken hearts out of love. It helps, indeed. -Diamen Rice The little huskiness in the voice is one of his signatures, being a seemingly rough man with a gentle heart. His songs mark the universality of love of all mankinds, and hear the contadictory bits of love. Complexities are what make love intriguing and await our adventure.
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Movies Addictions Silver Linings Playbook (2012) essence of the young widow by showing
a mixture of rudeness and vulnerability. This transformation from a courageous Silver Linings Playbook is definitely one girl in Hunger Games marks the major of the must-watch movies on the list this breakthrough of her acting career. year. The romantic comedy film features two main characters who are both cur- If you are interested in finding something upbeat and relaxing, Silver Linings rently at the lowest point of their lives. Playbook is a good choice because of the Pat, played by Bradley Cooper, is a man funny and lively love-hate relationship bewho suffers from bipolar disorder and has tween the two protagonists. recently moved back home from medical institution while Tiffany, played by the academy-award-winning actress Jennifer Lawarence, is a troubled young widow. In a coincidence, the two strangers meet each other and they start to develop a special connection between them. The film culminates when the two overcome their vulnerability inherited from their previous relationships and thus move on living a brand new life. Joyce Pang
Unlike typical romance comedy, Silver Linings Playbook contains a wide variety of themes, including love, family and the definition of a “normal� humanbeing. In particular, the performance of Bradley and Jennifer helps revealing the dilemmas faced by the mentally troubled people in society. One interesting point to be noted is the portrayal of Tiffany by the 21-year-old actress. Jennifer succeeds in capturing the
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Patrick and Sam.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) Priscilla Chung
Have you ever had such feelings?
“Welcome to the island of misfit toys,” Sam, a sensitive girl with low self-esteem and a ruined past, welcomed Charlie as one of their intimate friends. It marked the turning point of his life.
Feeling nervous in front of crowds, and don’t understand the intimacy of the oth- Even he was still a wallflower among them. He had been young and crazy. The days ers; they spent together made his life a more Trying to be good, but no one fruitful one. At the high time when love, seems interested in befriending you; friendship and own place were found in Charlie’s life, Patrick and Sam departured Or no matter how hard you try, people due to graduation. At first it was too unbearable for Charlie. It was just like pulljust do not notice. ing down the wall deeply built in his heart and abandoned him. However, waiting Finally, you grow tired of it. for other people to heal his wound might lead to a deeper misery. Luckily, Charlie Regardless of the loneliness, you no longer want to tell others as it might soon got through all these upon their rereveal your weakness, or you sim- turn, at last he said, ply
suspect
that
no
one
cares.
Then, you keep deceiving yourself that you are not alone--believing it as the misunderstandings of the others or pretending that you are not interested in getting along with others. If your answer is yes, I am pretty sure you will feel the same with Charlie in his story. “You see things, you keep quiet about them, and you understand.” Being a quiet, introvert boy who loves reading, it is easy to figure out Charlie as a wallflower who got no friend until he met
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“So, this is my life. And I want you to know that I am both happy and sad and I’m still trying to figure out how that could be.” Not a really traditional TV drama of happy ending that Charlie became a cheerful boy with a bunch of friends, but it just end quite right, and somehow bittersweet. I can never forget the scene with David Bowie’s song, ‘Heroes’ playing on the radio, when they fly through a tunnel on the highway, that Sam stands up at the back of the truck, raising her arms. The music, the action, the speed, the atmosphere presented in that moment is just so impressive –“We’re infinite”. The unlimited possibilities of youth is captured perfectly, with the marvelously resonating music. The movie is an adaptation of the semiautobiography of the author- Chbosky. “This is the most gratifying thing about Perks for me, you write it for personal reasons, but you publish it because you hope that certain people will not feel as alone.”, he said. It is so true that we may more, or less, experience Charlie’s loneliness and despair. We read, we watch, we write to feel the magnitude of it, and then we know, “ We are not alone.”
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The Books
Love in the time of Cholera
-by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
A complex story depicting love turning into sickness and its destruction, with the themes of aging and death .
Anna Karenina
-Leo Tulstoy Written by a Russian writer, it is a tragedy about the affairs in marriage and breaking the social norms, Anna as an aristocrat and socialite.
The Yellow Wallpaper -by Charlotte Perkins Gilman:
A story about a woman getting paranoia trapped in a room, which is a Gothic literature about madness and powerlessness.
Love Story
-Erich Segal A romantic, funny, yet tragic story about two young graduates from two distant worlds joined together in the most unlikely of ways. It was put into screenplay in 1970.
The Awakening -by Kate Chopin
the plot centers on Edna Pontellier and her struggle to reconcile her increasingly unorthodox views on femininity and motherhood with the social attitudes of the turn-of-the-century South.
One Hundred Years of Solitude -by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
An epic and renownedtale of one family’s adventures and misadventures covering several generations. 45 by Kim Chan
San A story in Lan Samantha Cheung’s Book, ‘Hunger’ SAN, an intriguing story about love and abandonment. The story depicts the story of a girl, who used to be loved by her parents. In her early childhood, she found her perfect number 3 --- father, mother and her. She had a beautiful childhood, but with changes in her life, she started to develop distance with the idea of love, where the feeling of abandonment and distance starts to trigger. She doesn't know how to face reality and cannot find her way out.
In face of the gradual abandonment, the girl found solace in arithmetics. Mathematics was a calculation of her father’s love to her, where the perfect product comes form her father. Mathematics is the foundation of their intimate relationship, knitting them together, and bringing them to an intertwined intimate state. In this haven, the girl could escape from reality and stay in her happy times spent with her beloved papa. She worked out her temporary way to combat loneliness and abandonment.
When her father was gone, she relentlessly chased the footage of her father, in the hope of filling the losing piece in her mental puzzle. She was stuck in her utopia and she Umbrella is “SAN” in chinese, which found it hard to integrate with reaity. signifies departure and falling apart. The san in the story was so dear to A sudden realization struck her. the girl, as it was a gift from her fa- The girl tried to accommodate abanther. But sadly, he took it away when donment with forgiveness. She realized that she should be stuck in false he left the family. hopes. Being unable to adapt to the change, the girl at first wasn't willing to let go of her father, let go of her happy childhood, let go of her idea of completeness, let go of time. 46
With struggles, she tries to look from another perspective. The little girl learns to find solace in granting mercy, by seeing the pos sibility in the path which his father chose, where she genuinely wishes his father shine in his way. In some way, she is freeing herself from inelasticity. Through the injection of possibilities and hopes in the word , the girl reinterpreted and redefined the word “SAN”. The umbrella physically separated them, but it actually is an eternal companion mentally for the father
and the daughter. She made her unique way out in discovering love in loneliness and departure. Love and loneliness doesn’t necessarily come as binary opposition. It is always our choice, to reinterpret, redefine and renew its meaning and weighting. Attitude matters.
Lan Samantha Chang’s Books
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The Crossovers
(1) Funeral Suits x Lord of the Flies: Funeral suits is a boy band from Dublin, Ireland. Their music seems disorted in some sense, you may regard it eccentricity in the first place, but their songs have a lot more underlying to be unveiled. Some scenes in their new music video ‘Health’ have been controversial in the town. Figures like haunting pigs, evil kids and cruelty are indeed panicking. Nonetheless the boys create those unorthodox, breath-taking scenes from the inspirations of a literature classic, ‘The Lord of the flies’ written by the nobel-prize winning author, William Golding. A group of British boys are stuck on an unhabited island by accidents. Prominent issues of humanities are unveiled through throwing them away The utmost LONELINESS would be a matter of life and death when it becomes an altered form of ‘self-protection’, and is carried to the extreme.
Arts takes its many forms. Yet the splendid glamour lies in the convergence. Funeral Suits has successfully blended the literature classic, Lord of the Flies, with their debut album, Lily of the Valley altogether, in their own style. There is even a movie version of Lord of the Flies. Besides appreciating the same stories thorugh the lens of imagination and sounds, you can even turn to 48 visualization.
(2) A Fine Frenzy X Shakespeare, and a lot more literary writers: Her real name is Alison Sudol. Literary influences on her music is obvious, originating from her name, ‘a fine frenzy’, extracted from the quotes of William Shakespeare’s work , A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Being an alternative singer-songwriter in the America, she composes songs on her own and writes beautiful lyrics. She has possessed the passion in literature since a tender age, reading various literary works from prominent authors of different times, such as Charles Dickens, Anthony Trollope, Lewis Carroll, etc.
An author’s writing comes from her thoughts, observations, sensations, and her reading. Composing lyrics and literature creation are of the same roots. Listening to A Fine Frenzy’s aerial voice is like reading a novel. If you consider youself a music lover and fall in love with letters and words, you may try composing the very original song of your own too! 49
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