The Midnight Lamp and Sweet Red Bean Pastry: My Memory of Living in A Small Town in 1960s South Taiwan
My big brother, the eldest among us siblings, had to take the final highly competitive middle school entrance exam—a nightmare for 10- to 12-year-old kids aiming for the best schools. Determined to give him the best chance, Dad transferred him to a class taught by his friend…
The Fried Flour Paste, My Earliest Treat in 1962
It was 1962 in Taiwan, and I was five years old. The dormitory where my family lived had a single living space, with the bedroom raised three feet above the floor, and partitioned by a Japanese paper sliding door. My parents slept on a wooden double bed placed atop the Japanese tatami. Beside them, five children, ranging in age from seven to one, lay side by side on the tatami, sleeping soundly.
“Reclaim the Abandoned Room,” “Going On,” and “The Poem”
Dark mummified roses standing in the vase,
gray spider webs hanging over every corner.
A broom wipes out the traces of ignorance,
reclaiming the territory once more.
gray spider webs hanging over every corner.
A broom wipes out the traces of ignorance,
reclaiming the territory once more.
The Peach Orchard
The sun blazes overhead. Jenny, like a Butoh dancer in meditative motion, turns the wheel with slow, deliberate grace. The car glides silently along the winding road. Inside, the AI-controlled A/C keeps her cool and comfortable. She no longer resists the heat. Her mind is vacant now.
Suddenly, she grips the wheel and swerves right. Her car merges onto a narrow road canopied by towering oaks.
Suddenly, she grips the wheel and swerves right. Her car merges onto a narrow road canopied by towering oaks.
Let Them Come, Tears!
It is 7 o’clock in the morning, as usual. On my desk, piles of books and notepads are scattered around the spot where my breakfast—a cup of coffee and a piece of toast topped with a sunny-side-up egg—sits. I’m reading a page from Haruki Murakami’s story “The Wind Cave” in The New Yorker, while Taiwanese pop songs play softly on the computer.
Why Is It So Hard?
These few days, the assassination of the CEO of UnitedHealthcare has become the center of attention of the media, and the talking points extend to the injustice of America’s private insurance system introduced to patients. I am staying in Taiwan now since September and have gone through the healthcare treatment many times for my injured knee and chronic problem of Spondylolisthesis. I would like to talk about my own experience enjoying a healthcare system that’s totally different from America’s.