The Little Mermaid

Recently some friends and I shared the fairy tales that we favoured most once upon a time.

In comparison, children are more receptive to fairy tales and are usually touched by the stories. For adult, we would possibly be attracted by the fairy tales if we re-discover our natural kindness from our inner selves.

Once upon a time my children would bring their favorite story books to me, asking me to read the fairy tales for them. They would sleep happily after the stories.

By the way most of the fairy tales begin with ‘once upon a time’.

Nowadays they don’t listen to fairy tales anymore. They said fairy tales are not real. Fairy tales marked the end of their childhood journey.


Hans Christian Andersen (安徒生，1805-1875) wrote some of the best-loved fairy tales of all time: The Little Mermaid, The Princess and the Pea, The Emperor's New Clothes, The Little Match Girl, The Ugly Duckling, The Red Shoes, The Snow Queen and many others.

Once upon a time, they also brightened my childhood.

Andersen's fairy tales identify with the unfortunate and outcast. This made his tales very compelling. Some of his tales revealed an optimistic belief in the triumph of the good, among them 'The Snow Queen' and 'Little Ugly Duckling', and some ended unhappily, like 'The Little Match Girl.'

In 'The Little Mermaid' Andersen expressed a longing for ordinary life. The Little Mermaid lives at the sea bottom with her father the sea king, her grandmother, and her five elder sisters.

When a mermaid turns 15, she is allowed to swim to the surface to watch the world above. When the Little Mermaid's turn comes, she ventures to the surface, sees a ship with a handsome prince, and falls in love with him from a distance. A great storm hits, and the Little Mermaid saves the prince from a near-drowning. She delivers him unconscious to the shore near a temple. She waits until a young girl from the temple finds him. The prince never sees the Little Mermaid.

The Little Mermaid asks her grandmother whether humans can live forever if they do not drown. The grandmother explains that humans have a much shorter lifespan than merfolk. When mermaids die they turn to sea foam and cease to exist, while humans have an eternal soul that lives on in Heaven.

The Little Mermaid, longing for the prince and an eternal soul, eventually visits the Sea Witch. The Sea Witch sells her a potion that gives her legs, in exchange for her tongue (as the Little Mermaid has the most intoxicating voice in the world). Drinking the potion will make her feel as if a sword is being passed through her, and walking on her feet will feel like walking on knives. In addition, she will only get a soul if the prince loves her and marries her, for then a part of his soul will flow into her. Otherwise, at dawn on the first day after he marries another woman, the Little Mermaid will die brokenhearted and turn to sea foam.

The Little Mermaid drinks the potion and meets the prince. The prince is attracted to her beauty and grace even though she is mute. Most of all he likes to see her dance, and she dances for him despite her sharp pain. When the prince's father orders him to marry the neighboring king's daughter, the prince tells the Little Mermaid he can only love the young woman from the temple, but adds that the Little Mermaid is beginning to take the temple girl's place in his heart. It turns out that the princess is the temple girl, who had been sent to the temple to be educated. The prince loves her and the wedding is announced.

As dawn breaks, the Little Mermaid dives into the sea. Her body dissolves into foam. She feels the warmth of the sun; she has turned into a spirit, a daughter of the air. The other daughters of the air tell her she has become like them because she strove with all her heart to gain an eternal soul. She will eventually rise up into the kingdom of God.

The statue of The Little Mermaid sits on a rock in the Copenhagen harbour at Langelinie. The statue was commissioned in 1909 by Carl Jacobsen (son of the founder of Carlsberg) who had been fascinated by a ballet about the fairytale in Copenhagen’s Royal Theatre.


The statue of The Little Mermaid is only 1.25 metre high and weighs around 175 kg. This small and unimposing statue is a major tourist attraction in Copenhagen. I was attracted by it even at the time when my hair had begun to turn silver. Well, it’s because of Anderson and his fairy tales. They accompanied my childhood with endless imaginations. The fairy tales weave my faith and live together like the song ‘If we hold on together’ sang by Diana Ross.

Don't lose your way
With each passing day
You've come so far
Don't throw it away
Live believing
Dreams are for weaving
Wonders are waiting to start
Live your story
Faith, hope & glory
Hold to the truth in your heart

If we hold on together
I know our dreams will never die
Dreams see us through to forever
Where clouds roll by
For you and I


It seems that The Little Mermaid has also moved the emotion of the Thai people. Within the city of Songkhla（宋卡） is the most popular beach at the Samila cape. The famous mermaid statue is standing at this beach. My friend Tay Ah Huat took the shot for me. Twelve years later he rose up into the kingdom of god.

天若有情天亦老

2009年2月14日情人节，Valentine day，早晨的天空飘着细雨，增添几分浪漫。

跟博物馆的朋友到先贤馆一游。在严肃地面对先驱人物及大时代之余，叫人窝心的是女士小姐们都收到家明的玫瑰花。什么时候家明已经静悄悄的如大国崛起，成为大众情人了！



情人节的‘情人’，也可泛指有情之人，因为我们有情，才会在先贤馆追寻先人的足迹。套句韩山元山叔的话（大概）：“各位走在先贤馆的地板上，其实到处都是陈嘉庚的脚印。陈嘉庚天上有知，可能也在向各位招手微笑。”

林清如（怡和轩主席，林清祥的弟弟。）是其中一位有情人。在他的建议下，今天我们得以平静地看待历史，在先贤馆一窥过去华人海外求存发展的缩影。

陈嘉庚也是有情人，他的情已经超越个人，扩大到对国家对民族的热爱。

从17岁到76岁，陈嘉庚把人生最宝贵的年华奉献给新加坡。陈嘉庚17岁从厦门集美村南来，一手打造出自己的商业王国。


取诸社会，用诸社会，陈嘉庚‘毁家办学’，在新中两地创办学校。除了在集美、厦门办学，新加坡的华侨中学、南侨中学，爱同、道南、崇福等多所中小学校，都是由陈嘉庚创办，或得到过他长期资助,用于办学的款额高达一亿美元。陈嘉庚临终前把遗产三百万元人民币全部献给中国。

1937年抗日战争爆发，陈嘉庚投入抗日救亡运动中。1938年10月，南洋华侨筹赈祖国难民总会（简称南侨总会）成立时，以怡和轩为总部。当选为南侨总会主席的陈嘉庚就一直住在这里，领导南侨总会开展支援中国抗战的各项工作。他组织三千多名南侨机工回国抗战，千余名机工在血肉筑成的滇缅公路上牺牲，战后生还的机工不受国民党认同，文革期间又怕被当成前国民党余孽清算；身处夹缝间，只能过着隐姓埋名与逃亡的日子。最终他们还是在云南被红卫兵揪出来，命运坎坷！

1949年新中国成立，1950年陈嘉庚告别了生活六十多年的新加坡，只身回国，参与新中国的建设。1961年8月12日在北京病逝，享年八十八岁。

陈共存在口授的《陈嘉庚新传》提到陈嘉庚的晚年：极左派认为他是资本家，国外认为他是共产党左派的同路人，左右不逢源。陆川问我陈嘉庚属于悲剧人物吗？我倒觉得他无怨无悔地过了一生。

陈嘉庚与中国共产党主席毛泽东互敬互重。1941年6月，陈嘉庚从新加坡到延安，毛泽东留陈嘉庚吃饭，用自己栽种的角豆、西红柿招待陈嘉庚，只是特地上了一味鸡汤。毛泽东说：“我没有钱买鸡，这只鸡是邻居老大娘知道我有远客，送给我的。”陈嘉庚看了看饭菜，意味深长地对毛泽东说：“得天下者，共产党也！”

毛泽东文武才干世上少见，英雄造时势，时势造英雄。意气风发之时，诵道：“天高云淡，望断南飞雁。不到长城非好汉，屈指行程二万。”



他的一句‘不到长城非好汉’，使我对长城眷恋不已。1993年趁着年少气盛，和妻轻骑上阵，长城万里、滚滚黄沙。时光一转十五载，轮到孩子们陪我到居庸关圆梦去了。




居庸关是历史上著名的古战场。居庸关是天险，一夫当关，万夫莫开，却又屡屡失守。明末顾炎武闻说居庸关被李自成攻破，曾感慨地说：“地非不险，城非不高，兵非不多，粮非不足也，国法不行，人心去也。”

元代萨都剌诗云：“居庸关，山苍苍。关南暑多关北凉。天门晓开虎豹卧，石鼓昼击云雷张。关门铸铁半依空，古来几度壮士死。草根白骨弃不收，冷雨阴风泣山鬼。”道出了沉痛的千古哀怨！

万里长城所蕴藏的中华民族2000多年的文化艺术的内涵十分丰富。李白“长风几万里，吹度玉门关”，王昌龄“秦时明月汉时关，万里长征人未还”，王维“劝君更进一杯酒，西出阳关无故人”，岑参“忽如一夜春风来，千树万树梨花开”等名句，千载传诵不绝。

站在长城看长城的险峻是一番滋味，在承德普陀宗乘之庙（小布达拉宫）眺望长城，想象关北的苍凉，是另一番滋味。结合历史看长城，更是别有一番滋味在心头。



毛泽东在1936年写下的沁园春•雪，如长城般豪气万丈：
北国风光，千里冰封，万里雪飘。
望长城内外，惟余莽莽；大河上下， 顿失滔滔。
山舞银蛇，原驰蜡象，欲与天公试比高。
须晴日，看红装素裹，分外妖娆。

江山如此多娇，引无数英雄竞折腰。
惜秦皇汉武，略输文采；唐宗宋祖，稍逊风骚。
一代天骄，成吉思汗，只识弯弓射大雕。
俱往矣，数风流人物，还看今朝。

李白王维，秦皇汉武，毛泽东陈嘉庚，都属于过去的人物。随着大环境的改变，今天我们可以客观地直面过去许多值得争议的人物和事迹。作为有情人，在追名逐利、社会责任、历史使命与个人取舍间，该怎么定位，如何考量？

还是别叫生命太沉重，珍惜当下，如瑞英所说，how long to live with is not totally decided by me; I could only decide on the quality of life and that is the direction I am living towards.......I enjoy and treasure every moment when I am alive....

Love infatuation or Love connection?

有人说每个快乐开心的结局都是一样的，因此欢乐的记忆也是短暂的；只有悲剧式的情节才能触动人的内心世界，叫人感动，深深震撼，永远难忘。

那些能够流传多年的金曲，叫人午夜梦迴的，在Karaoke常唱的，在龙虎榜上居高不下的，十之八九都带着丝丝难过、缕缕无奈。是不是一定要有遗憾，生命才能完美？

John 和 Wendy是夫妻，一个印度人与一个美国人在英国读书，过后双宿双飞，‘入赘’新加坡，在同一个教会服务。他们的跨国跨文化婚姻本身就是传奇；宗教把他们带到从没到过的新加坡，还成为新加坡的一分子，这是另一个传奇。

上星期五听他们分析了辅导工作上面对的各种男女感情问题，虽然情节各异，但主线相同，离不开Love infatuation 与 Love connection 的定律。

新加坡的离婚率节节上升，此外每三人中有一人搞婚外情。婚姻能否持久，很大程度取决于是否能从‘爱的迷惑’提升到‘爱的维系’的阶段。要做到这一点，男女双方都必须付出，每星期必须花上十五到二十小时好好过个二人世界。不只是初恋情人该如此，老夫老妻更应该如此。否则同在一个屋檐下编织着不同的梦，大家的心情都不好受。

对现代人来说，每周十五到二十小时的付出真的很累很累。

有人打趣说:“当年琴棋书画诗酒花，如今柴米油盐酱醋茶。后果可想而知！”

有人建议或许现代女性应该向性服务者学习，看看为什么男人宁愿偷葷冒爱滋的风险也不想看家里的黄脸婆。

黄脸婆？她是怎么成为黄脸婆的？当年你不是很乐意接受她一辈子吗？她的唠叨不是细心吗？她的嫣语不是浪漫吗？她的随性不是魅力吗？她的缺点不就是你心目中的优点吗？过了些年，怎么细心变成唠叨？浪漫变成奢侈？随性变成放荡？优点都变成缺点了？

一对怨偶在回想两人相处的日子里，似乎没有什么欢乐时光，一点值得回味的生活片段都没有。为什么？

人在回想过去的时候，多是不如意之事常八九。为什么？

伤痛的烙印难以磨灭，心头放不下，还能如意吗？

谢谢柯达。摄影技术从菲林提升到数码世界，照片把快乐永留。多一点快乐的回忆，人生便会少一些感伤。多一份感恩，便更能打开心扉，接受人生本就不完美的事实；多一份感恩，便更乐意接受不完美，但值得互重、真诚相待的伴侣。能够走完漫漫人生路，因为有你。

为她捕捉霎那间的永恒吧！有缘珍惜眼前人，本身就是一种快乐。

祈福

马六甲的青云亭其实是观音庙，历史悠久，是马来亚第一座寺庙，建庙日期可追溯到中国明朝年间。四百年风风雨雨，庙宇文化为许多当地华人造福(http://navalants.blogspot.com/2008/12/blog-post_27.html）。

四马路观音庙也属于“百年老店”，有125年的历史。建于1884年的观音庙是出了名的灵验，香火常年鼎盛，香客熙熙攘攘。观音庙门口的香架上摆放着礼佛的香客随喜的细香，随取任拿。男女老少，上班路过庙门的信徒都会停下来上香祈告，求个平安。是否真的如此灵验呢？心诚则灵嘛！


自小外婆便住在小坡马尼拉街七层楼组屋，楼下拐个弯便是奎因街（Queen Street，三马路）菜市场，再过一条马路便是四马路观音庙了。弟妹们跟着表哥在英校念书（实利基小学，Selegie School。Selegie Road 俗称七马路），为了方便上学，周日他们和母亲都住在外婆家，周末才是属于我们共处的时光。

每逢观音诞，总听到外婆和母亲说到观音庙上香求平安。观音诞似乎特别多，一年有好几回。她们说观音神通广大，所以诞辰也与众生不同。后来我才搞明白民间所谓的观音诞，其实是二月十九的观音诞、六月十九观音修道日及九月十九的观音成道日。

农历新年除夕夜，我们从新加坡河畔附近的老家和左邻右舍一块儿散步到观音庙，再“借”了大香一块儿走回家。半夜三更，路上人少车马稀，闪闪香火，缕缕青烟，这段路走得格外悠闲。欠债不欠过年，心结也不拖过年，平时同屋共住所引起的摩擦与不快都在这一夜的说说笑笑声中消除了。咱们街坊邻里，一走就走了十多年。


农历正月二十六是另一个特别的日子，四马路观音庙大开“财库”和“富房”，让善男信女借红包还红包。借红包是讨个财运，但也有人是为了讨个吉祥与平安。到了隔年同日，借红包的人必须加倍奉还。

四马路观音庙在1895年重修，1984年重修扩建。1941年12月8日，太平洋战争爆发，日本空袭新加坡，四马路也不可幸免。当时观音庙隔邻的几间房屋都被炸毁，四马路几乎被炸为平地，唯独观音显灵，庙宇安然无损，为观音庙增添不少神秘的色彩。

观音庙主殿内的主神像是十八手观音圣像。这座金碧辉煌的观音圣像，每十年镀金一次。在大年除夕的旺日，信徒有插头柱香的习俗。午夜十二时一到，等候多时的香客抢着把一柱虔心馨香插在庙前的大香炉上。他们相信能赶在大年初一第一时间插上头柱香，合家大小都会得到菩萨保佑，万事如意。



四马路地方小，不能跟牛车水比拟，但胜于“旧”，属于本地人，而非游客。多年来的除夕夜，我已习惯和太太两人在四马路感染一份温馨。去年今日此门中，人面桃花相映红。人面不知何处去，桃花依旧笑春风。百年如一日的观音庙，香火依然，不过奎因街菜市场没了，马尼拉街七层楼组屋早在1977年便落幕了，当年河畔的街坊们也各散西东，有些已经作古。一代新人换旧人，继承着除夕夜的传统，生生不息。





观音庙旁康和堂的龟苓膏已经成为太太和我这些年来团圆饭消化后的甜品，虽然食味比不上尖沙咀的海天堂，但已经足以让我们愉快入梦。

投奔怒海 Boat People

子贡问政，孔子说国家要安定只需三个条件：“足兵、足食、民信之矣。” 战争扭曲人性，摧毁家园。我们花大钱建立国防，就是为了避免战争。

26年前的农历新年除夕夜你在做什么？

首先为什么26？广东话26谐音“易禄”，福建话谐音“易luck”，都是好兆头，在经济不景的年头，特别动听。

1983年，除夕夜，奥迪安戏院。赐福、健茂和我赶半夜场，为了投奔怒海，也为了许鞍华、林子祥、缪骞人。看过戏后才认识新扎的马斯晨和二十岁的刘德华。26年后，奥迪安戏院落幕了，曲终人散了，林子祥和刘德华还是娱乐界的常青树，依旧活跃歌坛。


投奔怒海在百部经典港片中名列第五，故事追溯到1975年越共解放越南，日本记者芥川在岘港现场采访当时实况。三年后芥川重游旧地，认识了琴娘一家，并拍摄了不少珍贵照片。当地唯一被留下来的酒吧，由一位过气妈妈生主理。祖明既是她的情人，也是常客，正设法逃离越南。为了筹钱他袭击芥川，想抢去他的相机而被捕。后来芥川与祖明成了朋友，芥川获得特许送祖明到新经济区挖地雷，然而在那里，每天都有人遇上爆炸而无辜死去。芥川决定尽一切努力安排琴娘及二弟逃离越南，祖明也决意登上难民船，投奔怒海。芥川则在码头被焚，倒了下去…..。

当年军训长途行军，每当经过三巴旺的越南难民营，心头便会一酸。难民站在铁丝网篱笆内，带着形形色色的眼光与表情目送我们静悄悄地走过那道篱笆，那段短短的路似乎没有尽头。

1963年Bob Dylan的反战歌曲Blowin' in the Wind强烈反映了人们反战的心态:

How many roads must a man walk down, before you call him a man? Yes and how many seas must the white dove sail, before she sleeps in the sand? Yes and how many times must the cannon balls fly, before they’re forever banned? The answer my friend is blowing in the wind, the answer is blowing in the wind.

摄影师Nick Ut (Ut Cong Huynh) 的越战照片，在1972年获得Pulitzer新闻照片奖。当时南越军机轰炸被越共占领的展鹏地区，一群平民和南越军人躲藏的寺庙被空投炸弹击中，众人跑到街上逃生。有个九岁大的女童严重烧伤，裸着身体边跑边哭叫着“烫啊！烫啊！”



Nick Ut把女童送到医院。女童留医14个月，动了17次手术，奇迹般生还。女童名叫潘金福Kim Phuc，1986年获准到古巴留学，Nick Ut 也找到古巴來，探望他当年救过的小女童。在那里潘金福遇到越南青年Bui Huy Tuan，1992年兩人在古巴共结连理。潘金福在1996年美国越战退伍軍人紀念日发表演说，訴说那段痛苦的战争经历，她说往者已往，来日可追，现在不会怪罪任何人。

越战退伍軍人John Plummer已成为一名牧师，公开承认当年有份策划空袭，要求与她见面，请求宽恕。

1997年潘金福成为加拿大公民、联合国亲善大使； 2000年，潘金福在加拿大成立了Kim Phuc Foundation International，致力帮助世界上受战争创伤的儿童。2008年6月30日，她在加拿大国家电台发表演说 "The Long Road to Forgiveness"。从痛苦到接受，从释怀到宽恕是一段漫长的心路历程。


How many times must a man look up before he can see the sky? Yes and how many ears must one man have before he can hear people cry? Yes and how many deaths will it take till he knows that too many people have died?

How many years can a mountain exist before it is washed to the sea? Yes and how many years can some people exist before they’re allowed to be free? Yes and how many times can a man turn his head pretending that he just doesn’t see? The answer my friend is blowing in the wind, the answer is blowing in the wind.

这就是26年后重看投奔怒海的震撼。在人类发展史上，战争并没有平息。农历新年将至，还是那句藏在心头多年的老话，我们要和平不要战争，愿国泰民安。

黑暗尽头有曙光 At the end of the tunnel

到马六甲去不会错过鸡场街的和记鸡饭，这一趟马六甲妯娌们也随行，一伙人三辆车，倒也热热闹闹的。



为什么和记鸡饭？

早年新加坡密驼路的瑞记鸡饭名声响当当，牛车水戏院街两摊路边海南鸡饭， 其中一摊叫荣记，另一摊叫什么的，只在晚间营业，远近驰名，与今天的文东记不遑多让。想起来我的老家河畔芳园咖啡店的海南鸡饭也不赖，午饭时间人山人海，把小小的咖啡店都塞满了。

记得当年年纪小，吃海南鸡饭最享受那层皮，鸡皮不肥不好吃，皮和肉之间那一层胶汁最上乘。当时不知道什么叫胆固醇，也不管污染不污染，吃鸡的皮，吸鸡骨中的骨髓，那一顿大乐也。那一碟鸡杂，有鸡心、鸡肝、鸡肾、鸡肠等，蘸着姜戎酱油吃，极品！简直是“天下佳肴无觅处，不辞常作狮城人”！

同事令伟在海南琼海岳母家住了一个月，才刚回来，对海南岛的海南鸡饭倒没什么回味。可见本地的海南鸡饭已经乡土化，成为十足的本地佳肴了。

海南鸡饭起源自海南“文昌鸡”。顾名思义，文昌鸡因海南省文昌县(现已撤县设市)而得名。传统做法以 “白斩鸡”为主，至于 “鸡饭”，是农村家庭在逢年过节杀鸡还神时，用烫鸡的鸡汤煮成，再趁热把饭捏成鱼丸般大小的饭糰。

新加坡最早販卖海南鸡饭的是王义元。王义元从海南島琼海县南來謀生，因为年轻时曾在家乡学得“毓葵鸡饭店”的养鸡及烫鸡技术，因此初到新加坡時（1920年代）就手提兩个竹箩在小坡海南街以沿街叫卖白斩鸡及鸡饭为生，鸡饭团用香蕉叶包着，每包一分钱。

后来存到些钱，王义元便在海南二街的桃园咖啡店卖起鸡饭。1949年新中国成立，老先生思乡情切，把招牌取名为“王共产鸡肉”，名噪一时，大家只管叫他“王共产”，他所卖的鸡便称为“共产鸡”了。

王义元有个助手叫莫履瑞，在王义元结束了桃园咖啡店的生意后，便自己开了间瑞記，生意大好，成为新加坡海南鸡饭业的領头人。

回到和记鸡饭。陈老太太是一个普通的家庭主妇，丈夫以捕鱼为生。40多年前，丈夫捕鱼时被印尼海关拘捕，一去不复返。失去经济支柱的陈老太太为了养活五个孩子，灵机一动，把海南农村家庭祭祖的饭团拿到码头兜售，方便码头工人解决午餐。


沿街叫卖的日子渐入佳境，陈老太太改在咖啡店租个小摊位，继续卖鸡饭。苦拼了三年多，1970年，陈老太太开了和记鸡饭。从挑着一根扁担风雨无阻的日子到三个店面的和记鸡饭，就跟许多不向生活低头，勤劳刻苦，力求翻身的人们一样。陈老太太一家子还是过着淳朴的生活。




新加坡的王义元和马六甲的陈老太太隔了四十年。年代不同，大环境中的个人生活经历与搏斗的故事却有理念相似之处。成功对每个人的定义不同。回首来时路，在漫漫人生路上打了一场胜仗自然能笑得开心，笑得坦然。

到马六甲去不会错过鸡场街的和记鸡饭，主要是吃一道文化，吃一段历史，吃一顿回味，吃一个温馨。

When we met

When northeast meets southwest, what spark could it create?

When east meets west, what spark could it create?

In the article ‘ 季候风’, Sufen described the opportunities generated by the northeast and southwest monsoons at this part of the world. Such changes in wind direction brought prosperity and wealth into Southeast Asia, including Singapore. In 1861, sailed from Hong Kong to Singapore took about 7 days.

Through technology advancement, the travelling time had been shortened. In 1949, my father took 5 days to reach Singapore.

In the article‘赤道北纬一度的一颗红点’, Moses elaborated the monsoon seasons brought in different people, culture, religion, political system to a common destination and developed a place called Singapore. The uniqueness of Singapore lies in its one degree north of equator. This geographical location is where northeast meets southwest and east meets west.

I still remember my first few geography lessons in Primary 5. Teacher said Singapore was only 85 miles away from the equator. I asked what an equator was, could I feel it and touch it. Teacher asked me to go to Clifford Pier and face the sea. I would see a red line in the horizon far away which labeled ‘equator’. My classmates were laughing.

Walking to Clifford Pier from home took me about 20 minutes. That evening, I walked to Clifford Pier, facing the sea as what Teacher had directed me to do. No matter how hard I looked, there wasn’t such a red line. I was rather confuse but dared not to challenge my teacher the next day.

Nowadays travelling time is much shortened. Once upon a time, a group of us took less than 24 hours from different parts of the globe to meet at a foreign land. We were still young men and women then. Apart from our few England friends such as John, Jonathan and Rose who were brought up in the various counties of England, the rest of us were rooted in different soils. Greg and Peter from Canada, Jose, Maria and Celso from Portugal, Melanie from South Africa and migrated to Canada, Salim from Malaysia. There were others who came from Greece, Spain, Italy and Korea. My immediate neighbours were Swedish and Nigerian. In the research labs, I met people from Iran, Pakistan, India, Brazil and China.

(Picture: our destiny)

On a particular evening, these pair of Swedish couple walked to Sainsbury with us. They said the toilet paper provided by the hostel was too rough. They suffered from buttock pain. Oops, that was interesting.

My Nigeria friend and I spent our summer evening outside the hostel cafeteria under the breeze. Nigeria was a poor and a crime nation. He was pursuing a master degree in humanities. He said he would like to go back to Nigeria immediately after the course despite that many of his friends had decided to stay in England instead. He wanted to contribute back to his nation and the unlucky folks. He wanted to change their lives.

(picture: our flat in Camden Town)

(picture: our shared garden behind our flat in Camden Town)

In this international gala, the greatest divide among us was soccer matches. Our Canadian friends had not demonstrated much interest. As for the rest of us, well, we switched our roles between friends and foes for every 90 minutes. This is like the stories written by 古龙, ‘没有永远的敌人，没有永远的朋友’.

On a particular evening, we gathered at Greg’s home at Ealing Broadway, the last Underground Central Line station. Travelling in London underground was a unique experience. During the rush hour there wasn’t any private space between us. We could hear each other’s breathing, and feel each other’s body smell. More fascinatingly was the 60 over international languages that could be found in one train.

This grand finale was the only gala (apart from soccer matches) that we celebrated together. The best recollection for me was the exchanges with Melanie. She had super memory. She could remember every single family members from all of us after the brief introduction. Later I found out that she was serving as a hotel front desk officer in Cape Town. She attracted many returned customers simply because she could address them by name after their first met. And she could still remember their preferences when they met again years later.

She was quite confused between Singapore and China. Wasn’t Singapore a city of China? What language did Singaporean speak? What were the differences between Chinese Singaporean and Chinese in China? Tons of questions. My night had never been bored.

Years passed. After all the promotion effort such as Formula One, Olympic and WTO conferences, I hope Singapore is no longer a strange name in the international stage, and is no longer perceived as a province of China or a small town in Malaysia. Of course we could not change the history that modern Singapore was rooted from the China migrants since 1800s and Singapore and Malaya were inseparable.

(picture: Greg, melanie, Eugenia and I)

Food was a common subject that interested us. I told Melanie the cruel way of eating monkey’s brain. The monkey should be kept alive while breaking its skull, digging its brain and sucking its brain juice. People also ate dog meat by boiling the dog alive. In my childhood day, I saw hawkers killing python and giant turtle in China Town (Terengganu Street). Live. During my two-and-a-half years in the Army, I witnessed another way of killing and skinning a python. 7 inches from the snake head, chopped. The head surged ahead like a power-charged rocket. All were over within seconds. I also tasted the cold blood as part of the jungle survival training. It was really cold. No body temperature.

Melanie said that were disgusting. She would never eat such animals. In Africa, She ate elephant, giraffe, lion, zebra and hippo. Wow!

The grand finale gala dinner ended with ice cream. It was the best international serving and satisfied the whole world without controversy.

How about the mess after the long night? Greg and Melanie took care. By the way, Greg and Melanie were husband and wife. They still live in Vancouver, Canada.

Desaru Fruit Farm 百果园

雨后的果园巧妙地融合了雨露的清新与泥土的芬芳，神清气爽。导览员Irene对植物非常熟悉，通过华语一路生动地介绍各种植物水果的特性，原产地来自暹罗、巴西、澳大利亚等等，如数家珍，教我不能不打从心底深深佩服。



趁着年底长假，人在旅途，迪沙鲁果园是一个驿站。回到阔别经年的老地方，像是探望似曾相识的老朋友。Irene作为一位优秀的导览员，的确为我的旅途孕育了一道彩虹。

原来远在天边、近在眼前，出色的导览员不只局限在澳洲、中台、欧美等地；在我眼中，长堤彼岸迪沙鲁果园并不逊色。2006年12月一场百年水灾淹没哥打丁宜一大片土地，把果园远近驰名的蜜柑树毁了。今天的果园就像再生的凤凰，整装后又重新出发。

冬雨（热带没有冬天，但想象无罪）红了殷桃也绿了芭蕉。园内还有一个小小的旧日农村博物馆和农场，除了可以把大地作为课堂，还可以娱乐触摸，难怪年轻的朋友会乐翻了天。










Irene为我们介绍了百香果，她说百香果其貌不扬，不过奇妙不已。客人嚐过之后反应各异，有人说它像龙眼，有人说它像红毛榴櫣，还有苹果、荔枝、芒果、龙珠果、柠檬、番茄等，莫衷一是。

一路上心头怎么也抹不去的是新加坡博物馆。新加坡博物馆也是一个精心营造的课堂，也可以娱乐触摸。此外，新加坡博物馆有历史、有文化、有故事、有回忆；新加坡博物馆还有一群出色的华文义务导览员（不是因为我加入了这个团队才卖花赞花香，而是有目共睹的），可就不像中台的故宫或巴黎的罗浮宫，一旦踏上哪个城市，就非得造访不可的旅游胜地。

一步一脚印，这条路还是要走下去。资深义工这番话至少已经听过五回，停在耳中，是勉励、是心血、是体会，是百感交集。唔......就像百香果。


我想到怎么跟Irene分享了（其实是抬杠吧）！我说百香果的味道其实取决于心情，果园再好百香果再香甜，游兴欠佳，一切都是枉然。现代人有太多选择，要把好料献给游人，首先必须学会包装，吸引人到此一游；讲得难听点，这叫做请君入瓮，不过绝对是善意的。口碑一传开，游兴自然来。

谢谢Irene给我一个崭新的果园经验。

逐缘

远在London Surrey的Kuai Peng 捎来远洋的祝福：“Live a good honourable life. When you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.”

这是21世纪E-时代，通过Email，图文并茂，鱼雁相交太慢太含蓄太令人寻味，不符合现代的步伐。要不就通过布拉格（Blog）吧！根据2008年7月的统计，网上至少有七千万户布拉格，我们都可以自己在网上写书出书，这就是21世纪头一个年代的魅力！

念中学的时候还是淳朴的20世纪，学校的图书馆里有一份《七十年代》。这份香港杂志配合了那个年代，深受欢迎。1980年，李怡在为七十年代作总结时套用了狄更斯的《双城记》的开场白：“这是一个最好的年代，也是一个最坏的年代；这是一个智慧的年代，也是一个愚昧的年代。” 李怡进一步说:“ 这是一个希望的年代，也是一个失望的年代。”

从《七十年代》到《九十年代》，不仅仅是李怡个人的心路历程，也是这一代热爱中国神州大地的知识分子在理想与爱国道路上的转折路程。以今天2008年岁末，2009年伊始的角度回头看那一段旅程，你是充满快乐怡悦还是带些伤感遗憾？

当年冲洗菲林和照片都不便宜，收集的照片不多。不比现在的数码相机，要拍多少便拍多少，不合意？Erase便可，像现代人的情感，不用付出太多，心口也就不会永远的痛。

重翻七十年代和八十年代初的旧照片，像是发现新大陆似的，怎么多是集体照，而且还散发着浓浓的土味！是呀，我们都是中华文化的爱好者，就秉着这股热爱，我们相知相遇，为了一个集体，存异求同，为彼此的理想而奋斗。理想是什么？似乎很难说得上来，反正集体主义好，集体是一股暖流，伴随着我们成长，给我们一片绿洲。


小小口琴传友谊，秉烛交心在夜深。毕业后从集体郊游到小组交流，其中好些会友还进一步发展二人世界，化友情为爱情，共结连理，开了花也结了果。

三十年后口琴的故事像是尘封的记忆，谈心交心是当年文团的代言词。记忆中的他们在那里？别以为这是个小小世界，其实相知相遇是不可多得的缘分，缘聚则生，缘散则灭；有缘千里来相会，无缘隔门不相逢。我们好多都不再联络，再见面也似乎少了许多共同话题。





早年我们还会为此而惋惜，无可奈何花落去，一年一度燕归来般的一点点感伤。当我们掌握到这是个人生的过程，它只有往前走的路，不像电脑键盘，按下Control-Z，一切可以重来之后，便释怀而坦然处之了。在每一个不同的时期我们都在追寻着心灵的归宿，对生活洒然一笑，生活才会回报你一笑。拿得起、放得下；活在当下、珍惜当下，自然能无怨无悔。



有这么一则故事：老和尚抱着一位年轻貌美的少女过河，小和尚一路跟着，不禁脸红心跳。走了十里路，小和尚终于忍不住问道：“不是说出家人不近女色吗？刚才过河时你怎么把人家小姑娘抱得那么紧？”

老和尚笑道：“怎么过了十里路你的心还在打结？我早在过河后便已经放下了！”

万里无云万里天，心灵世界可以海阔天空，万里无垠，只在于我们拿起了什么？又放下了什么？