Lin Dai from Atlanta: Seniors, Happy New Year

Lin Dai from Atlanta: Seniors, Happy New Year. 2011 really flies by. It’s the end of the year in a blink of an eye. I have to go to work on weekdays, and go shopping and make delicious food on weekends...

Linda Lin from Atlanta: Happy New Year, seniors. 2011 really flies by. It’s the end of the year in a blink of an eye. I have to go to work on weekdays and go shopping on weekends to prepare delicious food for the holidays. When I came back from shopping that day, I saw a red thing placed in front of my house from a distance. I parked the car and looked at it. It was a wall calendar for 2012. My name was written on the transparent plastic bag outside, and it also said "Merry Christmas!!" The signature was "neighbor", and neighbor's neighbor means neighbor in traditional Chinese. I know who gave it to me because it's not the first one. The earliest was a few years ago when Chinese people in the community held a gathering. Among them was an old couple who must be in their seventies. They had children but worked out of state. Everyone had a great time chatting at the party and even left their phone numbers for easy contact. On Christmas Eve of that year, my neighbor’s old uncle sent me a wall calendar, which said, “Hello Lin Dai! Christmas is coming soon, and I am sending you a 2008 wall calendar. Merry Christmas! Neighbor, Lao Tan, 12-22-07.” Neighbor’s neighbor is the traditional Chinese character. From then on, Lao Tan would give me a wall calendar every December for five years. This reminds me of another thing. My first stop in the United States was Phoenix. It was also in Phoenix that I started writing. The first article I published was in the "Alberta Times" in Phoenix. The newspaper was run by President Zhen and his wife. They were from Guangdong and must have been about sixty years old at the time. I called them President Zhen and his wife. After my first article was published in the "Alberta Times", they promptly forwarded me the positive comments from the community and encouraged me to write more. At that time, the "Alberta Times" had my articles every week for a while. A few years later I left and came to Atlanta, and they started mailing me the "Alberta Times" for eight years. One year the president wrote a book about his hometown Kaiping Diaolou and sent me a copy. I also received an email in my mailbox two days ago, which was written by an old friend: "Lin Dai, happy New Year! On the occasion of Christmas and New Year, I send you an original song 'Toward Tomorrow'. I wish you a brilliant future! Lao Hua." We met Lao Hua many years ago. At that time, the choir was going to sing a song he wrote. The lyrics were very touching and deeply touched our hearts: "After studying in a foreign country through the spring, autumn, winter and summer, do you really like to wander around the world? Feeling the wonderful world outside, do you really want to settle here? With the five-star red flag rising, will the tears roll down?" Many of us Chinese who came to the United States have had the experience of hard work, and the unforgettable homesickness often makes us feel distressed. After Lao Hua retired, he returned to China, where hobbies such as painting, music, and photography enriched and embellished his life. A famous modern Chinese young female writer once came to Atlanta to give a lecture. She said that today's young writers have no sense of mission. This cannot be blamed on them because they live in a relatively stable social form. Some people in the audience expressed different opinions, saying that although there are no wars or major changes in modern China, people's concepts are experiencing the greatest turmoil in thousands of years, and traditional etiquette has suffered the greatest impact, which is reflected in the impetuousness of people's hearts and the impetuousness of society. But I saw the commitment, etiquette and modest gentlemanly demeanor from my neighbor Lao Tan, the boss Lao Zhen, and my friend Lao Hua, which allowed me to see the inheritance of Chinese culture. They are the seniors I admire. I sent back the healthy and delicious potato pie I made to my neighbor Lao Tan; I sent a check for subscribing to the newspaper in 2012 to the editorial office of the "Alberta Times"; I responded to Lao Hua's email and attached a little poem of mine "Luffa" in the email, "In the spring/I planted a loofah/I water it every day and fertilize it every day, hoping that it will grow up.//In the summer/the green leaves are all the way up. Climbing/There are also flowers like lotus pods. //In autumn/Lose gourds are hung on the wall/On the Mid-Autumn Festival table/In addition to moon cakes and grapes/There are also/there are loofahs.” I hope this little poem can make him relax in his busy schedule. Here I would like to pay my New Year greetings to my seniors, and wish you good health and all the best on the occasion of the New Year. . . . . Reply from the old reporter: Dear and lovely Lin Dai; please allow me to call you this. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for remembering us old people! Over the years, old friends have passed away one by one, Qu Lao, General Xu, and Fu Bo Pang. Even my wife passed away last October! At this point, I can’t write any more! All I can say is: Thank you from the bottom of my heart for remembering us! After reading your article, I am extremely comforted! Lao Zhen paused 2/23/2012 am