Feng

之前就有聽說信義區有個幾米繪本的大型裝置藝術，雖然很喜歡幾米的繪本，但覺得這小小的公車裡一定塞滿了人吧，就沒有很有興趣，還是喜歡靜靜的看幾米繪本就好。 這次是去信義房屋總公司面試，看到這台幾米月亮公車就停在他們公司前，後來才知道這個裝置藝術是由信義房屋和幾米合作推出。我進去的時候居然完全沒人，台灣就是很多熱潮，新聞一報，觀光景點就會擁擠、髒亂，過了一陣子熱潮消退回歸平靜，才能顯現出那個地方的美好。 沒人的幾米月亮公車，很安靜，可以到處拍攝也不會拍到人。以前有段時間總喜歡一個人到處逛逛，很享受那種一個人的自在和孤獨，想去哪就去哪，想走多遠就走多遠，看到很多新奇有趣的事物，逛了一些無意中發現的免費展覽，坐在大安森林公園寫寫東西。一個人在幾米月亮公車裡突然想到了以前那段時光，那是很重要的過程，先學會一個人獨處，才有辦法在兩個人的關係裡維持平衡。 我記得這個櫃子和裡面擺放的東西是出現在《星空》裡主角的爺爺奶奶家啊，找出書來看也確定是了，只是擺放的位置有一點不同，不知道是不是在《月亮忘記了》和《星空》都有出現這個櫃子和繽紛的擺飾。 車身後方會進入一個神祕的小空間，在裡面一直拍卻完全拍不出那種感覺，掛滿裱框的《月亮忘記了》繪本內容，上下都是鏡面，小小的空間裡產生一種無限延伸的錯覺，每個畫作都會時亮時暗，就像星星閃爍非常美麗夢幻。

The Joy Luck Club   written by Amy Tan includes sixteen interwoven stories about conflicts between Chinese immigrant mothers and their American-raised daughters. When the mothers bring their Chinese patriarchal discourses and values to America and impose on their American-born daughters, the severe conflicts occur. From the conflicts to reconciliations, we can see how the mothers relieve from their painful memories, change their values, and reconcile with their daughters; how the daughters free from the conflicts and experience the process of their maturity through explorations of relationships with their mothers, which suggests that every woman who is also a daughter can attain her genuine maturity through sincerely exploring her relationship with her mother. In this novel, the author focuses on mother and daughter relationship so I am going to offer some statements on the mother and daughter bonding. Adrienne Rich analyzed that motherhood is an institution in patriarchy ...

Way of the Peaceful Warrior is a part-fictional, part-autobiographical book based upon the college life of the author Dan Millman. He was arrogant because he was a world-champion athlete. However, gradually, he was haunted by a feeling that something was missing from his life. After he met an old Socrates, and his world was changing from then on. I am deeply influenced by this book. My reflections will be divided into three parts. First, Socrates wrote: "Happiness ＝ Saticfacation/Desires" and he said: "You are rich if you have enough money to satisfy all your desires; or, you cultivate a simple lifestyle of few desires; that way you always have enough money." I have ever heard this kind of words before but it is hard to do. Although reducing our desires is a difficult process, we can be happier if it becomes our habit. Second, "I do not live according to anyone's expectations, not even my own," Socrates said. I am impressed by this word b...

A Letter in Winter     Winter was coming. It was evening but the winter sky was dark. A freezing wind blew through Mary’s thin clothes as she walked through the village on the way home from her junior high school. Mary walked alone on the snow-covered road, saw many trees without leaves, and felt that chilly wind blow on her face. Her face prickled. As she passed the houses, she saw some families eating dinner together. She felt lonelier so she walked as quickly as possible.    Winter was a season Mary hated most because it seemed that everyone should have happy reunions and celebrate Christmas or Thanksgiving with their family members. It was almost as cold in Mary’s house as it was outside. The coldest season was not only freezing inside her house but also freezing in her mind. As she came home, she saw a man running into her mother’s bedroom as if he was afraid of being seen by Mary. The appearance and the behavior of this man made her rage. Ma...

     Animal Farm written by George Orwell reflects the Russian   Revolution of 1917. I t uses animals on an English farm to tell the history of Soviet communism. The animals on the Manor Farm prepare for the rebellion because they believe that life without human beings is better . They succeed in driving the drunken farm owner Mr. Jones from the farm , renaming it "Animal Farm" . They write down Seven Commandments of Animalism, the most important of which is, "All animals are equal."      However, equality is too difficult to achieve. In Utopia, an imaginary place envisioned by Sir Thomas More, people are equal and share their food and property. They feel content and happiness. In reality, most communist societies end up with appearing a powerful, sometimes brutal, ruler, like Napoleon, the totalitarian leader in Animal Farm . People do not have motivation to work hard because even they work harder they cannot get more. They will rely on oth...

    The Bluest Eye written by Toni Morrison is about a black girl Pecola believing that whiteness and blue eyes are beautiful and that she is ugly. When Pauline, her mother, looks at the blue eyes of the little girl in the white household she works for, she is full of love and treats that girl gently. She feels jealous and has a craving for blue eyes because she believes that if she has the bluest eyes, she will be loved.      Sometimes, we love someone at the wro ng time or place, or in the wrong ways. Cholly Breedlove, Pecola’s father thinks his daughter is ugly, disliked and despised by others. He loves her but he does not know how to love her. With mixed feelings of tenderness and hatred that are fueled by guilt, he rapes her.              I think my parents are the most influential people in my life. They teach me how to love and knowing I am worthy to be loved. However, her father is always drunk, ...

歐洲文學課看了一部傳記電影《莎岡日安憂鬱》 (Sagan) 。莎岡十九歲出版的處女作《日安憂鬱》 (Bonjour Tristesse) 讓她一砲而紅，但她酗酒、好賭、揮霍生命和金錢，最後染上藥癮無法自拔。一開始看就可以感覺到她的人生結局必然孤獨，這樣的享樂主義和不在乎長久的關係真的會讓人快樂嗎？ 雖然才看了一點就可以預測到故事的發展和結局，還是覺得整部電影非常精采，可能是因為莎岡的真實人生就是如此精彩，但在我看來是精彩也是瘋狂，我並沒有嚮往那種瘋狂，看著她的一生，那是我這輩子不會體會到的生活，因為我並不想要。 　　 看了莎岡的傳記電影後，對她寫的書就更好奇了，十九歲就寫出了這本驚豔文壇的《日安憂鬱》 (Bonjour Tristesse) ，我有想過會不會只是因為大家炒作而讓這本書如此暢銷？前面三分之二是看老師印給我們的英文版本，後面三分之一是看我從圖書館借的中文版，真的覺得那是只有十九歲少女才寫得出的青春時期內心矛盾和輕狂。很多老師都說，不可以把作品中的主角當成作者本身，但我在看這本書時還是一直覺得主角瑟西爾 ( Cécile) 的價值觀和內心世界就是作者莎岡的啊，似乎也預示了莎岡自己享樂、自由卻孤獨終老的一生。 就如書中安娜所言，賽西麗 的父親雷蒙 (Raymond) 到某個年紀，將不再具有吸引力以及健壯的身體，也不能再喝酒了，但仍然想著女人。為了擺脫孤獨，他們只好花些錢，做許多妥協，以便使自己不感寂寞，然後會漸漸地感覺傷感，甚至變得落魄不堪。不只是男人會如此，很多一輩子崇尚享樂主義的男女，他們的人生結局好像大致如此吧。有人喜歡細水長流的幸福，有人想要轟轟烈烈如煙火般燦爛短暫的激情快樂，沒有好壞或對錯，只是人生的選擇不同。 看著法國少女瑟西爾的十七歲，我也想者自己的十七歲，同樣的是內心常常矛盾，對很多事情其實沒那麼瞭解，卻又自以為很懂，有點自我中心的感覺。不同的是對感情的態度，她其實不確定自己是否真的愛希里樂 (Cyril) ，仍和他接吻、做愛，享受戀愛的快樂，老師上課時問，現在誰會覺得初戀就要走一輩子？沒有人舉手，但我內心想著，其實我滿希望可以這樣的，很幸福的感覺。 已經有二十二年慢慢累積起來的價值觀，就沒辦法很客觀的看書中那對父女的享樂行為，在他們看來，我應該也像安娜 (Anne) 一樣，過著...

       很開心有機會能夠成為國際公平貿易編譯志工，因為我滿喜歡台灣公平貿易協會所關注的議題，像是協助與促進世界貧窮國家的弱勢生產者獲得經濟獨立的機會，並推動全球農業與環境的永續發展，尤其是環境永續發展這部分我特別有興趣。                    這次培訓發了一本書《香蕉戰爭與公平貿易》（ Fighting the Banana Wars and other Fairtrade Battles ），作者是國際公平貿易組織執行長哈里特‧蘭姆（ Harriet Lamb ）。拿到之後馬上看了一下，一開始就講到了貧窮國家的農民在香蕉園工作時必須使用一種殺線蟲的農藥來殺死危害香蕉根部的寄生蟲，但這種殺線蟲劑會讓人不孕或是生出畸形兒，世界上有那麼多貧窮國家的農民深受這些後遺症之苦，卻沒有改變的能力。      我們總覺得殺蟲劑、農藥和生產者比較有關係，我們不會每天接觸到農藥而有明顯因農藥產生的病變，所以會漠不關心，覺得那太遙遠了。之前看了瑞秋‧卡森（ Rachel Carson ）的《寂靜的春天》（ Silent Spring ），這本書指出人類再過度使用殺蟲劑，春天將因喪失鳥鳴而寂靜，不再鳥語花香，危害的不只是自然生態環境，也將毒害全人類。      這次培訓真的讓我對國際公平貿易有更深入的瞭解，以前對國際公平貿易組織的認識就只有協助貧窮國家的農民能夠維護自己的權益，現在知道他們不是以捐贈給錢的那種援助方式，而是提供訓練或教育，涵蓋的範圍很廣，包括給予女性受教育的機會、培養生產者就業與經濟獨立的能力。不是給魚吃，而是教他們釣魚，這是比較長遠的方式。      介紹公平貿易和全球咖啡問題的主講人為台灣公平貿易協會理事 余宛如小姐，可以感覺到她對他們所推廣的公平貿易和所做的事情非常有熱情和野心，努力用自己微薄的力量去一點一點地改變這個不公平的世界，很多貧窮國家的農民會因此能夠受教育，受教育是他們改變命運就此翻身的一大機會。或許這個世界不可能有公平的一天，但會...