The
past 20 days have been horrendous. It showed me, once again, how fragile
life can be and how small the gap is between life and death... And yet, I
managed to find my inspiration toward the end of this incredible trip.
One
early morning, I met this 98 years old man on Chang An Street in downtown
Beijing. He retired at age 60 and has been learning and practicing
Chinese Brush Writing for 38 years. For the past 20 years, he has been
coming to this location every morning (except for cold winter or rainy days) to
write Chinese poems on the ground with a large brush filled with water.
At age 98, he has memorized many, many poems, and he can write for days without
duplicating them. Every morning, he would ride his little scooter from
home to here and spend over an hour writing on the street. He brings a
small music box with him every day, and it plays classic Chinese music the
entire time while writing.
At
age 98, his mind is sharp, voice strong, and steps steady. He tells me
that when he gets home, he would continue his brush writing on paper for the
rest of the morning. He was a farmer for all his life and did not know
anything about traditional Chinese brush writing until he retired at age
60. He has been persistently learning and practicing the brush writing
techniques for the past 38 years, and along the way, memorized hundreds of
Chinese poems!
His
daily routine is very simple. Getting up at 4am. Drinking tea for 2
hours followed by a small breakfast. Then taking his trip to Chang An
Street (where I met him). Staying here for over an hour, then going back
home around 10am. He continues writing until lunch time. One hour
nap after lunch. Watching TV or spending time with his grandchildren in
the afternoon... At age 98, he learned how to use his cell phone to take
pictures AND send photos to his big family group through social media - WOW!!
His
brother is 103 this year, and they are both living a long, healthy and happy
life!
Beijing, China
August 21, 2018
