On the occasion of retiring the old and welcoming the new, six columnists of the "Seven Cups of Tea" special edition of Yangcheng Evening News summed up what they saw and felt in 2021 -
·Living color·
My 2021: Inner order cannot be chaotic
Xie Xiao[Guangzhou Entertainment Blogger]
The year is destined to be extraordinary. Many rules have been implemented, and the new life after the test of the epidemic is even more exciting.
In the past year, I have also suffered losses in bad rooms, tried the production of video numbers, read a lot of non-fiction works, and thought about the trade-off between "inner volume" and "lying flat" in the personal workplace, and how to survive in the new order in the face of the rolling Internet "back wave".
At a sharing session the other day, I heard Wu Xiaobo's answer about his "why don't you do Douyin". He said it was hard to imagine how to express clearly what he wanted to say in a minute, and if it didn't work, it wouldn't be. But he says content is always the most important thing in any era. His trade-offs made me see that the so-called non-compliance is actually nothing more than insisting on doing what you are good at.
Some people say that now is an era of "the leftovers are king", and whoever persists the longest may become the last to climb the top. Because those short-termists will eventually retreat in the challenging and dangerous way, it is possible to persist in climbing to the top with ideals.
Deeply. So in the coming year, I also remind myself that whether it is rolled or flat, it is an external gesture and it is not important. What really matters is that the inner order cannot be chaotic.
Rejection of popularity ·
My 2021: Middle age that dare not slacken off
Cao Lin [Beijing Current Affairs Commentator]
After forty years, the middle-aged mentality begins to stand out. The uncertainty brought about by the epidemic and the great changes in the professional environment have exacerbated the anxiety of middle age this year.
Middle age is an age that bears all kinds of expectations, is dependent on and is easily injured, there is a paragraph on the Internet that says: Don't scold young people loudly, they will resign immediately; for middle-aged people can be scolded to death, especially if there are children with mortgages - my middle-aged state of mind, not afraid of who dares to scold me, I am afraid of being disappointed. When the "front wave" and "back wave" were most discussed, the "middle wave" was silent. Carrying the weight of life, they did not have time to discuss these pseudo-issues, and their circle of friends had always been quiet and light, but their feet were desperately paddling.
I saw a legal scholar I like write a year-end testimonial, which is particularly affectionate: "One of the tricks that people have to learn in middle age is that even if they are in a bad situation, they must show a light and breezy appearance." This is not a kind of hypocrisy, it is the dignity that a middle-aged person should have. It's not that there are no tears, it's not that there are no moments of collapse, it's just that it doesn't fit to be expressed in a way that lacks moderation. ”
The days were very plain, reading, writing, teaching, lecturing, and being friends with the best group of young people, but I didn't encounter anything awkward, but I was worried that I would fail. Because the work he is engaged in is related to the public, there are countless pairs of eyes staring at themselves expectantly.
I even worry that my "middle-aged mentality" will affect the expression, and the loss of freshness and sharpness in the comments will bring bad examples to students. I have always reminded myself in my writing that I should be calm, rational and mature, but I must not lose the sharpness and critical gene that comments should have. After so many years of media and journalism, it is inevitable that some tiredness, powerlessness and professional indifference will accumulate, but when I communicate with young people, I try not to pass on these tiredness to them. They are just in full bloom, they should feel the vitality from them and their original intention of commenting, learn from their new talents, rather than using "middle-aged twilight" to suppress and discipline them.
The maturity of middle age is also manifested in the fact that it is no longer easy to tear up or fill with righteous indignation, to accept that the person who loves has shortcomings, to hate people has advantages, to accept that the facts are not black and white, and to accept the complexity of human nature. Do the right thing and accept those "backfires." It has been said that immature people must be assured at all times that the final outcome will be satisfactory. Middle-aged, accepting the imperfections and imperfections, embracing the real life.
·If I smell ·
My 2021: In Simulation Space
Li Xuetao [Professor, Beijing University of Foreign Chinese]
This is the second year in the shadow of COVID-19. Slowly, I myself became accustomed to wearing a mask and brushing health codes everywhere. From "Delta" to "Omikejong", these constantly mutated strains seem to have nothing but more and more chaotic listening, more and more tired listening. When I used to read the History of Germany, it was inconceivable to read that the philosopher Hegel and the Prussian Field Marshal Gneissenau both died of cholera in 1830-1832. Today I am slowly feeling unusual.
Due to the epidemic, many of them were cancelled, many reports were online, a lot of socializing was postponed, and I didn't go abroad for two years. Many friends who used to meet in seminars and workshops can only take a picture in the simulation space. In this way, some books that I did not have time to read before are now gradually put on the agenda. Many manuscripts, according to the rhythm of life in the past, may have to be delayed until retirement and will not have time to sort out, and now they are also revised at the urging of the publishing house.
In the first half of this year's book, there was a monograph of mine, "Jaspers and China: On the Construction of World History of Philosophy", which is my experience in translating and researching Jaspers's philosophy for many years. In the second half of the year, he published a pamphlet "Thought Sketches" written two years ago, and also published a German edition of the "Bibliography of Chinese Literary Works in German Translation", which is the 8th and final volume of the German edition of the "History of Chinese Literature" compiled by my teacher Professor Gu Bin, which also put an end to the "life's work" he has been working on for more than 30 years. When the book was published in Germany a month ago, Gu Bin wrote to me that he had been crying all night, before he was really desperate, thinking that he would not see the complete publication of his 10-volume history of Chinese literature in his lifetime.
With 5G technology, the entire world will be connected to each other in a very short time. No matter where they are, people can learn about the outbreak in countries and continents in real time through the Internet, smartphones and social media, which is unprecedented in human history. In the past, we have always believed that man's perspective is limited, and only God has a comprehensive perspective, but today it seems that man can also have a global vision with the help of technology.
Ephemeral Words·
My 2021: Gentle and tranquil scenery
You Jin [Singapore Writer]
In 2021, the menacing epidemic has no momentum, and since we can't face it, we have to take a detour – the bustling avenues are of course full of flowers, and the quiet trails also have gentle and tranquil scenery.
In the middle of this year, after the publication of the book "Toothbrush Grows on a Tree" in Singapore, the publisher wanted to hold a press conference for me, but it was cancelled several times because of the continuous ravages of the virus. In December, the publisher finally decided to change from offline to online. The computer screen looks cold and lonely, but there is a silent hilarity behind it.
For many years, I have continued to open "creative training classes" for students, but this year many schools have asked me to change the physical courses to online classes, and I have always disliked the cold and hard online classes, however, the epidemic situation is not going to go, I can't stand still; under the attempt, I actually found that online classes can also have two-way communication with water and milk, which is really gratifying!
Walking in the global village has always been my "perennial schoolwork", however, the endless epidemic has set up a floodgate of "this road is not open" on the borders of the world, and for a whole year, I have lived at home and have no steps. The original flight ticket to Nigeria has been changed and changed, and it is still impossible to travel. Since the epidemic is strong in the way, since we can't do it against each other, we can only change our course - abandon the plan of pursuing "external beauty" in foreign countries, and instead explore "inner beauty" in our own country. Originally, I thought that the small island of projectiles had nothing to look at, where did I know that the "true face of Lushan Mountain" was colorful.
In the new year, the epidemic may still be entangled, but if we learn to put a golden edge on the dark clouds, build a protective fence next to the abyss, and find another way outside the ordinary avenue, we can still live a tasteful life.
·Horizontal eyebrow heat pair ·
My 2021: Face-to-face value
Xiaoyan Yang[Professor, School of Communication and Design, Sun Yat-sen University]
2021 is about to become history.
Personally, as a teacher, the most important thing this year is that I have been able to face students in class without having to take online classes.
More than ten years of teaching experience, standing on the pulpit and talking to students, is a kind of daily life, not special. However, after a whole year of online classes in 2020, relying on videos in virtual classrooms to face the same virtual students, we understand the true value of interpersonal communication. The value is: face to face. In class, you face the vivid faces and impart knowledge on the spot; the classroom air reverberates with real sounds without electric current, and different breaths, and inadvertent trembling.
There are many people behind the efforts, the participation of many volunteers, and the dedication of free, so that there will be this vivid face-to-face. At the most tense time, the school is urgently mobilized, all nucleic acid tests, and teachers and students line up together. Students are not allowed to leave the school, teachers are not allowed to go out at will, cannot cross provinces, and cannot even leave the city. It's all about being able to face each other and maintain a scene full of life.
We did it. Towards the end of the semester, we have been teaching in the classroom and sharing knowledge with students face to face. 2021, an extraordinary year, this alone is enough to say it all.
In 2022, may we remain like this, face to face!
·Unconsciously·
My 2021: A Complicated Dream
Zhong Hongming [Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Shanghai Harvest Magazine]
Last night, I had a complicated dream and woke up with an unusually clear scene. In front of me was a row of small sealed jars, containing different coffee beans, and a small plate of ground coffee powder gleaming roughly. In the dream, I also thought about it: the particles are too thick. Is this the thickness required for hand punching?
I love tea and I love coffee. Time passes in their elegant or rich aromas, but you may not be able to find the imprint they leave behind. Is the meaning of one's own life worth it worth it, need to be proven? When I was younger, I thought it was not necessary, and the perception and experience of the most egotistical and important, but now, an intern in the office is leaving and going to study film in the UK. She asked me for advice? I'm just saying: Develop your ego, because the emotions that are tangled up at this time, the things you do, the people who pass by, may soon be passing through the clouds. Is this what it means to want her to leave a "proof"?
Looking back at my 2021, in addition to my busy daily editing work, I think of the days when I left Shanghai: to visit the writer Yang Zhengguang in Huangshan, to huangshi in Hubei Province to hold a reading meeting, to Beijing four times... Once I went to Beijing, I suddenly wanted to play, because I had been in a hurry for many years. So when the college roommate took me to visit the Summer Palace, the sun was shining, the late spring wind was blowing, we were against the flow of people, walking slowly, suddenly in the bushes, I saw a great uncle swimming, looking at the arch bridge with a high curve, I wondered that the bridge was used to enter the painting and look at the distance, not to give people a walk, because there is a low-curved bridge next to it. That night, a friend from Inner Mongolia sent a message: You have walked such a long way today? One look, oh, more than ten kilometers. The last time I left Shanghai this year was to go to Beijing for a congress. The night before leaving, the closed loop ended, it was time to let the wind party go, the car passed through Ten Mile Chang'an Avenue, past the bright and silent Tiananmen Square, turned around, and finally arrived in the depths of an alley. When you get out of the car, it is in front of the door of Lu Xun's former residence. In 1924, Lu Xun wrote: "In my back garden, I can see two trees outside the wall, one is a jujube tree, and the other is also a jujube tree. "It should be right here. The night was as cold as ice, and the place where friends gathered was next door to Lu Xun's former residence, a director's studio.
This year marks the 200th anniversary of Dostoevsky's birth, and I remember saying, "I'm afraid I don't deserve the suffering I've suffered." "Do I dare to say that to myself?
December 26, 2021 "Yangcheng Evening News" A08 "Seven Cups of Tea" edition
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Source | Yangcheng Evening News Yangcheng Pie
Editor-in-charge | Wu Xiaopan