As dusk falls, the shrike flies, the wind blows through the black maple trees.
Keywords
Nature Observation, Reading, Podcast, Anxiety
Nature Observation
You don’t go to heaven when you die. You go to heaven when you’re born.
—— Jim Lovell (Astronaut)
Since I started birdwatching in April, I have realized that nature observation is a completely new deconstruction of the world around me. When I turn my gaze to nature, I discover the beauty of the creatures on this planet, which astonishes me. For a bird or a plant, language, images, and videos are all forms of deconstruction. However, the deconstruction through language causes a 90% loss and distortion of information, and images and videos also bring varying degrees of information loss, yet I have lived for 36 years behind this layer of deconstruction.
“Guanguan ju jiu, on the river islet,” “Two yellow orioles sing among the green willows,” “The wild geese fly south,” “How can the sparrows know the ambitions of the swans?”
These words are incredibly familiar to me, but beneath the surface, what is an oriole, what is a wild goose, what do they look like, I not only do not know, but I have never even thought about it.
This is an oriole
Wild goose
In the past six months, I have gone from only knowing pigeons to seeing blackbirds and shrikes with my own eyes, and then to copper-blue flycatchers and gray-throated babblers; from only knowing phoenix trees and white poplars to becoming familiar with black maples and green velvet herbs. I have embarked on an unprecedented journey of discovering nature.
Some say, You only see what you know, and it is true. After I recognized the shrike, I could see it almost every week; for me, it truly exists.
Reading
I have finished reading about 20 books, and read a bit of around 15 of them.
Collection of Haikus by Kobayashi Issa
So this world of dew
Is a world of dew
And yet, and yet
I know this world
Is as fleeting as dew
Yet, yet
The River Flows West
Even in the humblest of bones, there are rivers.
Should I Leave?
Just after finishing this novel, I heard that the author's second son also committed suicide. For this genius Chinese-American female writer, how could life's suffering be any less?
Patients of the Song Dynasty
Full of absurdity, yet it is historical fact.
A madman, a lunatic, can determine the fate of a nation; how absurd it is.
Yet, believing that some simple frameworks of yin and yang can make one omniscient and all-encompassing, little do they know that limitations are the foundation of modern science.
The resulting regression (ancestors were omniscient and all-encompassing, only needing to interpret and practice) will inevitably lead to a downward spiral that misleads the nation and its people.
Why Should There Be Libraries in the World?
If there comes a day when my ambition surpasses my compassion, I will have lost my soul.
Biography of Du Fu
The life of China’s greatest poet has been lived this way; what grievances can ordinary people have?
Nine Poetic Hearts
Those great poets: Sima Qian, Li Ling, Tao Yuanming, Cao Pi, Du Fu, Wen Tianxiang, Li Qingzhao, how do they exist after being thrown into a hopeless and rough life due to the rapid decline of their dynasty?
Fish Do Not Exist
Fish do not exist; chaos is the only dominant force in the world.
There are no leaps in nature.
“From this perspective, life is so magnificent.” — On the Origin of Species
Podcast
This year I listened to podcasts for 245 days, totaling 194 hours; I really didn’t expect that. These podcast programs comfort me, bring inspiration, expand boundaries, and provide enlightenment. I have listened to so much that I cannot recount them all; let me pick a few that left a deep impression.
It’s Raining All Over the World
Action is the best medicine against anxiety.
Dialogue with Gao Liming
In 2030, China will have 400 million people who have attended university; this is the biggest trend.
Jumping into the Rabbit Hole about Bodybuilding and Technology
There is not a single bodybuilder who competes without taking testosterone, and this drug only has one time and countless times, until it becomes irreversible.
Anxiety
This year, my reading has greatly decreased due to overwhelming anxiety.
The whole world is raining; various common senses are being shattered, accelerating the decline.
Fortunately, at the moment I write these words, I still have not given up the fight.
Remarks
From this perspective, life is so magnificent.
—— Darwin
I knew life was meaningless when I was five years old. My way of coping was to detach myself and immerse myself in concrete work, so that I would not fall into depression and despair.
—— Woody Allen
2025
I hope God shows me a path with a wild body, allowing me to powerfully recognize more birds and plants.
In 2024, I did not give up treatment, and in 2025, I will not either.