As you passed through the spring, the summer of your life, you're, just about through with the, autumn too, and what comes next, is the, winter, and you're already, prepared for it, because you'd done all the work, all those, seasons from before, and now, you can, retire with, ease…translated…
I'm Currently at the Winter Season of the Fourth Stage of My, Life, I Should, Review Over the Path I'd, Already, Taken to Get to Where I Currently, Am, Feel Glad Over What I'd, Achieved, and, Start Working on What I Still, Hadn't, Gotten, To……………....
After Brushing Shoulders with Death, I'd, Made Up My Mind, to Sketch ALL 319 Counties in Taiwan
the writer, who's a sketch artist, with his wife...photo from online
A year to two years before I'd filed for retirement, my body started giving me the alert, signals. Thinking on them now, maybe it was, my hypertensions, that the physician prescribed too heavy a dosage, or it may have been my pressures at work, I'd often felt stuffy in the chest, I'd, fainted quite, frequently, and exerted other signs of low blood, pressure. I'd, gone into the garage (the hospital) for a "tune-up", did a ton of scans, tests, but, not a single problem showed on my charts. Those days I'd, brushed shoulders with death, they'd made me, think about, what am I, slaving my life away for work for? Beginning in the middle or the elementary school years, I'd been entering into the art competitions, had even won a county comic first prize. Thought, that maybe, it's time, for me, to pick up my love for drawing, again. And so, with my families backing me, supporting my dreams, I'd, retired early, and reset my own, life.
The first, second year after I'd, just retired, I'd, set up the goals to sketch out ALL 319 counties in Taiwan, and I actually, had, trekked across more than three hundred counties, and sketched them all down too, there were, only a few handful that were, a bit, more difficult for me to get to to, sketch out. During this period of time, I'd sketched down the dorms of the original Taipei prison during the Japanese ruling era, in the past and present, tenses: the way the building looked originally, the process of it being, demolished, the tree advocates' protests, and how it looks currently, I'd also, managed to sketch out the Dongxing Building in Taipei after the major quakes of September 21st, 1999, along with gone to the mid strips to sketch how the land was, totally, in ruins, after it was, destroyed by the, quakes.
During those days I'd drawn, there were, a couple more of interesting things, for instance, as I set foot on to Ludao and Lanyu, there were the typhoons, the quakes, that I was, "islet-locked" for five whole, days; while I was sketching when I was out, I'd bumped into the dogs barking at me, and the vicious owner asking me, "what are you doing here!", I'd, escaped, in a, hurry, I don't suppose, he thought I was, from the government, to check to see if his home was, illegally built?
And, there was someone who saw me with my sketch pad, doing my sketches by the side of the road, and mistook me for the parking attendee, rushed over to me, and told, "please don't ticket me, I'll be gone now". And, I'd, stood before the corner of the train entry to sketch, and someone mistook me for conductor, and handed me a ticket. So many times, I'd, gone to the restaurants with the families, and sketched out the chef, cooking, or the guests from the adjacent table, drinking, and the waiter caught me, and was surprised, and asked for my work, and, I'd, received the items we'd ordered at a discounted, cost, I'd viewed these, as "making friends with my, sketches."
he was, formerly the chief engineer of the Central Research Agency, at age fifty, he'd retire suddenly, and, began living his, first dream, as an, artist, and he's now, a professional artist...this is him in Spain at a ski resort, sketching, photo courtesy of UDN.com
Recalling back to the day I'd, retired, I'd told my wife, "from before when I'd worked, you'd always, prepared the hot meals for me, and now I'm retired, starting tomorrow, I shall be, the home cook, making the meals, for you to come home to eat." I'm normally, not articulate on love, and can only, use my actions to show. And afterwards, I'd, lived up to the promises I'd made to my wife, shopping, cooking, preparing the fruits for after the meals, the dishes, the laundry too, I'm a, self-proclaimed, "househusband" now.
When I was in Taipei, I'd called myself a "balcony farmer", every day, I'd set aside some time, to care for the flowers, and made my small, vegetable garden, planting the vegetables, the small fruits, as well as the herbs, in the limited space that I have on our, balcony. As I'd returned back to Taichung, the plants in my garden were also, under, my, surveillance, there was, more than enough, physical activities I was, doing. Once, my wife was reading "Cinderella" with my young grandson, I'd, served my wife a cup of coffee, some, desserts, and my three-year-old young granddaughter blurted out, "there's a man-version of Cinderella at our home too, it's grandpa!", which showed, that my families are, noting me, giving back to them.
From the Rivers & Mountains to the Supper Tables, Documenting Life Using "Drawing Diary"
On those days of rain, when I couldn't, head outside, or on those days I didn't go out, I'd, used reading and movies, to add to my energies. Like how the silkworms, before making themselves into a cocoon, they'd gone on that, eating, binge, having enough of the mulberry leaves, will make them produce high quality silks. My wife is a writer, there would be those who'd gifted her with the volumes of books, or that she'd, purchased the books from online, the movies, the C.D.'s, and, all that she'd received, I'd, gotten dibs on. I could read over forty books per year, and, three, to four hundred, films. When I was watching those movies, I'm not just, watching, I'd, sketched out those, classic screen, shots.
I deeply believed the words of a master from the Song Dynasty, "making friends with all living creatures, finding inspirations in nature". I can, draw anything, from the mountains, the rivers, the oceans, to the smaller, a fresh bouquet I bought for my wife, the supper that's served on the tables, sketching became a way I'd, documented my daily life. My wife posting on FB, using the essays to document her days, while I'd, "sketched" my retirement days, away. And I'd, accumulated to a total of, close to, seven hundred sketch, books to date.
a book with his sketches, written by his own, wife, image from online
Other than enjoying being me, thankful that the editors in chief loving my work, I'd, also, sketched the pictures for the articles here in Taiwan, and in other, countries too, and I'd, co-authored two volumes with my wife, she wrote, I sketched; I'd sent in my submissions for the art exhibitions as well, and, in the encouragement of my families, and their pushing me, had two art shows, and that is, the grade report for my, retirement.
Through the sketches I'd made over the years, the land I'd, visited with my feet, interactions shared with strangers, all of these, had, loosened my originally, too rigid belief, systems, I'd gained more flexibility in interactions with those around me, more tolerant toward others, and, gotten to know the place I live in.
If life can be divided by the increments of twenty-five years, it can be divided into, four, and these are the, seasons of, life.
The first twenty-five, is the spring for learning; the second twenty-five we'd spent, giving to work, to family, that's the summer, the third, finding back what we wanted to do, to set up a hobby which we can keep doing to pass the time into, the elderly, years, that's the autumn; and now, I'm in the, winter, it's time, that I evaluate the path I'd taken, to get to where I, currently, am, feeling glad for what I'd, accomplished, and, try to get to what I had yet to, complete, then, keep my health physically, and show the love, without holding anything, back.
I think, I'd, prepared for my winter, just about.
So, this is, the seasons of life, and what you'd, learned in those, four seasons, and now, as your autumn is about to, turn into, winter, you have no fears for the harsh weather, because you'd, prepared yourself for this final stage of your life, you'd, found the hobbies to keep you busy, returned back to your family
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