Chapter 664: January 1st: When the New Year's bell rings

January 1st: When the New Year's bell rings

January 1st: When the New Year's bell rings

When the New Year's bell rings, I am again standing on a new realm. This realm, is it what I pursued and longed for yesterday? 'But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear.'

Today, what have I seen? And what have I heard?

When a person feels that he is the boundless sky, the endless sea, the eternally burning flame, the everlasting shining light, the wind that rages or calms, the cloud that flashes and thunders with rain, the stream that sings or laments, the tree that blossoms in spring and sheds leaves in autumn, the lofty mountain ridge and the low-lying valley, the fertile or barren land, then he is moving toward perfection.

I am not the boundless sky, I am the low-lying valley; I am not the endless sea, I am the stream that sings day and night; my life is a burning flame, yet not the eternal great light; I am not the rain-bearing cloud, but a breeze upon the blades of grass; I am a fool walking in the darkness of my own night and the light of my own day; I am one placed amidst the flourishing blossoms of fantasy and the lonely thorns, weak..........

Am I pursuing the perfection of life?

Yes, I am the low-lying valley, gazing toward the distant peak; I am the stream that sings day and night, rushing without cease toward the sea in my dreams; my life is a burning flame, and I use its light to illuminate the world around me; I am a breeze upon the blades of grass, letting the earth hear my song..........

Am I pursuing the meaning of life's perfection?

The Master said by the river: 'Thus it flows away!'

Because of the flow of time and the vicissitudes of years, we see today's world. Precisely because this world has such and such shortcomings and deficiencies, we need to pursue, strive, and experience. In pursuing, striving, and experiencing, our life becomes rich and colorful, not monotonous, not dull.

Therefore, we need not sigh: 'Thus it flows away!'

Because 'thus it flows away,' we have seen the sights that the ancients wished to see but did not, and heard the sounds they wished to hear but did not. Therefore, we must cherish what we see, cherish what we hear.

Western philosophers say: 'Imagine every day that this is your last day, and fully experience it! The unexpected tomorrow will bring you more surprises and joy.'

Is it so? Can the unexpected tomorrow bring us those surprises and joys?

As long as we are alive, this, certainly is not a dream!