我會輕聲訴說我的愛 I would softly tell my love

我對浪漫主義至信不渝。身為一名無可救藥的浪漫主義者無關好與壞﹣我平日雖然腳踏著實地，但難免有時走神地飄往太虛仙境。

無可救藥的浪漫主義者其實就是不折不扣的理想主義者及多愁善感的逐夢者。我喜歡在自己擬模的真實世界中堆築希望。對我來說，對這個世界絕望的人就是注定要孤寂一生。

秉持浪漫的態度當然不可能解決所有的問題，但是這樣的態度卻能振奮原動力及創意。就以土兒其作家Nazim Hikmet 為例，因政治立場與當局者不同而屢次遭拘捕的他（終其一生為共產黨員），即使進出監獄、流亡海外佔其成人歲月中的絕大部分，依舊悍衛浪漫的信仰，寄情寫詩從未間斷。

Hikmet的浪漫精神對我影響至深。他的詩篇《我會輕聲訴說我的愛》有如月光瀉地，誏我心中有了一分對寫作的明白：即使天下只有一個知音讀者，我還是依然擁抱浪漫，持續創作。

各位先生和女士，現在Hikmet先生將要輕聲訴說他的愛給你們聽：

如果我是一棵梧桐樹，我將安息在它的碧綠濃蔭下
如果我是一本書
即使通宵夜讀千遍也不厭惓
如果我是一支筆我片刻也不願停留在自己的手指中
如果我是一扇門
我迎善拒惡
如果我是一扇窗一扇倘開且無窗簾的窗戶
我將引領這城市進入我的房間
如果我是一個單字
我會招喚美麗及純粹的真理
如果我是一篇短文
我會輕聲訴說我的愛。


I believe in romanticism, and being a hopeless romantic is not a good thing or a bad thing – I may have my feet on the ground, but my soul fly somewhere over the rainbow.

A hopeless romantic is an idealist, and a sentimental dreamer. I like to dream of an actual world in which I can harbor my hopes. To me, those without hope in the real world are condemned to be alone.

A romantic attitude may not solve all our problems, but it is an excitement with motivation, and a pinch of creativity. Take the Turkish poet Nazim Hikmet as an example. Although Hikmet was repeatedly arrested for his political beliefs (he was a lifetime communist), he held romanticism up and continued his poetry writing under the stress of spending much of his adult life in prison or in exile.

I own a great deal to the romantic spirit of Hikmet. It is his poem I would softly tell my love that opened my eyes to the soul of writing. He makes me believe that even if there was only one reader paying the attention on my writing, I would continue to write with hope and, love.

Ladies and gentlemen, now I have Mr. Hikmet softly tell you his love:

If I was a plane tree I would rest in its shade
If I was a book
I’d read without being bored on sleepless nights
Pencil I would not want to be even between my own fingers
If I was door
I would open for the good and shut for the wicked
If I was window a wide-open window without curtains
I would bring the city into my room
If I was a word
I’d call out for the beautiful the just the true
If I was word
I would softly tell my love.

寂寞的氣味 Scent of Loneliness

明月一輪。

冷冽的風颳向細細長長的櫸樹，葉片颯颯作響。我凝視著對面灑滿北國月光的鄰家屋頂，靜靜在想，寂寞，到底是什麼氣味？

不能在這麼晚的時間叨擾調香師友人Christophe Laudamiel。對於氣味有著熊熊熱情的他，鐵定會從床上跳下來，拿下筆紙準備與我挑燈夜談。於是我替自己倒了杯紅酒，靜坐獨酌。這時，寂寞的感覺，就像那一絲絲銀白的月光，蹣跚地滲透地包圍過來。慢慢在想，明天，他是不是就可出院回家了。

原來，寂寞的氣味就是等待的滋味。

一期一會: 給我摯愛的讀者

雖然還沒看到我的新書「瓶裝記憶：京都之水」的最後成品（正由臺灣飛往芬蘭的路途中），但是摯愛的臺灣讀者, 我卻樂於暇想在翻書聲伴讀下的你，眼睛是如何好奇地隨它的文字遊移；鼻子又是如何小心翼翼地嗅聞它的京都氣味；當你的手指任意隨性地觸摸它的紋路時，臉部顯現出或驚喜，或感歎，或搐眉，或認同的表情。你知道嗎？由衷感謝你給我這個機會與你一起經驗一期一會的美妙。以下節錄該書短文「一期一會」，也與我海外的讀者們共享：

我得坦承告白一件事，為了吸引你的目光，我熱切地寫下「瓶裝記憶：京都之水」。如此這般，我希望能深得你心並帶你進入我的世界。我承認，我的體內蘊藏著多面性──渴望人們的注目，但不久後又想逃脫躲避那些視線。即便如此，我還是滿心虔誠地學習並親身體驗「一期一會」。

「一期一會」這個概念由千利休提出，他是一位對日本茶道有深遠影響的禪宗和尚。 「一期一會」（按：一期一会）的意思是「一生一次的相遇」，這個字詞具體化了千利休的禪宗信仰──人們的相遇無法複製，所以不可褻瀆。「一期一會」的生活哲學態度是對人生的無常瞭然於胸。我也試著更加心懷感激，徹底盡情地活在當下，避免活得跟螞蟻一樣庸碌，忘記了人與人之間那誠懇真摯的互動。親愛的讀者，這也是我想要和你一起分享的。你知道螞蟻遇見同類時是怎麼「應對進退」的嗎？牠們會暫停，打招呼，再前進。日復一日。可是，我們是人，為什麼我們要遵從所謂的社會禮儀規範，循規蹈矩，墨守成規呢?

每個人的舉手投足、一字一句、四目交接，在在勾勒出對方聖潔的輪廓及眼前一瞬間的永恆無限。如果我們能體會每次的相遇都有可能是最後一次，那麼人生中就不會有「錯過」。

我對「一期一會」深信不疑。想想，我不僅意識到自我的存在，而且也注意到這世界還有一個你，這是何等的美妙！因此我願意敞開胸懷，與你分享我真實的一面──嗨！你這陣子都在做什麼呀？

Ichigo, Ichie

I have a confession to make. I love to write this book in order to attract your attention. And by so doing, I hope to reach out to you and to let you into my mind. I have to admit that I am a concoction of signs – I long to be seen, but then I lose my nerve. However, I strive for the learning and experience of Ichigo Ichie, a concept from Rikyu Sen, a Zen Buddhist who had a profound influence on the Japanese tea ceremony.

Ichigo Ichie (一期一会), meaning literally “one time, one encounter,” embodies Rikyu Sen’s ideal that each meeting between people is sacred, for it can never be reproduced. Here is what I want to share with you: the mindset of Ichigo Ichie appreciates that life is impermanent. As a result, I am trying to be more grateful, trying to live more fully in the present moment, and trying to have real human interactions instead of acting like an ant! You know how ants act when they meet comrade they stop, say hello, and continue for the day. But we are human. Why do we have to live strictly by the rules that we have acquired through social constructs – to adhere to and to follow?

Each gesture, each word, and each eye contact of a human being serves to frame the sacredness of the other and the extraordinary gift of now. And if we understand that every encounter may be the last, we won’t miss the chance.

I believe in Ichigo Ichie, and I think it is lovely that I am not only aware of my own existence but also of yours. Thus, I would like to open up and share who I am with you – Hello! What have you been up to?

The Graphics of Finland IIII: I Simply Know 芬蘭的圖像之四: 我就是曉得．．．

As the neuroscientist Steven Quartz at the California Institute of Technology says, “Our brain is computing value at every fraction of a second. Everything that we look at, we form an implicit preference”.

We see and evaluate everything in our surrounding, and eventually we establish the aesthetics of our own.

Therefore, I don’t have to decide if this image is beautiful. I simply know.

The Graphics of Finland III: Think of The American Artist Ed Ruscha 芬蘭的圖像之三

I am a designer, who photographs a bit.

I like to stroll down on the side-streets of everyday searching for the awareness of real life. I take things as I find them.

In this photo, the industrial complexes reminds me of Ed Ruscha, the American artist who is well-known for his strongly graphic work, such as the most iconic of American typographic expressions, the landmark, and once-temporary-now-permanent HOLLYWOOD sign that symbolizes his hometown to the rest of world.

Of course, there is no trace showing Ruscha's trademarked Americanism message in this photo. But on my first glance of this Finnish landscape, the faceless buildings, the endless gray sky, the flock of crows, the energy towers, and the smoky chimneys stand for anonymity, in the tradition of Ed Ruscha's "neuter gender" Black & White photography created between 1961 and 2001.

Like Ruscha's work, this photo is not something pregnant with meaning, but rather a documentary of my Finnish experience in a visionary manner.