同安街 - Tong'an Street

 

盈珍攝影 - Ying Chen photography

盈珍粉彩素描 - Ying Chen pastel drawing 

《 如果你不知道你要去何處，

記住你來自那裡。》

這句非洲諺語

令我想到

小時候常聽到母親的好友說 -

妹妹在「 同安街 」出生時

鄰居奔相走告來看大眼睛娃娃。

還有提到過「 螢橋 」

這是我對出生地僅有的印象。

今天終於來到同安街。

曾是公務員的父親和我們在此

居住過。

直到他提早退休創業。

我們舉家遷離時我才四歲。

這座優雅秀麗的日式房屋

沒能牽引我的感觸。

沿著小徑繞了幾圈，

唯有這些

歷經滄桑，依然在默默守護、

淨化這片土地的老樹⋯

似曾相識。

 

《 If you don't know where you're going, remember where you came from. 》 -

This African proverb reminds me 

of a story my mother’s close friend used to tell when I was little. 

She said that when I was born on Tongan Street, 

the neighbors spread the word and came to see the baby with the big, beautiful eyes. 

She also mentioned Yingqiao. 

These fragments are the only impressions 

I have of my birthplace.

Today, I finally came to 

Tong'an Street.

My father, who used to be a civil servant, lived here with us 

（Government-provided residence ) 

That was until he took an early retirement

to start his own business.

I was only four years old when our whole family moved away.

This elegant and beautiful Japanese house

didn't really touch my heart.

Walking along the path a few times,

only these old trees -

which have weathered so many hardships, yet still silently guard

and purify this land...

I had a strange sense of déjà vu.