臺灣文學虛擬博物館-The last show.

The End of Love, the Start of a Journey

The last show.

On the stage, the stories were all about loyalty and morality. Behind the curtain, actors from across the country supported each other and were supported by their families, even an uninvited guest like me was treated by them. They passed me a share every time they had something to eat or drink. How could I explain this indescribable social attachment that could only be felt in person? I took this even more touching little story as an example: during a break of my shooting job, an old lady selling oyster omelets sometimes treated me to snacks. I was embarrassed to eat free meals so I refused her good intentions gently. Surprisingly, she fetched a plate of baked sausages from a nearby stall saying that if I didn't want to eat oyster omelets, then I should taste fresh baked sausages. She actually took it from someone else's stall... I was holding the most advanced camera, and my eyes fixed on the stage, with sausages in my mouth. I was really filled with happiness, and happy to be filled.

Excerpt from “Stage Life” in Tainan, My Home by Fan Yishun.

Miss Su,

After returning to Taiwan, I developed a habit of taking a walk every day. I have lived a long time in this city but I never watched her carefully. Walking on familiar streets and breathing familiar waste gas, I suddenly felt enlightened. I saw a stage for Taiwanese opera has been constructed in front of a temple near my home. People watched the opera from the other side of streets, making occasionally trouble-free smiles. I asked myself, for how long have I not smiled like that?

An old lady beside me passed me a sausage. I had a bite and the meat juice squirted out. When I made another bite, I could no longer hold back emotions cumulated for a long time. I cried.

The lights were off and the audience applauded generously, marking the ending of our love play. At the next show, I decided to play by myself.

In the crowd, I wrote the last postcard.

From now on, one language, two worlds.

Having just finished my sausage　Mr Bin

（Photo credit: Fann Yishun）

Back