一年、一年又一年

三年，就這樣進入最後的一季。疫情彷彿騎劫了一切，我們是被動中的無奈，又或是可以把握到意外的停頓，一刻鐘、一天、一個月，甚至三年？因為停頓，把這些時間儲存下來，一分一秒，一共有多少？

要是計算一下，可能足夠你讀一本長篇小說、學會煮十個新菜式、完成一個語文初班、織一件毛衣；又或者調理好忙壞了的身體、重新思考信仰與生命、修補破損了的關係，⋯！

時間天天在流逝，一秒過去了就永遠不能尋回。我很害怕與長嗟短嘆的人相處，他們每歎一口氣，寶貴的一秒就這樣消失了，我想幫忙捉也捉不住…是我沒有同情心嗎？又或是這個歎息狀態實在太長了，年復一年，流失了的時間也許本來可以把現況改善一點點？！

人生總有脆弱的時間，尤其外在因素不能受控的情況之下；但人心郤可以是剛強的，接受了不能受控的景況，在緊有的空間之內一點一滴地重新開始，即使是斷斷續續，要是堅持下去，數年過後，一個（即使是）迷你的成果就在你能夠把握的分秒之內漸漸形成，難道不是一件值得高興的事嗎？

生命的成果無分大小，只要由這一刻可始，如果我有一分鐘的時間被迫停頓，不能做什麼大事，我就...

～唱半首勵志歌，成為我在下一分鐘的動力！

或者～做三下掌上壓，消消肥脂；

或者～發出一個短訊，向一位朋友問安；

或者～讀一篇文章，學一個生字。

又或者，大笑三聲，預備心情，愉快地接待即將到訪的客人；

又或者～向天父禱告，提取力量，勇敢地跨越下一分鐘的困境；

又或者～洗個臉，吃一塊巧克力補充能量，預備服侍即將由醫院回家的親人。

三年之後：你可能是未來的星夢新星、或是一個擁有健美體魄的中年男士、或是一個和朋友建立了緊密聯繫的小伙子、或是一個學富五車的家庭主婦；又或是一個不單自己正向，甚至能扶助他人渡過困境的伯伯...。下一秒就開始吧！勿讓時間悄悄地流逝，願共勉之！

Café de Flore

Click to enlarge

Café de Flore has always been famous since 1885, even there was one located in Omotesando in Japan (not sure whether they are from the same organisation). The name came from a sculpture of the goddess of flowers - Flora (Flore in French), and the season of spring in Roman mythology.  

Delicious hot chocolate and elegant Art Deco interior design may be some reasons why people loves to visit Café de Flore, but most of all are due to the attraction by it’s history, a hub where the intelligence gathered around  in the 1920s. Even though we may not know the story of each of them, at least, Ernest Hemingway, Pablo Picasso were the well known. 

In my previous blog post introducing the book ‘Left Bank- by Agnés Poirier’ , Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and Albert Camus were the names among those that frequently appeared, as what they called French intellectuals who really acted as the icons here.

 Café de Flore was a place for them to hang around, expressing their thoughts, ideas, awareness of the world issues (political & culture) , especially for France & America; or in person (Female & Male, You & I) that matters, then transformed their avant-garde thinking into plays, writings, journals, music, poem…,etc; even though they might not be acceptable in those days. It became a place that dreams could be made, no matter what the reality might be in chaos.

So I put this into the center page of my book, as a symbolic of the belief that any of us can embrace. We can have numerous dream, great or humble, global or for one’s own; provided the motivation is not evil, there is always a path to reach the success, nothing to do with the rocket sciences but keep trying and move on. 

Whether you like to stay in Café de Flore or Les Deux Magots; you are in Hong Kong, France or elsewhere; you are a teenager or old guy, male or female, rich or poor…, dream is no boundary once you act.