The One I Long For
Written by Peter Li-Chang Kuo ( Chinese ) The one I long for in my heart, Why did you leave my side? Because of you, my heart pines day and night, Deeply longing for you. My love, please come back, Come back to my side — Every time my grandmother, Kuo Chen Shu-Jean (1896–1970), heard Hung Yi-Feng’s song “ The One I Long For ” playing on the radio, she would silently shed tears. Whenever I witnessed this scene, I couldn’t bear to change the station. So, I could only let my grandmother wander through time and space, reminiscing about her dead son. Fig 1: “ The One I Long For ” (AI-generated image) Since the Lunar New Year of 1966, after the police violently broke my grandmother's bound feet, she spent most of her final time lying in the corner of my workspace so that I could take care of her. Late at night, when everything was quiet, I would return from night school and prepare materials for the next day. During these moments, grandmother would reminisce about play...