A Fool? -- Shirley's 413rd Friendly Greeting from Shenzhen & Beijing-- August 6, 2013

Hi,Dear Friends

How are you?

It has been the 10th day since I came back Shenzhen from Beijing.

Instead of living at the hospital, I have been working on upgrading my web site, preparing some new travels, and thinking of the development of my project.

I am lucky enough for some media in Beijing have given me their hands; Jinan University Press has also applied a special time and a place for me in a Reading Event of Guangdong Province in Guangzhou on August 17. I will have a good opportunity to make a speech there, to market our books and DVD – Together with Me, Learn Chinese Culture and Language by Enjoying Paintings, Music and Poetry; the publishing house will also print some bookmarks or cards with my paintings in the book, to send it to our readers in the event...

After experiencing an extremely hard student life at schools in Beijing, when I came back home, sat on my comfortable chair by the open windows in the soft sea wind, looked up the bright blue sky and the flowing white clouds, saw the thick green everywhere and enjoyed the birds' twitter and fragrance of flowers, my feeling was that I have been in the heaven... :- )

As every time I came back home, I could not help asking myself: Since you can settle down in one of the best cities in the world – Sydney, Australia at any time, since you have a good life condition in one of the best cities in China – Shenzhen, why you walked yourself into troubles, to study in the so hard life, and to travel with the so high cost abroad? Was / Am I a fool?

To be honest, I have not gotten the final answer yet. Anyway, I have made sure that no matter how difficult life I will live as a student, no matter how high cost I will pay, I will perform my plan, to go back Beijing after a long distance travel, to continue and complete my art study... after all, to give up on the halfway is not my style.

If I said, at the first, I went on the current road because I wished to make a dream from my childhood to be true; then I was sure that I found the theory support for my little project from the angles of essence of arts, characteristics if Chinese painting and primary words of Chinese language; right now, I guess that something supports me to work for so many years is just a simple reason that is from the Chinese traditional philosophy.

Just like this situation: I find something delicious, I do not want to enjoy it alone, but I wish more people to share it. Since I have tasted the delicious tastes of Chinese arts of painting, music and poetry, I wish more people can share it. Since I have found a helpful way to help myself, then I wish to deliver it to more people. Just so simple.

If I said, when I was young, my example was Qu Yuan – would rather to give up my own life to pursue a beautiful dream; when my career met a peak, my examples were Confucius and Mencius, wished to help hundreds of thousands of my readers with 120% of sincerity and creative effort; right now, when I have entered the palace of Chinese traditional arts, my examples were still Confucius and Mencius, but add Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi. One hand, I wish I can deliver something I think wonderful to more people and this world, with my hard work and effort, just like Confucius to deliver something he thought great to all of countries even though he had to stand much hardship; the other side, I wish to respect the nature and this world, to do anything naturally, peacefully, and according to the natural rules and human regulations.

If I can be understood and get actual supports from the society, organizations and this world, I will be quite happy and to enlarge my current work to be a new possible career, to help more people and this world. If I cannot get the support what I wish to have, I will also not be unhappy, but I will keep doing what I want to do in a small size, still keep a smile on my face.

So, I would like to finish this letter to you with the words of Mencius: 达则兼济天下，穷则独善其身 Da ze jianji tianxia, Qing ze du shan qi shen – if I have the good ability, I will help more people and this world; if I have no the ability, I will improve myself (but help few people) . Then, when the day that God asks me to go with him has come, I will no any pity in my heart. :- )

How about you? Do you have anything special to share?

I am just a student on Arts of Painting, Music, English and Management, to work on the web site in my free time. I would really like to do somethings with what I have learned to make this little web site to be an Electronic Bridge of Cross - Culture and Comprehensive Arts Exchange, Chinese Culture and Language Learning & Friendship Making. To help the others while to improve myself.

I would like to appreciate you for your understanding, directions, supports and help.

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, you are welcome to write to shirley@ebridge.cn or leave your message on Message Board.

Shirley Yiping Zhang
August 6, 2013(American Time)