By June Peng
The Shared Nostalgia of Leavers
By June Peng
A breeze blows past my cheek and through my hair. Along the angle of my flying hair, I slowly look up to the bright moon in the dark sky. The moon is like a mirror; when I look at it, it seems like it can reflect my face to my family. In the nighttime, the sky can remind one of home. Hence, looking up at the moon is my habit, as it is for many people who leave their hometown. They will feel nostalgia when they are exposed to things that make them recall their hometown. The feeling of nostalgia is the stirring of one’ s heart at the sight of such familiar things. The things are different for each person, but generally there are some common objects from all eras that bring about nostalgia.
Food is the first necessity of people, and people who leave home will always miss this whenever they smell or taste something that triggers their memory of their comfort food. Although I’ ve lived in Hong Kong for a while now, I still haven’ t forgotten the food of my hometown. The food of Hong Kong is a type of Cantonese cuisine, which has a light taste. The situation is different in my hometown in Hunan province, where people like to eat very spicy food. Hence, except the first time when I wanted to taste this new style, it has really been a disaster for me to eat here, as I cannot find food as spicy as that of my hometown. Therefore, I choose to cook meals in my home. I toss paprika into heated oil with crushed garlic, add soy sauce and vinegar, mix, then dip boiled dumplings into it. When I eat this, mmm … it is the flavor of my hometown. It is really hard to change one’ s eating habits.
Moonlight also leads leavers’ thoughts towards home. When people leave home to work or study, the moon is always walking with them. When they stop, the moon stops. The moon seems to watch everything happens. Why not the sun? Doesn’ t the sun have the same function as the moon? This could be because the moon shows up at night, which creates a quiet and lonely atmosphere. It is when people feel at peace instead of feeling busy and caught up in the bustle of daytime. When I view the moon, I feel that my family or friends are also watching it. Moonlight seems to transfer their energy and thoughts to me. Sometimes, I will look up at the moon to get energy from my far away distant relatives.
Modes of leaving, such as trains, coaches and airplanes, can also bring back memories. When people see them, they might recall a sense of departure, which evokes a sense of sadness and reluctance. Just like a film scene, before departure time, people stand outside of trains; rain can add an even greater feeling of sadness. People bid farewell to the leave-takers with hugs. Their eyes are full of reluctance. When the last call is announced, the leavers must get on the train.
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