Preface
Since the author's exchange with the business figures present has not yet reached a deeper level, I fear that speaking too intimately as a new acquaintance might result in writing too little here. However, I look forward to the sparks created through our future interactions, which will help us understand each other better and allow us to make progress together! Please forgive any oversights or shortcomings!
"Main Course"
Where two streams converge, the deepest, most profound warmth of human nature is often washed out from the most unexpected crevices. On August 12, 2026, a sharing session that brought together the heart and soul of many parties quietly unfolded. This was not merely an event, but a "profound convergence of business thinking and humanistic care"—
Behind this seemingly chamber of commerce and business-related event lay the deep heritage of figures from the field of education, alongside the full support of those in public service.
The original starting point was nothing more than memories of a journey to East Africa to extend a helping hand. It was spearheaded and set in motion by President Yang, who leads various business chambers, associations, and Rotary Clubs. However, when professionals from diverse categories such as education, healthcare, film and television, and aviation joined forces, what began as a simple charitable action expanded into a highly inclusive and harmonious tapestry.
Concealment and Revelation: The Life Dialectic Behind the Hidden
This harmony sparked a deep reflection among those present regarding "privacy and truth."
Hope once heard a teenager repeatedly threaten an elder:
"Don't think I don't know what you did! I will definitely tell everyone!"
This sentence became an impetus that compelled one to reflect:
Is what we try so hard to conceal a secret that truly ought to be hidden, or are the words already spoken the true wounds that should never be broadcasted?
The dilemmas and struggles within true stories from Western Europe that I have read in the past provided the most touching answer to this myth. The story goes that a granddaughter, who had been away for a long time and was not alongside her mother caring for her grandmother, decided upon returning after a long absence to take her grandmother—who had dementia—out to a high-end restaurant. These two Anglo-Saxons, one elderly and one young, entered the restaurant. Once inside, the grandmother, who was initially quiet, suddenly felt uneasy. Tightly grabbing her granddaughter, she curled up to hide, whispering continuously to her:
"The enemy is approaching! The enemy troops are getting closer!"
Because of the granddaughter's sense of relief, a resonance was forged with her grandmother; the initial embarrassment was dissolved within the mutual love shared between grandmother and granddaughter. When the restaurant manager came over to express concern, the grandmother actually pulled her granddaughter with all her might and shouted aloud:
"Run! Their Sergeant Major is coming to hunt us down! We need to hide right now!"
Maintaining a low posture through a low crawl all the way, the grandmother gripped her granddaughter tightly and sprinted toward the restaurant exit. Their golden hair—and hair that had faded from gold to white—flew freely in the wind. No longer embarrassed, the granddaughter burst into a hearty, uninhibited laugh all the way.
After reading such a story and understanding that the physical body inevitably moves toward aging and disorder, witnessing beloved kin gradually transform into another form of life, and seeing the myriad facets of life and their changes, how many ways do we have to calmly face this inevitable destiny?
Perhaps, amid the passing of the torch, the deep, "highest" devotion combined with the "oldest" soul of education fuses to create an embrace of life that echoes, near or far, the long-standing, steadfast force within life's vitality? Among the students Hope teaches, a warm line of humanistic care unexpectedly "unraveled" in this third-quarter event where business and humanities coexisted. It was deeply moving because, besides Hope and Chair Chin meeting when the subordinates of Chair Chin were learning English from Hope at a government office, Hope was also teaching a group of students who wished to break through their English communication abilities and step out of Taiwan. One of these students brought us even more respected seniors to this "extra" heartwarming Q3 gathering:
Teacher Miao-Ben Zhang and Teacher Yuan-Sheng Zhang
As an eternal driving force in education, Teacher Miao-Ben Zhang wrote a deeply moving, irresistible book titled Memoirs of a Countryman with exceptional sincerity. It meticulously records the detailed events unfolded in life of himself and his family in the 20th century. Through the perspective of a farm child, it vividly depicts the historical transition of Taiwan from the Japanese rule era and the post-WWII retrocession era to its transformation from an agrarian society to an industrial and commercial one. It showcases the spirit of an outstanding, dedicated educator and father who strived forward and educated many throughout his career.
His eldest daughter, Teacher Yuan-Sheng Zhang—who has achieved excellence and similarly never ceased her nurturing guidance—quietly picked up a camera during this warm gathering to record the most touching moments of the entire event. It is hard to imagine that such a "camera operator" is actually a master of Ikebana flower arrangement and a culinary master. She teaches home economics at Jianguo Senior High School, one of the best academically speaking in Taiwan, acting as a gentle teacher who allows many Jianguo students of that era—now alumni—to encounter life aesthetics and practical life skills in an exam-oriented campus environment. The special journey of both her and her father, Teacher Miao-Ben Zhang, teaching at Jianguo High School simultaneously has become a cherished tale in the school's history and in the memories of countless alumni.
Teacher Yuan-Sheng Zhang tied the knot with her husband, who pioneered ticketing computer information systems in the aviation industry. The key person present, or the "Witness" at their wedding was Principal Zheng-Ming Liu whose emphasis on "service learning" not only deeply influenced many, but Principal Liu and his wife also stepped forward and stood alongside us when we traveled to Indonesia for some service-oriented purposes in February this year. Seeing the figures of these pioneers on the path of service learning is truly moving.
The Joint Devotion of Principal Liu and His Wife
Principal Liu sang heartily in front of the camera, while his wife stayed by his side throughout, often remaining behind the scenes. This virtuous couple has dedicated themselves to service learning since their college years, treading a steadfast path for decades that guides people through the vicissitudes of time, deeply and widely influencing other educators and even their next generation. Today, seeing the incredible empathy and selfless care for characters displayed by their daughter, Producer Liu, in her major works such as The Teenage Psychic and Our Times, one can perhaps trace back the mindset of looking at all beings with compassionate eyes that was sparked by growing up in a home centered on care and warmth.
A Sustainable Vision Across Borders
The audience for Principal Liu's song was a pair of siblings with special needs, raised through immense hardship by Hope's colleague, Teacher Yan-Qing Jian, and her spouse. The original intention of Teacher Jian and her husband to build a warm home, alongside their continuous upward struggle in the face of challenges demonstrated through human nature, represents the most miraculous fruit born from wishing to see the finest aspects of human nature blend and spark together. This was also a major emotional element driven behind the scenes by Chair Chin as the organizer to facilitate this event.
Thus, this "post-East Africa grand reunion" gathering—directly and indirectly brought to fruition by Chair Chin as the host and her son-in-law, Boss Xiao—serves as a "sincere confession" allowing people of all skin colors to extend their great love further onto the land of East Africa:
Everyone uses different ways to love and care for this world, and this world is made more colorful by Boss Huang and Manager Lun-Lun, a couple running a flower shop. There was also the beautiful Xin-Yi, who returned from abroad to arrange various foods and drinks for everyone; even Principal Bao-Qin, who continues to refine herself and progress without resting in retirement, assisted in handling trivial kitchen matters, allowing this gathering of over fifty people to dine happily and conclude successfully, not to mention Hans, who traveled all the way from Taipei to the venue in central and southern Taiwan by bicycle—a traveler who has marveled at the Northern Lights and explored diverse corners of the world; or Nurse Sam, who gently reminds care recipients to practice gratitude toward their caregivers; or Iris, who has grown increasingly open about sharing the pain of losing a loved one; and Cathy, always so gentle, thoughtful, and deeply caring toward everyone....
This "sincere confession" connects President Yang, the eldest daughter of Chair Chin who possesses superb land development capabilities, providing us with an excellent venue to utilize. The connection of all these people, events, and things especially brings to mind "Namanga"—the transportation hub connecting Kenya and Tanzania. Along the main artery linking North Africa and South Africa, lies piece after piece of land on one side of the road that local elders in the clans of Massais wish to have Hope collaborating with them to utilize.
Although the story has grown too long to fully detail every moment experienced in the past and all the interconnected figures within it, nor can all the preparations made to make this world a better place fall into place overnight, we rely on everyone's "sincere confession" of striving forward for the sustainable development of all things in this world. When professionals from diverse fields take sustainable development as their driving goal, when culture and education integrate global strength while embedding the encouragement of local residents to establish mechanisms for diverse learning and cultural preservation, it can benefit people traveling across the border between Kenya and Tanzania in East Africa through commercial projects. More importantly, when the altruistic behaviors stemming from these interests—or the interests stemming from altruistic behaviors—interweave with concepts of conservation and symbiosis, it becomes highly possible for the public and private sectors, alongside people of all skin colors from all directions, to march hand in hand in survival with wildlife conservation, forging a sustainable ecosystem of harmonious coexistence and mutual prosperity.
Therefore, such a warm gathering forces us to recognize that the reason human beings come together is none other than to light up a better tomorrow for every life in this world. Especially as our heating planet continues to rise in temperature, if our altruism, charitable actions, and service learning can penetrate like a wilderness into every individual, then this Earth will possess a fuller inner warmth because of everyone's good intentions and good deeds!
Afterwards
Before the start of this year's summer vacation, many elementary school students engaged in numerous discussions upon learning that Hope would once again embark on an international altruistic service-learning trip to Africa. One aspect of this was Hope's understanding of how "disastrous" the greenhouse effect situation described by the students is—where "one cannot survive for a single moment now without air conditioning." If there is anything more we can do, it should be to implement broader conservation actions targeting those most pristine forest lands, especially before those forests are also, like many parts of the world, ruined, destroyed, and forgotten. Furthermore, regarding the waste of resources caused by the overdevelopment of advanced regions, we must carefully deliberate our future paths and possibilities as parts of our necessary lessons as human beings...
So, when the respected local elders of Kenya have discussed local land utilizations with Hope, Hope personally feels that exchanging ideas, gaining valuable experiences, and reaching consensus with people from various fields around the world will be inevitable. Meanwhile, back in Taiwan, being able to be so "joyful and at ease" in an event led by Chair Chin and President Yang—to the point of chatting with "warm and lovely" friends, among whom quite a few are also used to being volunteers for generous actions taking place everywhere for the benefits of the others until seeing the next day's sunrise at 5:00 AM, and being full of energy again at 7:00 AM—such a feeling of emotion cannot be described as anything short of intense for some one like Hope herself, the person writing this article now!
Comments
Post a Comment