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Returning From the Trip -- Shirley's 58th Friendly Greeting, Sun, Oct 8, 2006

Hi,Dear Friends

How are you? Have you had a good week? I do hope you are well and have a relaxed and easy weekend.

I left home for Zhang Jiajie National Park Sunday at 6:30am and came back Wednesday at 1:30am. It is so nice to recover a routine life ? running, showering, reading, writing, cooking, napping, creating picture and music, meeting friends, making telephones, playing piano, working on the web site... just like a fairy to enjoy my holiday.

Then, what is my biggest gain from my short time trip?

Except enjoying the beauty of the landscape, I found a new art ? Chinese Sand and Stone Painting, that originated there. There is no any hesitate, I bought 9 pieces. My art teacher thought that I have carried back something impayable, for its art worth will be raised along with time.

The second gain is that I realized that I should have more travels to absorb the nutrition from the nature. When I saw the landscape with my own eyes, I did feel that it is beautiful much more than anything else that I had seen via a picture or a photo.

The third gain is that I have seen many excellent characters of the local people -- unadorned, hard working and keeping doors open -- A local official offered his car and driver to my former colleague and me for 2 days, so that he had to work by walking. My camera did not flash, 3 young boys came to help me! If in my city, I would be scared, someone would rob me. Restaurants offer their dishes with so much food, so that I did not think that I could eat it all completely.

Meanwhile, I also saw the huge distance between the beauty spots (also the city) and my city. I guess that my city has gone ahead for 40 or 50 years. I had the similar feeling when I was in Lijiang, Dali in Yunnan, Guilin, Li River, Yangsuo, Longji in Guangxi in 2004. So, since I came back from my trip, I have never missed any art or music lesson. I had seen how poor it is in the mountain areas, the fee for one hour of my lesson, equals twenty five percent of a yearly school fee of a local child. So, I gave the whole of my money to my former colleague and her daughter before I left for the airport. I do think that I should more cherish my luck to live and work in the most modern city with a high salary, a comfortable life and work condition.

The biggest gain from the trip is that I am thinking of creating something about my city with some way as the artists in Zhangjiajie have done. They use the local sand and stone to re-create the local landscape, maybe I can use something modern in my city, to re-create both of the city and its nature view. Thursday morning, when I was running in a park, an idea jumped into my mind, maybe I can create something with three leaves, flowers, the modern life garbage -- beautiful food bag, drinking tin, shampoo bottle, with their ready beautiful or glittery colors that we can not paint out with brushers. To create the modern architectures, plants, plus my own painting and colors, maybe I can create something new? I am a little bit excited for my good idea and I will discuss it with my art teacher.

Do you enjoy traveling? What do you get from your trip usually?

Chinese Xieyi--099(Flower & Bird): Flying Snow Is Welcoming Spring...
I wanted to paint some landscape, for my mind was full of the mountains and water. But,my teacher's plan was to paint snow. Ha, I have not seen snow for over 20 years. So I was also happy to paint it. I learned to color the sky and the stone on the reverse of the paper. I beat the pole of my brusher with white color to make the flying snow... For "encouraging" my teacher have taught me a new way to paint, I sent him a sand and stone painting as a collection. Do you know how many marks my new picture got? My teacher said 75 to 80. Then I said, Ok, just let it be 80 marks. Ok? How do you see my new picture? Do you think that I should get 75 or 80 Mark?

Shirly Sung China (Northeastern) Folk Song--035: Yao Lan Qu -- Lullaby
Since I set up the web site, I have got about 4000 letters from several hundred friends from 31 countries. Some friends asked me why I have no a family and thought that I am an iced woman who just knows work and there is not any warm feeling and love in my heart. In fact, I have parents, sister, brother and a son. I do love my parents, family and my son. For some reason, I could not go abroad to see my son according to my original plans in my National Holiday last year and this year. But I have got his understanding and I received his telephone call in the Mid-Autumn Festival from the other side of the Ocean. Now, I would like to sing a Lullaby for my beloved child like I had done for him. I do hope it will give you a little help to know something more about Chinese culture.

Chinese Classical Poem 0060 & Shirley Created Music-0050:Yue Xia Duo Zhuo -- Drinking in the Moonlight Alone
Friday is a Chinese traditional festival -- the Mid - Autumn Festival. This is the time that all of the family come to reunite. People usually sit together to eat Moon Cakes and to enjoy the bright moon. The round moon cakes on the table and the round moon in the sky symbolize all of the family to reunite and be happy. But, not every one can be with his/her family together at this special time. This poem by Li Bai(701 ? 762 ) just expresses his wide heart when he was drinking in the moonlight alone. I do enjoy his happyness, humor and optimism: To invite the bright moon to drink together, plus his own shadow, then there are still three people together. As usual, I created a piece of music to match it and hope you enjoy it.

China's Art--003: Chinese Sand and Stone Painting
As soon as I went into the college of Sand and Stone Painting, I was attracted by the wonderful art.I gave up the opportunity to visit one of the most famous sight spot and I stayed in the pictures for whole of the morning. Sand and Stone Painting was invented by Mr. Li Junsheng 20 years ago, now it has become a totally new art style in China. It uses the local colored sand and stone as the staff of painting, to express the beauty of the nature. It has the grace of the Chinese traditional painting, the freshness of the watercolor, the freshness of oil-painting, the refinement of crafts and the third dimension of relief. I do hope what I have showed you on the web site will bring you an art enjoyment.


I am just a learner on art, music, English and the work on the web site in my free time. Anyway, I would really like to do a little bit things with what I have learned to make this little web site to beAn Electronic Bridge Of Culture Exchange, Friendship, and Language Learning. During the process to help the others and to improve myself.

I do appreciate your understanding, directions and supports. I do hope to get your great help continuously now and in the coming time...

If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please write to shirley@ebridge.cn or shirleyz004@yahoo.com. You are welcomed to publish your opinions in the forum too.

--Shirley
Written and Edited On Sun,Oct 8, 2006

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