📮 Letter

Good evening, Luis. Thanks for your concern. My tummy often feels not good after it gets cold. This morning I felt too warm, so I took my coat off. I want to say sorry to you for rejecting your lunch noon, even though you might think that it doesn’t matter at all. I’m afraid you might overthink it(something like I don’t like your lunch). I rejected you because I think you guys didn’t have too much food, and we have a strange culture which is called polite refusal. Sometimes we even find other reasons to reject others. I don’t like it, whereas I have this habit. ...

亲爱的朱朱 生日快乐，分别一个月了。其实挺不习惯的，老是半夜想着我们相拥而眠，想着我们散步在小街小巷，想着我们热烈地亲吻彼此。有几晚其实没怎么睡着，发疯是一样的想你，没和你说哈哈，因为担心你知道我没睡觉！！！ ...

敬爱的刘老师、胡老师： 这封信是想告诉你们我申请 CSC 的最新进展，和目前的心理状态。 就在今晚，我查询到CSC 的申请通过了。最近一直在焦虑的等待 CSC 的结果，没想到结果出来后更加焦虑了。 ...

Dear Huan, Recently, our exchanges through letters have become fewer, but I don’t think it’s a bad thing. Most of the time, we’re able to openly and sincerely share our thoughts with each other. However, there are things that our clumsy tongues can’t quite express—words on paper still carry a unique power. Lately, I’ve noticed that something seems off with you. I’ve asked you about it, and your response was that you’re worried about the upcoming separation we’ll soon face. That’s something I think about every day, too. But with you, I’ve also detected another subtle shift—something about the feeling of love, or the lack thereof. ...

Dear Huanhuan, “If you were Charlie, would you choose to undergo the surgery?” you asked in your last letter. At the time, my answer was no—ignorance is bliss. But after reading most of the book, I’ve begun to reconsider—this time, through the lens of love. In the first half of Flowers for Algernon, I had always believed that Charlie’s mother, Rose, was the only person in the world who truly cared for and loved him. I even mistook his father Matt’s calm demeanor for indifference. When everyone else had given up hope that Charlie could ever become “normal,” I was moved by Rose’s relentless determination—whether she was scolding Charlie, pleading with doctors, or arguing with Matt. ...

Dear Zhuzhu, Recently, my work has started to slow down. I really love this grounded feeling of focusing intensely to finish tasks and then leisurely sending emails. Today is Friday, and we’ll be seeing each other soon. Just thinking about it makes my heart play Like Sunday, Like Rain uncontrollably—haha, I’ve been completely obsessed with this song lately. I want to share with you a book I just finished: Flowers for Algernon. By the end, I was sobbing uncontrollably, secretly shedding “little pearls” again. ...

Dear Sister, Seeing the tears in your eyes made me realize how deeply saddened you are by Mom’s decision to move to Shuicheng. But it seems there’s nothing we can do. We’re constantly pushed forward by life’s unavoidable circumstances while trying our best to make the most of it. We’ve grown accustomed to being children, unwilling to face the separation of our big family, and wanting to keep it intact. You’ve always been the one who spent the most time with Mom and Dad, so of course, you’re also the one who finds it hardest to let go. ...