I Missed It in Dreams

           Studying in the United State for more than 2 months now, excitement of having a new life in a foreign country has already gone with the coming of homesick. I don’t quite often miss my hometown though, because Seattle has the similar weather as my hometown does. Even when sometimes friends or others mention it, I still talk about it with proud, not with feelings of missing. But in the night, while I’m sleeping, I have to admit that I miss it because I dreamed about it all the time. Once it was a feeling of happiness and excitement that I realized I could have a bowl of delicious noodles in my favorite restaurant there. Once I was only on a strange street but I was with happiness for I could tell I was in my hometown. I had many different dreams like that, but they all have something in common which is the nothingness I always feel when I wake up from them, with sadness, with frustration, but also with happiness. I dreamed about riding home most. What is interesting is that was always disliked when I was there. Cars rushed by with honks. People broke the rule that they walked on the riding road. Street was stuffy that I had to get of my bike very often. However, all the annoying parts of the street are disappeared in my dreams. Street lamps shine through the leaves of sycamore trees along the busy street. Stores by the sides of the street look welcoming and gorgeous. Everything is in silence except my bike is making a noise of rolling forward, which is to my home. I know these dreams are telling me to remember where I belong to no matter how settled I am now. I also know that these reminders from dreams are useless because I’m never going to forget.

I Miss

Standing on an arch bridge at night

Indistinct stones in violent haze, like snow

Staring at this tiny branch of Grant Canal

Floating in silence

Connecting dynasties

From Beijing to Qiantang

It runs across China

flows into Pacific Ocean

to where I am                    

to bring me back

Here I am

But I miss the marks of powder on it

Dark circles

tell happy laughter I’ve had

when dad taught me to play fireworks

with me standing far away full of fear

when I waited for the coming of new year

with mom complaining about cold blowing wind

with sky full of splendid fireworks

with thunderous explosions

and with my family

Here I am

But I miss the sound of cicadas along the river

They murmur,

telling dislikes

in every summer day

to scolding hot weather

to noisy cars rushing by

and to my ignorance of their singing

Here I am

But I miss the reflection in the river

of my room

Orange light

tells a story of me

Beneath it

there is me

who was eager to go to primary school

holding an amulet for good luck

there is me

who stayed up for homework

tried to keep your eyes open

and there is me who packed luggage to leave

luggage of clothes and memory

When I come back

I will stand on it

look into the furthest distance

but leave my hurt there.

The Hero Jonas

         In the picture on the wall, toughness can be simply seen through the face of this young man, while his eyes were shining like meteors with power and hope. His legend has been told by everyone but the hero himself hasn't been seen by anyone. What people know is that he's still there where is covered by boundless snow.

         It was in a winter in the middle age, a path made of paving stones was covered by thick snow. It was on the deepest place of this giant royal garden, which belonged to a wealthy but old and childless duke in the Europe. A river along the path, still floated a little bit. Not so often in the winter, the duke and duchess decided to have a walk in the snow, though they used to do that a lot for they loved snow which was considered romantic. As this old couple walked together along the path they had walked a thousand times before, hand in hand, they found a small well-tied basket on the bank of the river. Curious as they were, stepped ahead the basket, and surprised as they were, they found a baby deeply sleeping inside with cute face and white hair. The pitiful duchess took the baby out gently, beside her was the duke, smelling with joy. So they brought the little boy back the the castle and named him Jonas, the smiling as the duke’s.

         Little Jonas grew up quickly in this comfortable castle and was loved by the duke and the duchess so deeply they found masters of hunting, painting, and riding to teach Jonas. So the life in the castle was always so strict and busy, and was hated by Jonas who could not understand why his father made him learn all these skills. But, finally Jonas was well trained into a well-behaved gentleman and a knight with many skills. However, this kind of life had finished in the year when Jonas was 21. That the winter somehow was cursed so that it never finished. As a result, all the people around the castle of the duke suffered from frozen cold, endless snow and painful starving. Even in the castle, the food almost ran out. Everyday, the cold wind with snow blowing from the deep north. And everyday, people were dying with pain. The old duke near death called for his son one day, with tears of fear and hopelessness, he said to his dear son, "There is no ending, the death is everywhere. My son, oh my dearest son, please go and find a way to save all of us. Giving you a task that may take your life is the hardest thing I have ever done. But for the people, please go!" Jonas, nodded with fierce tears and first time he kind of realized his father’s love. He said bravely, "Father, I will end it!" So, after taking his weapons and armor, and the most importantly- food, he rode on his horse and went on the to end the winter.

         As he rode toward north, wind blew violently with snow. And he could see nothing but white snow and could hear nothing but wind blowing. The wind was raging, so was the horse, so was the Jonas who could not even make a little move ahead. Suddenly, there was a voice of a human being, more accurately, a boy. Jonas comforted his horse and slowed down, though they had nearly not been moving, and seek the voice. The voice was calling Jonas and among all the white snow, Jonas could see a pair of eyes staring at him and shining brightly like stars. He shocked, "Why is there a boy in this kind of horrible place? I must save him!" But then, he was much more shocked that the boy was walking toward him easily like walking on the path in his garden! The closer the boy was to Jonas, the closer Jonas could see him. Unbelievably, the boy was just wearing a shirt and a pair of pants even without shoes! And the boy had white hair like snow, like himself. "Am I dreaming? Have I already died?", so confused Jonas was. "No, you are not dreaming. "Said the boy as he could read Jonas's mind, "I am Sebastian. Please take off your hood. "Jonas knew he shouldn't take the hood off for it's unreasonable. But since he had seen all these things beyond his imagination, he did so. As soon as his white long hair danced in the wind, the raging wind was suddenly like murmuring and the snow seemed to disappear. Everything went quiet and gentle. "So you are the winter ender Jonas." Sebastian kept on speaking, "Come with me and I'll help you end this winter.”

         Jonas, with a little excitement and much tension, came with Sebastian and expressed all the confusion he had had to him. Sebastian then told a story. Once upon a time, there was a big group of people like Jonas and himself living in the snow. They had white hair like the pure snow and were able to live normally in the frozen cold and didn't need warm clothes. They could see, hear and do everything in the snow. However, there must be a winter ender each ten years and the ender must be older than 21 years old. These people happily lived here until the snake came and destroyed everything here. "It was carefully planned that you floated to the river in the duke's garden. Your father, who was also the leader of our people, fought until he died to let your mother carry you and some of our people escape." Sebastian said with tears. Jonas could feel the strong sadness for his father, but also have a strong wish to see his birth mother. "I'm sorry Jonas." Sebastien went on, his voice had changed because of the sadness, "I know you want to see your mother now, but she has died proudly last year when the snake attacked us again. Who has died with her are all other people of ours except me. I was ordered by your mother to hide and to tell you this and to help you to kill the snake and end the winter. "So far, Jonas was more than in the deep sadness but also anger, the anger that he hadn't fought for his people and that he could not be able to save his mother. While Jonas was thinking about how his mother was like, Sebastian put a sword made of ice. "Here is the weapon that every winter ender has used before, I've never been one of them, so I don't know when or how to use that, but I know you will need it. Have some food with me, and I'll get you prepared to be this winter ender.”

         So here stood Jonas, holding the Sword of Ice. He could see tiny delicate decorations on it, shining the blue light into the white snow, sharping the angry wind. He could feel nothing but the strong power burning in the sword. Looking at Jonas who was on the horse and ready to go, Sebastian gave the last advice, ” When you are lost, just remember this song: White hair in the snow, surrounded by the cold. Your hands hold the sword, the blue leads you. Go. So just follow the blue light, and farewell my friend!” Thus, Jonas pointed the sword to the sky, looking at the blue light as looking at the hope, and went fast toward his destination.

         Very soon, the running horse that Jonas rode suddenly stopped and almost made Jonas fall from its back. It wide opened its eyes and raged, full of fear, turned the direction and started escaping as fast as it could be. After the huge sound of its raging, there was a thunderous sound from every side. The ground was shaking, the fallen snow was rolling, even the strong wind had messed up and had no direction. Jonas had fallen down. He stood up uneasily, took off his sword, and got ready to fight whatever was coming. A huge black rough rock rose from the snow. No! It was not a rock, it was a head! It was the snake. Jonas was shocked but not scared, he sprinted ahead at the snake, waved his sword, and stuck it into the snake. A little movement of its tail put Jonas down. As soon as Jonas’s falling down, the snake spitted out its tongue with gross smell, moved toward Jonas and was opening the mouth to eat him. Jonas, lying on the snow, pointing the sword to the snake, was without fear of death. He closed his eyes and sang the last song, at least he thought was the last one: White hair in the snow, surrounded by the cold. Your hands hold the sword, the blue leads you go. Winter ender on the snow, facing the huge snake. Winter will be ended, by the strong faith in mind! With the tune of the song, blue light started spreading out from the snow and finally went together into a beam of the light. It stuck into snake’s ugly head so hard that the snake died suddenly and fell down beside Jonas. When Jonas opened his eyes, red blood form the snake had already floated into a river, so distinct in the white snow.

         Taking down the giant snake, Jonas had lost his horse and could only walk. But with this powerful and magical sword, wind and snow were no longer a problem to Jonas. Jonas felt it had been a whole day, but the sun seemed that it was never going down. So Jonas went on after a little meal that he didn’t know whether was lunch or dinner. After another day of traveling, the blue light got brighter and brighter and finally it pointed to the ground where Jonas stood. He arrived his destination! However, there was nothing but a stone tablet with the beginning of it: To Winter Enders. Jonas read the words on it carefully:

        

         To Winter Enders. Endless winter came every century. And you, the white-haired guards of people came every century to end it. There was nothing for you to do here, at the most northern point, except read these words. No dragons, no challenges. Because the purpose of every endless winter is to teach people the feeling of starving, cold and hopeless, so they can simply value all the food, warmth and regard hope as the finest thing exiting in the world, and will not waste these things to get destroyed as the people had done long long before you. With the coming of the last endless winter, it will be a giant snake to destroy every guard except one to kill the snake and end it. But the last guard, who will be known as a hero by his people for sure should hide himself in the snow where you belong to till the falling of the last snow.

                                                                                                         The God of Hope

As soon as Jonas finished reading this, the snow fell down and the wind eased. Winter ended. After all, it was the lesson of the God of Hope. Jonas could understand that, people would not value something till they know the pain of losing it.

Jonas came home, in the hood to hide himself, saw people smelling with tears and watching the warm sun. His kind father and mother, however, had died during the winter and could never see the returning of their child with great love and respect to them. The endless winter also taught Jonas to value and love what he hadn't loved before but should be loved and valued.

The hero Jonas now, went back to where snow was, where he belonged to. He has became homeless now but he had people how wonderful a home is.