A Present for 2026

I wonder if a person’s internal clock changes as they grow old. The year 2025 went by so quickly, and I now have one year less to live. I aimed to finish this piece of writing before the 2026 countdown, but it is now thirteen minutes past two on New Year’s Day.

Many things had occurred in 2025, yet I can only remember a few in detail. When the events of daily life begin to repeat themselves, our brains stop registering those memories with permanent addresses, and we start to forget and gradually resign to accept life is boring and, at its worst, meaningless.

My saving grace for 2025 is that I bought a camera, which I frequently bring along when I hike. I presume I have taken up spontaneous photography as a pastime. Taking pictures gives me a lot of fun and time to mull over things, sometimes deeply, when I hike in the countryside on weekdays. When I look at the pictures I have captured, layers of thoughts and reflections start to emerge. These pictures become a journal of a part of my life. So, I have chosen twenty-four pictures taken from January to December in 2025 and share them here as a glimpse of some delightful moments I had in the last twelve months. They do not have salon quality, but they are definitely my beloved. 

January: Cheerful and succulent but fragile

January: Once indispensable but now abandoned… sorry

February: Sweet and welcoming but ignored

February: Innovative and expanding but besieged by other countries

March: Spectacular but dangerous… nearly got me swept away

March: Forgotten or giving up?

April: Withering gracefully

April: Mysterious and delicate but unstoppable

May: Earnest and wistful but sometimes impossible

May: Enthusiastic and attentive but got caught

June: The only outdoor photo taken in the month… with the cellphone

June: The maid taking a month's vacation: work as a full-time son myself

July: Steadfast and unyielding until duty ends

July: Humble and unnoticed but life-changing

August: Fearful: Walking up to a guard dog the first time

August: Roaring and gushing waters under the fluffy clouds

September: Who even adorns the lowly fern with a pearl necklace?

September: Minute and unwitnessed but splendid

October: Amazing green

October: Embracing or suffocating: is there a choice?

November: Quiet and expansive: I feel like owning the land

November: Love is all around if one sees with open eyes.

December: The leaves are not red this year; we are to be blamed.

December: Selfless sacrifice without knowing the consequences

Wish you a memorable 2026.