Naomi Sím: Emerald Orchid Love Letter
translated by Will Buckingham
In the summer holiday, after I received my first Taiwanese Literature prize, I returned to the village to do two things — first I wanted to read my grandma the story I’d written, but she laughed at me, saying I spoke like a foreigner, and she couldn’t bear to listen; and second, I timed my arrival to coincide with my brothers return from Taipei for his baby’s salivation ceremony, which I thought might also make good material for a new novel.
“Stop your drool until it’s dry, you will always be your parents’ little treasure.”
I listened to their salivation song, without a single word of Taiwanese, and it made me feel uncomfortable somehow. My older brother and his wife held the baby, taking turns to pass out the salivation biscuits that brought blessings and peace, and that evening, after eating the biscuits, I had a strange dream — I dreamed I was beside a creek where I saw a stone engraved with the words, ‘When you drink, think of the source,’ and feeling suddenly thirsty, I wanted to drink. I cupped my hands to scoop up some water and bent my head, lifting the water to my face, my mouth breaking open, my nostrils filling with salty, sour, brackish creek water that stung me so I could not breathe, then, suddenly, I woke…
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