Take flight—the backbone of our conscience endures

We were rudely awakened by the national security law. Dreams don't collapse instantaneously. Tomorrow will bring many farewells. Don’t have to struggle anymore. I won't bother you either. The deep sadness in my heart cannot be lifted. I thought we would meet underneath the pot [Legislative Council Complex]. But life is too short and your time is too rushed. The journey is not finished yet the heart has already grown tired. Weariness is showing on our faces, perhaps we are fatigued. Maybe what you have done is enough. Bright skies cast dappled shadows from trees as safflowers sway. While the scenery is still beautiful and the day is still warm, open your arms to embrace yourselves. Celebrate your contributions. You have done enough. There's no need to look back. Keep moving forward. Yesterday is the past, and the past should not burden the future. Sunlight and a sea of blossoms await you. Let your sorrows and worries dissolve. No, you are still young, with a pair of wings to take flight. What are you waiting for? Fly!

The sun has set. Twilight grows dim. The wildflowers on the side of the road become cheerless and lonely. I cannot bear to see you off. I cannot bear to watch the long shadows you cast as you leave and carry away this shattered dream. I hope you stay well and safe. Albert Leung said, "Life! It's an endless farewell." All poets are pessimistic. It can't be, after this dark night, the sun will rise and sunshine will greet you again. You must trust that tomorrow holds bluer skies. You must trust that you will know the way. Despite the tempest, no matter how bitterly cold the world gets, do not let the future turn into the woes of the past. You are still young and should not be filled with melancholy. Yesterday has left. Even if you cannot bear to part from them, broken hearts must be set aside. Spread your wings and fly! You have our eternal blessing, what you have done is enough to allow our remaining comrades-in-arms to stand on your shoulders and go forth in the darkness of frustrations and despair to become a shining beacon of hope.

When the national security law had yet to be enacted, the tyrant’s slaves and hounds were already threatening the will of the people with empty bravado. Fear became thieves that robbed the flow of time. In an instant, my sideburns greyed, only a moment was held back before I turned old. I languished under my worries and torment. The dark shadows of my thoughts weighed down my mind like a boulder. My head submerged by sinister magic. I no longer dared to look forward. Life and freedom are all I crave. Keep going! You are you, who dares to cast the first stone? Please do not ask the wind, please do not ask the rain. Do not ask if the future brings joy or suffering, lest we wander away from our shared dreams. I will cherish your past strength, that was not just the frivolousness of youth. Blessings are still blessings, so I wish you a safe journey.

Kind-hearted people say, “Run away. Collusion with foreign powers is an act of treason, you can get shot!” I said, “I won't leave. I'll take up whatever comes up in the future. How can I live if I just leave? A long time ago, I resolved not to let fear deter me. If I have to worry about the possible consequences whenever I say or do something, what else could I say? What else could I do? How could I live with my head held high? About two weeks ago, Wang Dan informed me through my good friend, Perry Link, that he had inside information from a foreign media journalist. He said that once the national security law is passed, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) will immediately arrest me and Joshua Wong and put us on trial in Mainland. I remain determined. I wouldn't flee anyway. What else could I do? Wang Dan did it out of good intention and hoped for my wellbeing. Fearing that I did not receive the news, he even brought it to the media's attention. Now, probably everyone has heard of this news. 

[The newspaper] Tai Kung Pao even made up a story, slandering me by claiming that I planned to flee by boat. All this was done for only one purpose, which was to drive me into a panic and compel me to slip away quietly. Of course, they wanted me to flee; it would not only destroy my reputation but also ruin the integrity of Apple Daily and damage the pan-democrats’ solidarity. It would be like killing three birds with one stone, wishful thinking on their part. I come out to protest against unjust totalitarianism. I never thought about my life or to never wanted to live only for myself. I never considered whether to flee or not. "If you do business, eventually you'll have to pay your dues." Whether my "dues" are to be imprisoned or something more horrifying is out of my control. So there's no point thinking about it.

I'm not the only one being threatened, of course. Too many others who share my path in the movement have been stalked or verbally intimidated. For example, two of my internet celebrity friends, a married couple, were recently invited by [writer] Chan Koonchung to meet his friend. That friend, Meatball [nickname], disguised himself as a supporter of democracy while he has, in fact, been working for the CCP. When the national security law was introduced, he became a frontline fighter for the CCP and threatened my friends for seven hours with doors closed, but they didn't budge. Without a better option, he threatened the wife, assuming that she was a weakling. He said he would tell the gangsters from the triads to take on them and asked her if she wanted to die in a car crash or be stabbed in the chest three times. Using thugs for intimidation is simply outrageous. The tactics under totalitarian orders are awfully dirty. The mentality under autocratic influence is awfully degenerate. You can imagine what might have happened to those who were similarly threatened, so how can you blame some of them for wanting to leave?

If we panic, the more we think, the more we panic. With fear taking hold, rational thought gives way to the terrors of the imagination. As the imagination wanders, one's state of mind fluctuates. It's like a vicious circle, an abyss into which we fall with no point of return. Starting from our first panic attack, our hearts become entangled in paralysis. The more entangled our hearts, the more acute the paralysis. As these imaginary terrors expand, we cannot help but slip into the abyss from the steep slope. Those being threatened then have no other option but to flee.

Feeling the pressure from the national security law, many friends expressed their concern about my safety and told me, "Jimmy, be careful!" I told them you will never know when you have "overstepped the line" or broken the law when facing the lawless CCP. It all depends on what suits them at the moment. There is no way to be careful but to face it bravely. Caution is driven by the rational mind; bravery is supported by faith. No matter how careful you are, you cannot escape from the threat of violence; but bravery supported by faith will empower you to stand tall. Our hearts are God's temples, full of power that He bestows upon us. "The heart has its reasons which reason knows nothing of…” When we see a baby, we naturally smile. That baby's beauty cannot be comprehended by the rational mind. Faced with the threat of violence, we are not afraid because our hearts are full of power given to us by the truth that surpasses the fear that logic would presume. We cannot see God but we firmly believe that He exists.  We hold our hopes for the future with unknown possibilities. 

Yes, the content of the evil national security law is worse than our worst expectations. More people will leave. Some of those who stay will avoid participating in the resistance. Resistance groups will shrink. But no matter how many protesters are left, we will stand firm with our heads held high. We will become the strong, unyielding pillar of support for the resistance, the backbone of our collective social conscience.

Source: Apple Daily

https://hk.lifestyle.appledaily.com/lifestyle/columnist/daily/article/20200705/20949708