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Being on site -- Old vs. Young

 There is an interesting and useful part of the studio course this semester, which is site visiting. Why do I say so? Because I really like investigating different sites and observing the activities and people there. Every site has its own features and culture. I feel comfortable when I get to know the difference from site to site. Fortunately, the places of the sites are all in the villages of Wenzhou. We visit one village per week and learn from that village. This week we went to Xianbei village, which is near our school. There is a river that goes through the village, and the villagers on both sides live on this river for hundreds of years. 


Satellite Map

    When I was visiting the village, I found a very lively place. There are many people playing chess, chatting, playing majiang there, and so on, especially old people. Then I noticed that it is the culture hall of the village. All of the people of the village gather here to communicate with each other. There were two classmates with me, and when we were there, we felt tired and wanted to sit for a while. During that time, I also noticed two old men were sitting on the benches and doing nothing, just silently observing everything in front of them, including we three strangers. 

Old People in the Village

    Compared with my classmates, these two young people, the two sides formed a stark contrast. My friends are sitting in slutty posture, doing things that are not part of the culture of the village in the cultural hall of the village. This picture reminds me not only of the contrast between the old and the young but also of the age of information technology and the traditional old society. 

    Old people have experienced so much in their lives that when they get old they just want to be happy every day. They are not so concerned about the development of the present society. For them, health and happiness for themselves and their families are everything in their lives. They may wonder about the behavior of people and things around them, but they don't criticize or ask questions. Silence and quietness are their impression and attitude to the society. 

Two handsome boys

    Our generation can be considered the first beneficiaries of the information age. It is funny that some people can even skip meals for a day but he can't go a day without checking his phone. The Internet provides us with endless convenience, but it also binds us to these electronic products. Time is no longer our own, and thoughts are no longer our own. Cultural auditorium, a village the purest place, here shows the village simple folk customs, worship the villagers' faith, is the villagers' spiritual sustenance. There is a lot of public space or open space in the village, and the reason why these elderly people choose this place over other places is because it means so much to them.

    Maybe sometimes we really need to try to perceive the world in an old person's way, maybe we'll get a broader perspective, maybe we'll figure out something we haven't figured out in a long time.

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