Respectable Notes

Author: Fan Jingyi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-01-01
Features: The pieces included in this booklet, in addition to the first six, are all my works that I have published in the "Jingyi Notes" column of the Xinmin Evening News in recent years. I have been engaged in news work for over 50 years, yet I have never published a personal collection of works. Before this, People's Daily Press published a book titled "Editor-in-Chief's Notes" for me, but it was entirely a work diary and not considered a collection of works. Later, several publishers were willing to publish collections of my news, commentary, and prose, but I politely declined them. This was not out of false modesty, but rather because I felt that most of what I had written in the past were "useless" works, and there was little of lasting value. It was better to keep them hidden. In the spring of 1998, I retired from my position at People's Daily and joined the National People's Congress, where the workload was relatively lighter. Editor He Xiaogang of the "Nightlight Cup" supplement of Xinmin Evening News came to me and proposed the idea of opening a relatively relaxed column for me. The conditions were quite lenient: no restrictions on content—could record events, people, discuss the past, or talk about the present; no restrictions on genre—could be essays, prose, sketches, or letters; no restrictions on length—could be long or short, with shorter pieces being a few hundred words and longer ones over a thousand words; no restrictions on frequency—could publish three or four pieces a month, or just one or two. Unable to refuse such kindness, I accepted it with a "let's wait and see" attitude. Unknowingly, it has been over two years since I started, and I have managed to gather over fifty pieces. Without the Xinmin Evening News providing such a platform and constantly urging me to write, this achievement would not have been possible. Although I have been dealing with words for most of my life, writing "light-hearted" texts now is not easy. I understand that the newspaper expects such columns to be light-hearted yet meaningful: to have some readability yet intellectual depth; to have some human touch yet cultural flavor; to have some plot yet some interest; to be elegant yet not pretentious. For someone accustomed to writing news articles, it requires a process of relearning. Fortunately, many of the authors who contributed to the "Nightlight Cup" are scholars I respect and admire, such as Ji Xianlin, Wang Yuanyuan, Feng Yidai, Huang Miaozi, Huang Zongjiang, and Yu Dan. I sincerely learned from them. Of course, it was only "though I may not reach it, my heart aspires to it." Some colleagues often tell me that writing such "short essays" or "thousand-word articles" would be a breeze for me. Only I know that it is exhausting and slow. I have to admit that as one grows older, one's mind and pen become dull, and the era of "writing effortlessly" has passed. My only recourse is to sleep less and rest less. Since the launch of "Jingyi Notes," I have consciously given up my noon nap, as that is the only time in the day that truly belongs to me. That is why someone suggested naming this book "Noontime Collection" (though I avoided this suggestion for fear of being associated with the Song Dynasty lyric anthology "Flowers in the Moon Collection"). Of course, some friends have chided me, "Why torture yourself like this?" I jokingly replied, "It's just to prevent myself from becoming rigid, aging, or even developing dementia in old age." In reality, I do not find it hard but rather a source of joy. Truly, writing "Notes" has been a great joy in my later years, an indescribable delight. On the occasion of this book's publication, I would like to deeply thank the leadership of Xinmin Evening News for their enthusiastic support, the editor of the "Nightlight Cup" for their immense efforts, and the readers for their care and encouragement for this column. As long as they are willing to publish and read, I will continue writing. October 30, 2001