小地瓜

阿娘種了一田的地瓜。由於前一陣子不大下雨，地瓜埋在土裡都快發臭了(阿娘說的)。阿娘挖了一籮筐擺在家裡都沒理會。前天心血來潮把一鍋的地瓜削了皮後，就用電鍋加水蒸熟。阿娘覺得味道香湯水清。今天懶得再削皮(因為每根只有手指粗，讓人生氣的細)，用水沖沖讓地瓜互相撞擊後就放入電鍋蒸。結果味道更香，還甜嘰嘰的。下次打算水洗後直接吃，味道不知如何?(客家電視台連戲劇裡的阿強伯就是這樣吃的，楊阿姨的雞也是這樣吃的)

How brilliant our ancestors were!!

Can you image some artworks on top of temples are made of broken pieces of ceramic waste? Evenmore, they are figures from stories or tales told from generation to generation. What I admire most is our ancestors' imagination and creativity.

To know more about fragmented ceramics artwork, you may visit this blog: http://blog.ntcri.gov.tw/html/blog/AB0012/blog_art.asp?arid=5227&blogbid=books39102&aid=363&qpagenum=1

Too much food?

Even thought the time is not right, we still have a good harvest of bannas. I would love to share with squirrels living in our neighborhood. My mom doesn't think so and brought the whole bunch home. Today I just realize that I am the one who eats bannas at home. If I don't finish them, they will become fertilizer in my mom's garden.

I have a question here. Who has the ultimate power to decide where food goes to? Huamn being or all beings around the food?

老祖宗的智慧

常常看到廟宇屋頂上精緻華麗的裝飾，從沒有細想這些是怎麼來的，也不覺得具藝術氣息。最近聽了師解說後，才了解上面有些裝飾採用了剪黏藝術。這種藝術據說是明朝萬曆年間廣東地區發展出來的，上面顏色鮮豔的造型主要以及吉祥如意、福祿壽喜和花鳥蟲魚人物的故事為主。以鐵絲塑出造型，填上灰泥，最後再以陶瓷片貼在造型上。最不可思議的是陶瓷片是師傅以剪子將陶瓷碗或是破損的陶器剪裁出來的。陳三火老師傅甚至以廢棄的瓶罐作為材料，為廢棄物注入新生命。真希望這種技術能夠代代傳承下去。

山裡的聲音

走在山間的古道上，水流聲與鳥鳴聲包圍著行人。當泛黃透紅的葉子飄落間上時，才發現葉落聲像背景音樂似的緩緩奏出。只要靜下心來，就可以感受到落葉輕輕落地的聲音。腳踏上枯葉堆的沙沙聲，提醒人現在是散盡葉子保留養分好過冬的時候。

bamboo & Hakka

When Hakkas immigrated from Mainland China to Formosa (Taiwan), sharp knives surely can be found in their bags. With knives and bamboo, they could make bamboowares for daily life.

Nowadays, Hakkas, including me, hardly can find bamboowares around. Bamboos become plants in our garden but not material used to build houses and to make tools. Finding a shop to by bamboowares is on my to-do list now.

One thing i can't get it is why the master of bambooware makes turtle shell?

福菜在哪裡?

福菜也就是客家人所稱的覆菜，是用芥菜醃製而成的。我娘上禮拜已經開始一年一度的醃菜工程，我雖然有見習但是還是悟性不高。

公館鄉是台灣福菜的主要加工鄉鎮，禮拜六開始了為期三天的福菜芋頭節。我和弟妹也共襄盛舉了。

一走進活動入口便發現有趣的竹編器具，尤其是那標明龜殼的大竹器。到現在我還沒研究出何時用得到它，但還是很讚嘆老師傅的手藝。
一旁還有小朋友畫著陶器，兩隻小手也跟著上了七彩的顏料。

阿公阿嬤們悠哉地逛著苗栗各鄉鎮農會擺的攤子。

舞台上還有賽夏族的小朋友表演求偶的口琴舞。

走了一圈，就是沒有看到福菜的蹤影。

這是我的新家嗎?

最近開始尋找一個落腳處，看來看去還是希望能夠住在有山有水的地方。親戚和鄰居們都給了一些建議，目前似乎以堂舅舅新整修的三合院呼聲最高。大家也決定先約堂舅舅談談，順便看看房子的隔局。

一大早一群人就浩浩蕩蕩先往大表哥的柚子園出發。因為沒有施肥，所以柚子都小到讓人忽視它的存在。反倒是小路旁的一片金桔樹引人注目。果然，數大就是美。

我們客家人都會拿這種金桔作金桔醬。白切肉和蘿蔔糕沾著金桔醬和醬油吃，又鹹又酸，正宗客家口味。

黃澄澄的果子都在對我說:「摘我，摘我」，所以就老大不客氣的摘下放入口中。又酸又甜，好爽口。

一旁的山茶樹也不甘示弱，小白花像是珍珠似的綴滿樹頭。堂舅舅摘了一把苦茶籽，說是要拿到頭份的油行打油。大家說苦茶油配麵線也是一絕，為何身為客家人的我都沒吃過呢?阿舅，油打好後，不要忘了請我吃一碗茶油麵線呦。

舅舅和舅媽七十幾歲了，天天還是會上山種菜。舅舅藍衣配綠鞋，舅媽黃衣配紅褲。等我老時，也要老來俏。咦!舅舅!你怎麼手插口袋看舅媽忙呢?其實舅舅老當益壯，常常忙到滿身大汗，就到水池就著山泉水洗澡。

舅媽水一勺一勺的慢慢澆，照顧小孩似的。就算是菜長得營養不良，也是自己的寶貝。

菜寶寶也排排站，等著喝水。小朋友要乖喔，可別趁人不注意溜到山下水邊去玩。綠花花的頭，可是一下就瞧見了。

之後，大夥都到堂舅舅的三合院瞧瞧。可惜老房子的格局經過整修之後，都不復見了。看來我的新家一時間沒法子定下來，得從長計議。臨走前，小舅舅將門口的蒲葵的葉子砍下來，說是煮過後要做蒲扇。我倒是記得小時候媽媽會拿著蒲扇追打我。

如果真能住在這，我是不是也能跟舅舅們一樣過著靠山吃山，靠水吃水的生活呢?

Cost of Beauty

Houlong River is the main river in Miaoli and passes by my family's farm. While time flies, this river becomes narrower and narrower. Gradually people plant flowers on the lands that they steal from Nature. While appreciating the beauty of bloomsoms, I don't even think of the river between mountains and flowerland. What would be the cost of such beauty? Just drying river bed? Or something out of my imagination?

Origin

This small path was noticed when I was a little girl. I always thought it led to Alice's wonderland. Just few months ago, my uncle and anut told me that our ancestors used to build their first house with bamboo in the forest. Image they came from Mainland China and reclaimed lands as much as they could. Gradually, our family leave the forest for new life. It's great that the land was returned to the Nature.

天天開心

環市道路旁的花田又恢復了生機。看到花朵爭著向陽生長的樣子，讓人的心情也開朗起來。

人間仙境

走在山間小路上看到一條小岔路，感覺只要穿越過樹林便就豁然開朗。的確，小路的盡頭是一小片平地。當年先人在此砍竹搭屋，慢慢地人丁興旺起來。多年後親人往山下走去，小屋又沒了主人。逐漸地，人的足跡消失在山野間，把土地又還給大自然。

內在美?外在美?

往鳴鳳古道的路上一叢花在水泥牆上盛開，粉紫的花色濃淡有緻，搭襯著翠綠山色格外顯眼。下車一探究竟，發現花莖從山壁下方一路往上攀延再越過水泥牆才得以讓路人有幸欣賞。旺盛的生命力令人折服。