I mentioned earlier that my father was very keen to the numbers. His mathematical ability was super strong. He said that when he saw music notes on the sheet in the college, he felt as if he watched bean sprouts on the paper. He had no idea about the music. But he could use math to answer music theory questions and got better grades than his classmate who knew music well. It made his classmate puzzled. I don’t know how he found the relationship between math and music, but I’ve always been fascinated by his mathematical abilities. And, he was not a person who knew how to use Google to search for information. I don’t know how he found out that the calendars of different years have the same cycle. For example, New Year’s Day in 2021 and 2010 starts on Friday so the calendars of these two years are exactly the same. My dad would be able to upcycle and make better use of the old/clean 2010 calendar to record the new events happening in 2021.
Because my father loved math and logic, he loved to play Sudoku and solitaire. He tried to set new winning streak records every day. If there was a choice, he preferred to play mahjong. He would also prepare mahjong rules to teach people. He played mahjong 13 tiles with relatives and friends. The winning or losing is only within a few hundred NT dollars (under 35 US dollars). Sometimes they played 8 hours in a day but winning or losing was less than NT$100 (under $4 US ). Both my parents loved to play big hands. However, it required not only skill but also luck. They were happy to win money, but if they won with big hands then they would be more excited. They also played mahjong 12 tiles, one tile was inside of the mind. The variations and flexibilities were greater. He played mahjong not only to train his brain, but also enjoyed a happy time where he could chat with his relatives, classmates and friends as well as share delicious food. So we will see a note written by him on his desk “The most cherished thing in the world is the time spent with loved ones.” Truly a word of wisdom.
Dad had always been very sharp and remembered numbers very well. He would remember the birthdays and wedding anniversaries of his family and made special calls (even if it was an overseas phone call) to bless them. My parents lived with us in the United States for a few years. When someone had a birthday, he would make a special handmade gift for him/her. He was always so thoughtful in planning, designing and making gifts. It was really touching.
I am very bad at directions. Fortunately, I can use Google Maps now to know which bus or MRT to take. Dad couldn’t use new technologies and I didn’t know how he memorized the MRT and bus routes. Every time I wanted to go somewhere, he would tell me which bus or MRT to take just like a Google Maps. I guess someone with good logic must have a way of remembering these things.
When it comes to Google Maps, I thought of a 2017 Kyoto, Japan trip story that my sister told me. They all took the tram together but they dispersed because of the crowd. Dad was agile and got off the tram one stop early. My sister wanted to signal him not to get off the tram but not quick enough. At that time, Dad didn’t have a cell phone, no money, and couldn’t speak Japanese. Fortunately he stayed where he was just as he taught us when we got lost, don’t panic, just stay put. Eventually his grandson found him. Another little story, dad has the habit of recording walking pedometer numbers on the calendar. In the past, his goal was 10,000 steps a day and my mom sometimes followed. Although my mom was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2013, they walked around 16,000+ or nearly 20,000 steps a day in the 2017 Japanese trip. It is admirable that both of my parents in their 80s could walk so many steps a day. But aging has progressed in silence. Many of the older generation do not want to burden the younger generation. When they need help or support, they usually don’t ask for it. I also hope that friends whose parents are still around can carefully observe their health conditions and give appropriate support in a timely manner.
I was looking through dad’s calendar for 2019 today (2022.07.02) and found that this calendar also recorded some events of 2021. We practiced counting of omer for 50 days in 2021 from Passover to Pentecost (2021.03.28 – 2021.05.16). That is, after Passover (the day to commemorate redemption), watering (cultivating spiritual life), weeding (removing negative qualities such as fear, ambition, doubt, etc.), and loosening the soil every day for 50 days. That is 50 days of Counting Blessings. We would write down daily the things that we would like to thank for and things that we would uproot, plant, and water. On April 1, 2021 he wanted to remove his proud title of “thrifty”. I think it was moved by the Holy Spirit. He had a thought that “If you need to spend the money, you will have to spend it.”
(To be continued …)
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