No failure, but growth

"The Moment in Dream Awakening" (夢醒之間)

Performer: TAM Po-sherk (Chinese vertical bamboo flute, 譚寶碩—洞簫), Chen Junqian (Composer, 陈隽骞—配樂)

Selected from New Century Workshop's Album "Millennium Encounter" (《前年相遇》)

That year, I made a giant flute from a bamboo stalk as thick as the rim of a bowl.

I made a brush holder from the bamboo section I had cut off while making this bamboo flute, and gave it to Mr. James Wong (黃霑, 1941-2004), who was very pleased with it.

A year later, Mr. James Wong asked me: "Has your giant flute cracked? My brush holder has developed several cracks."

I said: "My bamboo flute has cracks too. It's quite normal for bamboo to crack—bring the brush holder to me and I'll repair it for you."

Mr. James Wong thought for a moment and said, "Let's not repair it. These cracks are witnesses to the passage of time. The brush holder is even more appealing with its weathered character."

A crack etches the vicissitudes of life and captures time.

The vicissitudes of time and the regrets of life, in Mr. James Wong 's eyes, are all inevitable and worth cherishing.

I was deeply moved.

Misfortune is what fortune leans upon; fortune is where misfortune hides.
(禍兮福之所倚，福兮禍之所伏。)

Laozi (《老子》)

Calligraphy: TAM Po-shek

Good and bad coexist, success and failure coexist, danger and opportunity coexist, whether we like it or not.

Such is the world, such is life.

There is no need to fear the cracks; experiencing life's vicissitudes is inevitable and worthy of cherishing.

In one's lifetime, if there are no profound and unforgettable cracks, how empty and shallow life would be?

The so-called cracks are nothing but the chasms that fate carves along the path of life.

What we should do is neither weep over the wounds nor pretend they don't exist.

But rather learn to face them.

With courage, carve our own lives into a unique work of art.

Like Mr. James Wong's brush pot, each crack becomes part of its unique character.

[Song Dynasty] LU You (陸遊, 1125-1210)
Calligraphy: TAM Po-shek

We are always pursuing success, pursuing perfection, and fearing failure.

Life is like climbing a mountain—who can avoid stumbling?

The key is not whether you will fall, but whether you have the courage to dust yourself off and take another step forward after falling.

Falling down has never been the end, but a turning point.

The setbacks that knock us down are often life's classroom.

Setbacks strip away our pride, awaken us from illusory dreams, teach us humility, help us remember lessons, and bring us genuine growth.

True failure is never about falling down, but about not getting back up after the fall.

Yet the brave accumulate experience with every fall, lighting the lamp that guides them forward.

On this long road of life, we grow continuously.

This is the most profound truth of life.