It is now the evening of October 18th, and I am writing these words in my new dormitory. Yes, I finally "got my wish" and changed dormitories in October. Although the improvement over the original environment is quite limited, it is still somewhat more comfortable, allowing me to endure it.
Speaking of the days in September, they cannot be considered a "good start" to my graduate career. On the contrary, this beginning can be described as impoverished, unbearable, and somewhat chaotic. At the beginning of September, I prepared a series of study, commuting, and fitness supplies, ready to embark on a life of working hard on research while maintaining good physical and mental health. However, many "unexpected incidents" occurred during this initial month. Fortunately, looking back at this series of events today, I can skip the tedious details and present the causes, processes, results, and my future plans as clearly as possible. The cause of the events was that my boss subjected everyone to verbal attacks, which were neither light nor severe. I thought I could endure it, but everyone is different. Two fellow students, who had just arrived for the new semester, felt they could not bear it, leading to thoughts of changing groups or dropping out. The result was that not long after, those thoughts became a reality, and the "bustling crowd" quickly left me. Have I had similar thoughts? I have, but in the end, I felt I could still hold on, even though there were many things I couldn't change.
Actually, yesterday was my 23rd birthday. As I gradually experience the increase in age, I feel that it is an unstoppable torrent, like the time that once existed and now exists, or perhaps these two are the same thing. I want to thank Bao for the strawberry 🍓 cake and two snow cakes he gave me; they were particularly delicious, and more importantly, they added a small sense of ceremony to my birthday. Yesterday, I spent almost the entire day moving into my dormitory, and by dinner time, I was so hungry that my vision was blurry. The good news was that my boss invited us to his home for hot pot, so I indulged and ate heartily, not participating much in the table talk. Looking back now, that small talk might have contained some key information, but there's no way to verify it.
There's also an interesting thing to record here: a few days ago, I went for a walk along the shore of Lake D with my fellow students, C and Z, and we stumbled upon a pear tree laden with fruit. While the pears on the tree were out of reach, there happened to be a pear that had fallen to the ground. Encouraged by C and Z, I took a small bite and realized that this pear was completely different from the ones I usually encounter. This is an ornamental pear, or rather, a wild, undomesticated pear. It has a very sour taste and a dry texture, which can be described as quite unpalatable. However, I unexpectedly felt a surge of inexplicable excitement from deep within. Perhaps it was because, at that moment, I resonated with my primitive ancestors, feeling their experience of tasting such sour fruit thousands of years ago, which for them was a rare "delicacy." I think I will cherish and appreciate the sweet and delicious fruits that humanity has domesticated even more.
That's the summary for this month. More stories will be shared next time. Returning to the present, my courses and work have already started to "intensify."