Lyrics from a suicide note
Honestly, this is one of the songs which inspired me to write my second novel, Like a Dewdrop and till this day, it’s still a tearjerker for me. The singer tells his lover not to cry for him. He is going to depart – at his most glorious moment. And isn’t that the best time to go so that one remains a beautiful legend – forever?
Legendary beauties died young. Bruce Lee and Elvis Presley died when they were still worshiped and that’s why they are still worshiped. They would not be so “lucky” if they had lived till they were old and decrepit. Is it really so tragic for some superstars that they died young? Maybe not.
别哭我最爱的人
今夜我如昙花绽放
在最美的一刹那凋落
你的泪也挽不回的枯萎
别哭我最爱的人
可知我将不会再醒
在最美的夜空中眨眼
我的眸是最闪亮的星光
是否记得我骄傲的说这世界我曾经来过
不要告诉我永恒是什么
我在最灿烂的瞬间毁灭
是否记得我骄傲的说这世界我曾经来过
不要告诉我成熟是什么
我在刚开始的瞬间结束
If we could extend that concept of impermanence and life/death to human relationships, aren’t the most beautiful, romantic and memorable encounters those that are fleeting and somehow open-ended in our imagination? Ended before we could begin. 我在刚开始的瞬间结束.We will never know how things will end up if given the chance to proceed. Perhaps just as well for we can dream on and imagine a perfect outcome untainted by reality.
I didn’t know the circumstances under which Taiwanese musician Zheng Zhi Hua wrote Don’t Cry, My Beloved until recently. He was actually writing a suicide note! Whatever the case, living to a “ripe old age” should not be a mandatory objective for every single person. For those who had their moment of glory and there’s no “second wind”, departing at the most glorious moment could be better and more meaningful than gradually decaying and forgotten.
Unenlightened beings often lament that things don’t last, but when things last, suffering also lasts. The more we dwell on the self and the more we grasp and hoard, the more miserable of lives will be and the sadder and more fearful we feel when we are finally forced to leave this world.
While Zheng Zhi Hua sings Don’t Cry, My Beloved closest to his heart, there are other versions of the song that are also quite well sung. Let’s enjoy and contemplated on the Buddhist concepts inadvertently manifested in what’s supposed to be a suicide note. Fear not impermanence. The most beautiful flower; the flower that everyone remembers as the most beautiful, falls off at its most glorious moment. We pay a heavy price for longevity. Life is Like a Dewdrop.
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