HORSE AND ROSE
Dream: 17 July, 2005

I am alone and running as fast as I can. I almost crash
into a car. On the dirt road ahead I see a horse-drawn cart.
The cart is loaded up with flower pots. There are tropical
plants with thorns and there are the usual roses. I can't
bring them back, so I don't need to ask the price. I see that
on the horse's head is a big bouquet of roses. I don't know
if the flowers are to feed the horse or for decoration.

I have to meet my son; he is waiting for me at home. As I
walk onward, I reach the entrance of a northern village
where there is a great multitude of people gathered for
market. People are selling things like tofu dregs, bottle
caps, and dirty, wet towels. I don't dare buy a flat-bread to
eat there.

I get into a taxi and haven't seen whether the driver is
male or female. He drives and suddenly stops inside a
room. There is a little pathway by a storefront. The people
in the store are making cotton-padded pajama pants and
tops. I take several pairs but they are all massive. Some are
patterned with blue stripes, others with purple. I think to
myself that I should make a pair to wear in the winter, but
I am also afraid that the cloth is not clean.

The taxi driver parked here isn't looking for fares, so why
it is sitting here? His car can't get out from here. He needs
to back up, turn around and drive straight ahead. Am I
worried that the car will hit me or that I will run into it
first? He starts up the car and drives into the elevator.
The buttons on that at rickety old elevator are worndown
and unclear, you can't make out which is up and
down. In the middle of driving in the driver discovers that
this isn't an elevator that cars can drive into. From the
floor of the elevator there's a part where you can see the
laborers below at work. The car drives forward and falls
into the pit below. So dangerous! As usual, the workers
are breaking a sweat. The taxi driver has me show the way.
The car can't find the main gate from which to exit. I use
my son's mobile phone to call him. But the numbers are
wrong. My son is at home waiting for me. This female
taxi driver tells me she will only charge me 15 RMB. I tell
her it's okay.


梦2005 年7 月17 日马与玫瑰

我一个人猛跑过去，差一点撞上了汽车，见那土路
上有一匹马拉车，车上装满花盆，有热带的刺儿花，
也有常见的玫瑰花，我带不回去也不用问他花的价
格了，只见那匹马的头前还有一束大大的玫瑰，我
不知这花儿是喂马的还是装饰品。

我与儿子约好了，他在家中等我回来，向前走看到
北方村口有众多的人群集市，有卖豆腐渣，饼上盖
的又脏又湿的毛巾，看了也不敢买这种饼吃。

我乘坐的出租车，也没看到他是男还是女的，他拉
着我突然停在屋子里一间店面前的小过道上，那家
店正在做棉衣棉裤睡衣，拿了几套都是超大号的，
条纹兰格，紫红二种，我想也应做一套冬天穿，但
想怕不干净的布料。

出租司机并不找人，可车停在这儿干什么，他的车
走不出去，倒车，又掉头向前开，我担心撞车还不
是先把我撞坏了吗，他开着车又进了电梯，那破旧
的电梯口指示按钮也不清楚，上、下都不明确，车
子在电梯中发现这是不能开进车的电梯，电梯地板
还有一半可见工人在底下施工，车子开向前就掉到
坑里去了，太危险，工人照样干着活，司机让我引路，
车找不到大门的出口，我用儿子的手机打给儿子，
数字不对，可儿子在家等我呢，那女司机对我说只
收十五元钱，我说没关系。