Chapter 13 Don't ask "what's the use of this?"

When I graduated from college, my dad said: "You must study for a master's degree. You don't need to study for a doctorate, but a master's degree is a must." Why is "a master's degree a must"?I didn't ask.My father has very few demands on me, so once he opened his mouth, I accepted them all. Of course, because most masters are easy to study, if you choose an easy subject, you can often complete it within nine months. Just get a master's degree. Doctorate is much more troublesome. If you are unfortunate enough to meet a supervisor who is greedy for cheap labor and wants to keep graduate students around to help, it is common for a doctorate to consume you for more than ten years.

So I accepted my father's instructions very calmly. "No problem, a master's degree." I repeated it energetically, like a Japanese chef behind the counter. "And go to a first-class school." Dad carried out the second stage of instructions. "No problem, first-class school." The master echoed the second dish ordered by the guest. I certainly agree with the idea of ​​"going to a top school".I was in college for four years, and I listened to my knowledgeable friend Abi all day long, telling me where the most powerful universities in the West are: How many Nobel Prize-winning physicists are there in Berkeley? Home, what surgery did the medical school of Johns Hopkins University, what is the difference between a German J.D. It's all that sort of thing.

For us who have spent more than ten years in various bad schools in Taiwan, it is really convenient and sad entertainment to fiddle with the names of these temples of knowledge between our teeth. Like two junior high school boys in Taiwan, looking at the blonde bunny girl on the pull-out page of "Playboy" magazine.Mixed with yearning and national inferiority complex. Dad's instructions on the degree have been clearly received. "A first-class school, a master's degree is fine." It's my turn to make a condition to Dad. A chef with style will not do whatever the customer wants.Guests can ask for sashimi, but a master with style will decide what kind of fish is most suitable for sashimi at the moment.In other words, what you order is what you order, but you may not be able to eat it.

"Dad, I only miss what I miss." "Okay, just don't read too much." readily.This is the tacit understanding that my father and I have cultivated over the years.Take what you need and benefit from each other. However, to be honest, the situation of "I take what I need" seems to be one or two hundred times more than the situation of "Dad takes dad's needs". I'm missing something that might seem a bit weird to the average Taiwanese parent. I want to learn "stage play". Fortunately, my dad is not a "normal Taiwanese parent".

Growing up, my dad never asked me: "What's the use of this?" "What's the use?" is pretty much the most popular question on our island.Everyone is like a wind-up doll, you just need to pat him on the back of the head, and he will ask confidently: "What's the use of this?" "I want to learn stage play." "What's the use of that?" "I'm reading." "What's the use of this?" "I can play Baja now." "What's the use of that?" "I can identify the neem tree." "What's the use of it?"

This is the question I'm least used to answering, because I haven't been asked this question by my dad. Since I was a child, I have watched my parents do many "useless" things.Dad bought one piece of porcelain crystal that broke easily at home; Mom asked a tailor to come to the house to measure one after another complicated cheongsam; Mahjong is piled upside down and built, and no one will ever ask: "What's the use of this?" "Is it beautiful?" "Do you like it?" "Is it delicious?" These are the questions that will be asked all day long.

After growing up, I was asked more and more often: "What's the use of this?" It was only then that I suddenly realized that many people grew up with this question. I'm not so sure - if this is something to be thankful for.It wasn't until I repeatedly confirmed that "the most important things in life are actually useless" did I feel that I was really lucky. Life is not for use. Love, glory, justice, dignity, civilization, these powers that save me and comfort me in dark times are "useless" to many people, but I insist on believing that these are the treasures of life, so I can withstand repeated pursuits .