First week in Hong Kong

It just past my first week in Hong Kong and started my second week at Visible Record.

Hong Kong is a place that's kind of unsettling for me. I don't feel very natural here. This place makes me think and makes me be more restless than usual. I just have this very strange relationship with this place. I think I do sleep better back in my room, even though it's more of a hole than a room.

I think it is the culture. Hong Kong is not a very natural place, that's the reason why so many people who left Hong Kong for study never come back. It is a very competitive place but at the same time, the pot is not that big. It's also, for me, quite an illogical place filled with contradiction.

And, people, other than those in service professions (even that is questioned), are quite rude.

Hong Kong people talk a lot but seems to lack the ability to solve long-term problems. Basically, a lot of talk but not much action. There are many ways that they are just not that mature. They are really smart at getting shortcuts, getting meager tasks done quickly (but not necessarily well) and taking advantage of others and arguing but as for actual work, I am not to sure about.

There is also a stubbornness also.

At the same time, I don't think the Hong Kongers of this age are the same as the ones who made this place great. People have become very greedy and selfish. But actually, that is the trend of the world, I see it in America too, but it is not so wide spread. For America, that would be true for those who are rich and in power, but here, it extends across classes and is quite general.

I think the environment is a factor. People have to survive, people are less secure here. It is true, especially when comparing with Australia. So, in a sense, I don't really blame Hong Kongers for the way they are but at the same time I think there can be improvement. I believe in social betterment. It has to do with being an idealist. I have ideals.

Another thing is Hong Kong lack long-term vision and purpose. Everybody knows about this but not much has been acted on it. I believe the government has a huge responsibility in that. People pay tax and give so much resource to it, it should take care of people's future.

On the street, I look around and I see children, lively children, as smart as any in the world and I worry about them. What would they do when they grow up? What world will they be living in? Will they have a job with a livable income? Will there be opportunity to fulfill their potential?

What will they learn in the coming years? How to be a smart-mouth? To be rude and disrespectful? It seems that way. Well, there are many good kids as I seen from my experience working in school, but what culture are we to give them?

What culture do we want to give them for them to live in?

I am dissatisfied with this society and I envision a much better place and I want, in the very lease, so effort to make a difference, to make some improvement.

In Hong Kong, there is always this complain of American or western "individualism" but I must say, China has not been able to be "united" for a very long time. It's a modern Chinese syndrome, Chinese just can't work with one another. Harmony is a myth in China. People are selfish and greedy and sometimes they don't even know it. Money is paramount. You talk about money and everybody will listen. Money is god in China.

Same goes to Hong Kong.

In Hong Kong, teachers find students to be harder to teach to, church pastors find it hard to lead, parents find kids to be harder to please and raise. We have an unhealthy culture here.

I am not sure if it's the invasion of capitalism without a strong moral backbone. The western world has a Judea-Christian background which is its moral guide, but what about China? Hong Kong? China, thanks to the Communist Party, has a huge spiritual and moral vacuum. Hong Kong? It doesn't really appreciate its background, its history, and it's just finding out now about what history is. It's a young city really.

How about the church? It is being invaded by worldly ideas. I think it has to do with people's lack of this consciousness that we are in this fight. There is a spiritual warfare and we are suppose to be ready and be light and salt but for some reason, we like to fight against one another. Just weird. It's the lack of purpose.

So what do I think of this place? I find this place sad and pathetic. I love it but it griefs me. I can tell the people over and over again what can be improved but there would be no response and the ones working are few and tire.

In a sense, we are coming to an end. Our children will live in a place less than the one we have today. All we have is hope. The future is bleak, especially for the poor and even the lower middle class. Actually it is same for middle-class but most of them don't know it yet, it doesn't quite touch their nerve yet.

So here we are at this world that is not getting better for the most of us, but we must and have to go on (fight on). We will only live once and this is all we got. This actually makes me think of Ecclesiastes and how true it is.