Horse

The Oxford English Dictionary defines "dark horse" as a candidate about whom little is known, but who unexpectedly wins or succeeds. That's not a bad definition. Of course, we can find a better one. 

Todd Rose and Ogi Ogas, both accomplished in their field of psychology and neuroscience respectively, worked together to write the book Dark Horse. Long story short, they define dark horses as those bravely blazing their own trails through the wilderness. 

Their central concept of dark horse mindset is that the pursuit of fulfilment leads to excellence. This is exactly opposite to the mainstream dictum that the pursuit of excellence leads to fulfilment. For generations, we are being pressured to follow well-defined and rigid ladder rungs. All types of institutions, medical schools included, curate their scheme of admission and compel students to customise their portfolios to suit their tastes. Students are doomed by the Hunger Games system of survival or competition. How can they not be?

As a matter of fact, there is a way. Go and read the book Dark Horse, follow your personal passion, and not the dictated path.

Space

Recent launching of Artemis II marked a pivotal moment of human's traveling furthest from Earth. Ever.

It's hard to think of a better movie or book than Project Hail Mary. In this beautiful sci-fi fciton, we were brought on an interstellar field trip like Ms. Frizzle's Magic School Bus to the solar system.

We followed the story of Ryland Grace on his solo space trip adventure, after his crewmates died. For those of us who aren't mathematics buff, we might not enjoy the calculation. There are so many things to calculate: relative velocity, thrust duration and angle, altitude, gravity, and minimum amount of fuel for interplanetary travel.

As we read on, we met a new species, Eridians. Between Eridians and Ryland Grace, we learned the power of real friendship. That's something that can't be measured or calculated. Neither by the frequency of contact, nor the distance between two species. 

Many of us won't remember the numbers or statistics of the fictional microscopic organism Astrophage. But we all will remember how Ryland Grace builds his lifelong friendship with Rocky, a highly intelligent spider-like alien. At heart, they are closer than many of humans on Earth. To me, that's the real wisdom that not everything that counts can be counted.

Caterpillar

Caterpillars are ugly and gross. 

Or are they?

Other than Erie Carle's hungry caterpillar and that of Absalom from Alice in Wonderland, most caterpillars are. They've been viewed as voracious eating machines at best and crop-destroying pests at worst. 

Since my recent reading on butterfly's metamorphosis, I have better understood these fascinating creatures. In my opinion, they should have won as many awards as the book The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Look closely enough, and you will find these animals cleverer than what we thought. They aren't just overeating chocolate cake, pickle, cupcake, watermelon, and get stomachache. 

Caterpillars are pretty strategic. Some can produce sweet scretion to bribe ants. In exchange, the ants do not attack them. Others, such as caterpillars of pipervine swallowtail and common rose butterfly, feed on certain plants to sequester aristolocholic acid. That would be highly toxic to repel predators. 

They are smart. 

Wildlife

Can you recall the joys or spirits before school field trip? 

You're too excited to fall asleep. Your dreams are brilliant bursts of colour, rather than monochrome. And yet. Next morning, you're up early ahead of the alarm clock. 

Don't think this beautiful experience is for kindergarten students only. Whether you're five years old or fifty years old, field trip often makes us feel good. 

Believe me, I just have had one such happy moment. Imagine my enthusiasm when I got the chance to join an outdoor photography field session led by Robert Ferguson, an international award winning photographer. Every local nature lover could have bought his guide book, Wildcreatures of Hong Kong, and followed his blog with the same name.   

A morning walk with Robert Ferguson is the best way to connect with nature. Animals and photography are two of his life's greatest pleasures. A perfect combination. I am thrilled to join him spotting dragonfly or damselfly, watching intricate animals like lantern bug. There is no better way to learn photography from this guy who never says to himself, "Just put the camera down, Robert." 

Game

Mention tennis or backgammon, and the term "zero-sum game" will come to our mind. That means a situation when I win, you lose; if you win, I lose. 

But that's not the rule in the novel The Wishing Game, in which four contestants compete against each other in a one-of-a-kind competition on a fantastical island. They are working hard to win the only copy of a new book written by a reclusive bestselling author. To win the book that is supposed to sell more than one hundred thousand dollars, a contestant must score ten points. And if no one scores the requisite ten points, the book will go to the publisher. 

That's somewhat like a competition of Rubik's Cube. Everyone is competing against the clock. If nobody can beat the clock, that's it. The end.

Don't think that you can go online and search for a YouTube tutorial. If the contestants are caught using the landlines, smartphones, computers, or any internet-connected device on the island, they will be immediately disqualified.

If we have more games like this in the real world, that would be a true meritocracy.

Departure

Fiction becomes autobiography. Fiction is true. Confusing at first. Then powerful.

Julian Barnes finished his last fiction Departure(s) at the age of 80. That's a story within a story. Around fifteen years ago, he wrote about death in Nothing to be Frightened Of. The new book – the last one – explicitly talks about a man who lost his wife to brain tumour and is living with an incurable yet manageable form of blood cancer. And by "manageable", his doctor meant "unless there is another mutation, of which there is a five per cent chance."

Julian Barnes doesn't believe in cryonics. He isn't optimistic about reversing the process of ageing. He doesn't think the way out of death's trap is to extend the length of human life. Not that it matters. The tide would wash when time is due, like a terminus at the end of a journey according to Julian Barnes.

When Julian Barnes was younger, one of his rules was write each book as if it will be his last. It could have been the reason that his final one is the best.

Hanafubuki

Japan has a reputation of owning unique words, often untranslatable and with deep meaning.

Among them, the older and beautiful ones include shinrinyoku (literally forest bathing) and komorebi (reminding us the picture of sunlight filtering through the trees, dappling the forest floor). Fast forward to modern era and you'll find buzzwords like insuta-bae, referring to something that look good on Instagram.

What about hanafubuki? I learn this magical word about flower snowstorm during my Fukuoka trip. Picture it: the cherry blossom or sakura petals are blown through the air like snow shower. Set adrift in the wonderfully wild breeze, the petals feel like floating fairies. For all the poets and artists, grace and surreality are expressed here.

That's a mesmerising image captured by a word found nowhere else.