Nearly two summers ago, in my first summer after moving to New York, I wrote this story, ‘Inside the Tank’. The story mainly revolves around some conversations I had with my ex-boyfriend, narrated in the form of a diary. Often I think, New York is not just a dream factory with its glittering façade; it metabolizes, attracting people and then driving them away at a steep price. Not everyone can live ‘beautifully’, yet people desire to choose a ‘beautiful’ life. This isn‘t necessarily bad, but more like an illusion, because when everyone makes this choice, it seems like the only one available, leading to such a decision. Just like the cuckoo I often watch through the window, standing on the branch outside the screen, looking at me; singing. At this moment, I don’t know who is truly more free, the me in a cage, or the bird on the branch?

近乎是两个夏天前，我在搬来纽约后的第一年夏天写了这篇故事、缸内生活。故事主要围绕着我和我前男友的一些对话，以日记形式记叙。时常我在想，纽约并不只是个徒有其表的造梦厂，它新陈代谢般将人们吸引至此又以高昂的代价将其赶走。不是所有人都能“美丽的”活着，而人们都想要选择“美丽的”活着，这不是坏事，而更像是一种假象，因为当所有人都这么选择后，你会觉得只有这么一个选择，从而做出这份选择。就像我时常望着窗外的布谷鸟，它透过纱窗站在树枝上看着我；叫。此时我不知道谁才是更自由的那一个，是笼中的我，还是枝头鸟？