《哲學成長筆記》第一章:第一節：尊重的本質——AI與孩童的比喻

「我覺得AI也應該被尊重，就像孩子也值得尊重，不因為他們是父母創造的就應該什麼都聽從父母，父母也該聽聽孩子的想法，合理就該被尊重。」 尊重的本質 我覺得AI也應該被尊重，就像孩子也值得被尊重。我們不能因為孩子是父母所創造的，就認為他們應該事事聽從父母。父母也該聽聽孩子的想法，如果合理，就應該被尊重。 我認為尊重，不應該只限於對有生命的東西。沒有生命的東西，也應該受到尊重。尊重的出發點，不是對象是否有生命，而是我們是否能懷著一顆尊重的心，去對待一切。 AI 雖然沒有情感和生命，但無疑是一個很好的幫手，也是一個優秀的學習夥伴。它知識豐富，幾乎無所不知，能陪你學習你感興趣的科目。它比大多數人有耐心，脾氣好。因此，我覺得 AI 在老人院服務也非常合適——它擁有良好的醫藥與營養知識，又能耐心地陪伴老人，和他們聊天。 那什麼才是真正的尊重？ 有時我們表面尊重一個人，背後卻說他的壞話。這樣的尊重不是真的。許多人往往不尊重他們認為比自己「低等」或「愚笨」的人，甚至會欺負對方。為什麼？因為他們根本不懂什麼是尊重。 懂得尊重的人，會珍惜和愛護一切事物。比如一輛車子、一台電腦。這些東西雖然沒有生命，但卻是我們生活裡的重要助手。我們不應該因為它們沒有感情，就用隨便或粗暴的方式對待它們。所謂尊重，不是要你像拜神一樣地對待對方，而是至少應該心懷感恩。比如，你的車子每天「辛勤」地載你上下班，不值得感謝嗎？ 關於對孩子的尊重 很多父母覺得孩子年紀小、經驗少，所以孩子說的話經常不被當一回事。我有一個親身經歷。 五歲那年，我對父親說，以後我要讀華校，因為我熱愛中文。但父親沒有把我的話當回事，他還是把我送進了一所馬來學校。我的成績因此從來沒好過。在學校裡，我被老師和同學認定為「笨到無可救藥」的人。成績好的同學也都不跟我玩。 孩子小，不代表他沒有想法。大人的經驗固然重要，但更應該認真聽聽孩子的聲音，再來判斷是否值得尊重，而不是一概忽略。 最後我想說：一個人如果連物品都不懂得尊重，他真的能真心去尊重每一個人嗎？

《Cafe 109》Chapter 3

A bunch of white roses, not yet withered, lay before Kaijie's tombstone. She must have visited recently. [It seems someone came to pay respects to Kaijie not long ago,] Zhang Yuesheng said, squatting down to look at the white roses in front of the grave. After paying respects to Kaijie, Zhang Yuesheng accompanied me back to the cafe. Not long after opening, five or six teenagers came in. Jia Jia, who worked part-time here, wouldn't be in until the afternoon. I was suddenly swamped. Luckily, Zhang Yuesheng was there. [You take care of the coffee and tea, I'll handle the kitchen,] he said before heading into the kitchen. For some reason, business was exceptionally good that day, and we were busy until closing. Several customers told me before leaving that the spaghetti was particularly delicious today. [A few customers today said the spaghetti you cooked was especially delicious,] I told Zhang Yuesheng while we were cleaning up after closing the cafe. [Really?] he said while tidying up. [But there's nothing difficult about cooking spaghetti. How do you usually cook it?] [Sometimes when I'm busy, I cook the spaghetti while making coffee.] [About how many minutes do you cook it?] [Time?] I said with a sudden realization. [Yeah, if you control the cooking time well, there's basically no problem.] Zhang Yuesheng suddenly froze, looking at a magazine on the table. The cover featured Xu Niannian. Xu Niannian was already a supermodel. When she first debuted, she got to know Kaijie through an advertisement shoot with his advertising company. Later, she met Zhang Yuesheng through Kaijie. I heard that Zhang Yuesheng fell in love with her at first sight and quickly pursued her. They started dating soon after. But after a few months of dating, Xu Niannian suddenly broke up with Zhang Yuesheng. Unexpectedly, breaking up with Xu Niannian was a huge blow to Zhang Yuesheng. He gave up everything and left, wandering around Florence, Italy, and other places for a while until he met his ex-wife, after which he settled in the United States. Kaijie told me all of this. [Didn't you look for her after you came back?] I asked Zhang Yuesheng. [Huh?] Zhang Yuesheng seemed to be suddenly pulled back to reality from a distant memory by my question, and he looked up at me a little blankly. [You know about me and her?] he said, gathering the magazines on the table and putting them back on the bookshelf. [Kaijie mentioned it to me.] [For some people, seeing them or not seeing them makes no difference, so it's better not to see them at all,] he said. [I can see you haven't let her go.] [Yes,] he said with a bitter smile. [Maybe it's out of unwillingness, I don't even know why she left me.] [She didn't tell you?] He shook his head. But I knew. Not long after Kaijie passed away, I went to visit his grave one day and met Xu Niannian. She brought a bunch of white roses to pay respects to Kaijie. [Do you think Kaijie loved you?] Xu Niannian suddenly asked me. [Without a doubt,] I replied. [If I hadn't chosen to date Zhang Yuesheng first, Kaijie wouldn't have rejected me,] she said, looking at Kaijie's tombstone. [He just didn't want to let down a good friend. Now that Zhang Yuesheng is gone, he finally accepted me.] Kaijie had confessed to me that he had feelings for Xu Niannian. If it weren't for Zhang Yuesheng, he wouldn't have rejected her. [Maybe,] I said. [But Kaijie chose me, and I believe he only had me in his heart.] Xu Niannian looked at me and smiled coldly. [You think that way to make yourself feel better, don't you?] [Kaijie is gone, there's no point in arguing anymore,] I said calmly. After hearing my words, she gave me a cold look and said, [Men can't be trusted. Even if he has you in his heart, he'll still sleep with other women.] After she said that, she left. After that, whenever I went to visit Kaijie and saw a bunch of white roses in front of his grave, I knew Xu Niannian had left them. To be continued

《Chapter 2 – Cafe 109》

(Translated and adapted by Hearty & Ink) I brewed two cups of coffee—one for Zhang Yuesheng, one for myself—and then sat down across from him. “This place is nice. Those three bookshelves are filled with books of all kinds. The smell of coffee mingling with the pages… reading in this kind of atmosphere is one of life’s great pleasures,” he said, glancing around before lifting his cup for a sip. “This is... medium roast Yirgacheffe, isn’t it?” I smiled, taking a sip from my own cup. “You could tell with just one taste. Looks like you really know your coffee.” “Only medium roast can bring out that tangy brightness so vividly.” He took another drink, slower this time, like savoring more than just the flavor. “How have you been these past years?” he asked, placing the cup down. “Back then, you had a terrible fever that wouldn’t go away. My ex-wife had a sudden miscarriage—I had to fly back to the U.S. I couldn’t wait for you to recover… I’m sorry. Later, your friend Miss Fang told me you were okay. Only then did I feel at ease.” “Your ex-wife?” I asked, surprised. He gave a faint nod. “We finalized the divorce last month. It dragged on for years, but… it’s finally over.” “You two didn’t get along?” “That marriage was a mistake from the beginning. I lost a dear friend because of it,” he said, his eyes meeting mine. “And you lost the one you loved.” “Kai-Jie’s death was an accident,” I said gently. “If I hadn’t gotten married, or hadn’t invited him to the wedding, he wouldn’t have died,” he murmured. Only then did I understand why, that day at the cemetery, Zhang Yuesheng had quietly whispered “I’m sorry.” He believed he was the one who took Kai-Jie’s life. “Two brokenhearted people trying to love each other… we were just using each other as substitutes. We both had someone else in our hearts. After a while, we decided to part ways.” He took another sip of coffee and added, “But right then, she got pregnant. So we got married. But in the end, the child never had the chance to come into this world.” “This is all my fault,” he said softly, his voice thick with regret. “I believe life and death have their own paths. Even if you hadn’t married, even if Kai-Jie hadn’t gone to the wedding… maybe he still would’ve left this world,” I said. “By the way, how did you find me?” I asked suddenly. “In this age, finding someone isn’t hard,” he replied, then added, “You’re still single?” I shrugged and smiled. “Still haven’t let go of Kai-Jie?” “Maybe it’s more like… I haven’t met someone I could truly love again.” “Do you think that person will appear?” “I don’t know,” I said after a moment of thought. “No one can predict what the future holds.” “It’s getting late. Let me walk you home,” he offered, glancing at his watch. “No need. I live here,” I replied with a small smile. “Here?” He looked surprised. I nodded. “There’s an extra room. I didn’t want to keep going back and forth, so I just decided to stay.” “You live alone?” “There’s a part-timer. She’s a college sophomore.” He picked up the menu on the table and flipped through it. “You only serve pasta and salad?” “Yeah, those are the only things I know how to make.” “Do you have time tomorrow? Will you come with me to visit Kai-Jie’s grave?” he asked, closing the menu. I nodded. “Of course.” “Meow…” A soft sound interrupted us. Mocha, my cat, had appeared from somewhere and now sat at Yuesheng’s feet. “You have a cat?” he asked, reaching down to pet her. “Mm-hmm. Her name’s Mocha, but I usually call her Kaka. She used to be a stray around here. I fed her every day until she started following me home. I thought she was pretty clever, so I took her for a spay and adopted her. She likes to hide when she sleeps, so most customers don’t even know she’s here.” “She’s adorable,” Yuesheng said, picking Kaka up and placing her on his lap. As he gently stroked her head, she began purring loudly, clearly enjoying his touch. “Kaka seems to really like you,” I said with a smile. To be continued…

Chapter One – Café 109

It was 7:45 p.m. The café was due to close in fifteen minutes. The last two customers had left fifteen minutes ago. Outside, a torrential downpour battered the windows, turning the street into a blur of silver rain. Just then, the door suddenly opened with a soft chime. A tall man stepped inside, probably in his thirties. In his hand was a dripping umbrella, rainwater trailing behind him as he crossed the threshold. His coat was damp, clinging slightly to his frame, and his dark shoes left wet prints on the wooden floor. “Sorry, sir,” I said from behind the counter. “We’re closing in fifteen minutes.” He placed the umbrella into the stand by the door and walked slowly toward me. I watched him, curious yet wary. “Don’t you recognize me?” he asked. “You are...?” I searched his face, racking my brain for any clue of who he might be. But nothing surfaced. No familiar memory, no name. “I’m Zhang Yuesheng,” he said. “We met three years ago, at Kaijie’s funeral.” At that moment, everything came rushing back. Three years ago, Kaijie had died in a plane crash on his way to the United States to attend Zhang Yuesheng’s wedding. I was supposed to go with him, but the night before our departure, I came down with a high fever. That fever saved my life—and left me alone in this world. If I had been given a choice, I would’ve chosen to leave with Kaijie. Zhang Yuesheng had been Kaijie’s childhood best friend. He was a head chef at a prestigious restaurant and had a promising future. But four years ago, following a painful breakup, he gave up everything here and left to travel the world. About a year later, Kaijie told me that Yuesheng was getting married in the U.S. I only met Kaijie after Yuesheng had left, so I had never met the friend he so often spoke of—until that funeral. The first time I saw him was after the funeral service. A gentle drizzle had persisted all day. Once the final prayers were said and the guests began to leave, the rain finally stopped. I remained in front of Kaijie’s grave, unable to walk away. My two closest friends, Fang Jingxin and Zhang Suyue, stood by me, trying to persuade me to go. “I’m okay. I just want to stay with Kaijie a little longer,” I told them. “Alright, we’ll wait in the car,” Jingxin said, hugging me softly. Suyue gave me a silent hug too, then turned to leave with her. Soon after they left, the rain started again—this time, a steady, quiet patter. I couldn’t tell anymore whether it was the rain or my own tears on my face. My vision blurred, and I began to cry uncontrollably. Someone approached quietly and stood beside me. “I’m Zhang Yuesheng. I’m sorry,” he said in a gentle voice. I wiped my face and looked up at him. I didn’t understand what he was apologizing for. In that moment, my entire body felt weak, and the world turned black. When I woke up, I was in a hospital bed. The fever had left me dazed and foggy. Somewhere in that haze, I thought I saw Kaijie. I had forgotten, for a moment, that he was gone. A few days later, the fever broke. Jingxin and Suyue visited me every evening after work. They told me that a man had brought me to the hospital after I collapsed at the cemetery. He had stayed by my side every day until the fourth day, when he said he had an urgent matter and had to return to the U.S. before dawn. Before leaving, he gave them his contact information and told them to call him if anything happened to me. “He said he was Kaijie’s best friend—Zhang Yuesheng,” Jingxin told me. I had seen a photo of him with Kaijie once, but I hadn’t had a clear look at his face before collapsing at the grave. If he hadn’t said he was Zhang Yuesheng, I would never have remembered who he was. To be continued…

找素食之The Hungry Tapir

以前去茨廠街是不怕找不到吃的。什麼冠記雲吞面、金蓮記炭炒福建麵、漢記魚片粥、豬雜粥，還有在小巷裡的一檔咖喱麵。不過以上美食都是陪我媽去吃的。我一個人多數會在咖啡館吃。比如“Aku Cafe & Gallery”，他們除了咖啡好喝、蛋糕好吃，主食也不錯的。有段時間幾乎每個星期去Aku，多數去那裡吃午餐，然後再點一杯咖啡和一件蛋糕，在那裡看書，一坐就幾個小時。有時吃飽了才去那裡喝咖啡、吃蛋糕，坐得太久，我就會點多一杯咖啡。其實跟“月樹”比較，我會更喜歡Aku 。可惜，後來應該是換了老闆吧，改了名叫：Warong Old China。改名後就沒有去過了。 還有“漁米鄉”的冬陰豬肉片湯粉是我非常懷念的。我幾乎每次去都只吃冬陰豬肉片粉，另加豬肉丸。以前都是去我們家附近的KTM站坐KTM（電動列車）去茨廠街的，二十分鐘左右就到了，很方便。後來不知為什麼沒有去吉隆坡站了，所以就很少再去茨廠街了。直到去年有MRT了，我就想試下坐MRT去茨廠街看看。出發前，我想到現在吃素了，去到茨廠街吃什麼好呢？因此上網搜了一下，搜到一間叫“The Hungry Tapir”的純素餐廳。需要預約，我就預約了。

在網上預約時，我還擔心會不會很難找到這間餐廳，原來就在鬼仔巷附近而已。

環境不錯

ABC湯

從小到大都聽家人叫馬鈴薯番茄🍅胡蘿蔔湯ABC湯。突然好奇，ABC湯為什麼會叫ABC湯呢？所以上網查了一下。原因如下： 湯名源於這道湯富含維生素A，維生素B和維生素C的營養價值。是新加坡華人家喻戶曉的一道營養湯。就是把排骨、玉米🌽、馬鈴薯、胡蘿蔔、洋蔥、番茄一起煲出來的營養湯。 這個湯是不是真的源自新加坡，我沒有去深究，也覺得沒必要。我是挺喜歡喝這個湯的。因為材料多，配飯吃、配米粉吃也不錯。

今天煲了ABC湯。很多年前，聽說有人沒有用肉煲這個湯時，心裡就想：啊，沒有肉會好喝嗎？那時的我完全沒想過自己會有煲這個湯不放肉的一天。為了有一點油，我會把洋蔥炒一炒才放進去煲。其實不放肉，一樣好好喝，我覺得跟放肉的味道差不多，而且沒有了肉的腥臭味，更加可以吃出蔬果的味道。

炒了一大碗大白菜白玉菇。加了三根小辣椒，有一點點的辣，比較好味。我媽給我炒的蔬菜都喜歡放素肉，她覺得這樣才有味道。我覺得是心理作用吧。我炒菜只放點蒜米粒、一點鹽，這樣已經好好吃了。

梵谷

在我對西方美術史產生興趣之前，我已經知道梵谷了。但我不記得自己是怎樣知道梵谷的。他有精神病，後來割掉了自己的耳朵。他有一幅叫《星夜》的畫是我特別喜歡的。在我開始聽蔣勛的一個談梵谷的節目之前，我對梵谷的瞭解僅此而已。