Location anniversary

On the first anniversary of living in Taiwan

Coming from far away to these islands, pioneering empty wilderness
Looking back over the past year, recording key events
Ten-thousand streets flow together to return homeward to ocean land*
Sky-wide dawning colors cover the whole territory 
Whole body full of treasures for people to praise and sing 
Bamboo rains and orchid winds at your command
Greatest happiness: after recovering the old land,
Politic map shows new expansion to Pung Hu

*many people struggle and fought to arrive first

Xinzhu (new bamboo) is on the western side and Yilan (suited for orchids) is on the eastern side. But Taiwanese usually associated Xinzhu with wind and Yilan with rain. Here my grandfather has intentionally switched them to make the point that they can be ordered anyway you wish.

My great-grandfather was born in 1866. He worked ten acres of inherited land, and when he was old, he went to live with my mom's family in Taipei, sometime before 1949 when the Communists took over. My great uncle died on a ship wreck during Chinese New Years. My mom remembers my great grandfather being very sad. She still feels a little guilty thinking about her widowed aunt and her three male cousins who remained in China during Communist takeover. 

When they didn't have much food to eat, they would eat hot peppers and some rice. 

My mom remembers her grandfather saying that even if his son hadn't been educated, if he wasn't working in banking in Taiwan, he would have been a very good farmer--he was very proud of my grandfather.