Bitter Lotus (苦心莲)

Way back when I was in Form 1, there was this Taiwanese TV series called Bitter Lotus. It was basically a remake of the popular Japanese TV series Oshin.

I can't remember whether I saw it on RTM2 (no TV3 for Sarawak folks back then), or was it on video. But I do remember my grandma getting all excited about the way life was depicted in the series. She would point out that this was the way things were in China when they were young, and never stopped reminding us on how lucky we are.

Being young then (and not to mention well-fed and well taken care of), I used to feel quite resentful whenever she did that.

But many years later (2006 to be exact), when I went back to visit my grandfather's birthplace, I found out how close to the truth the TV series was. Life IS really hard in the remote villages in China, despite the economic boom in the cities.

Anyway, another reason why the series stayed in my memory was the theme song, which was quite sweet and haunting at the same time. You can hear the song below:

For those who know Mandarin, here are the lyrics:

思乡曲

四重溪的水涼又清
四重溪的水情意長
我家住在溪頭水源上
春光明媚　秋氣(風)爽
冬天溫暖夏天涼
四重溪的水水流長
四重溪的水悠悠淌
隨著溪水流落到他鄉
朦朧的淚悄悄流
人生的苦暗暗嚐
四重溪的水甜又香
四重溪的人思故鄉
我又回到生長的地方
喜悅的淚滿眼眶
興奮的淚暖洋洋