脱节感

中秋节就要到了。这里不会有什么隆重的庆祝活动。印尼人一般对这个节日一无所知。连在我认识的华人中，大多数人都不太在乎。印尼没有秋天，由于空气污染月亮在大城市里也经常看不到，怪不得中秋节最常与月饼联系在一起，而不是与秋天或赏月。前几年我从来没买月饼，但今年我特地买了。也许听起来有点肉麻，但我希望维持与祖先母国的关系。我相信，这样的小事可以让我想起华人的身份。

月亮是中秋节庆祝的核心。嫦娥喝了不死药后，便飞升至月球上生活。人们还认为，月球是无私玉兔的栖息地。这只普通兔子，为了帮助饥饿的（伪装成乞丐）玉帝，牺牲了自己。就是我现在想赏月，八成也看不到。汽车放出的废气和工厂排放的烟雾遮蔽了月光。我长大的家附近有一座著名的天文台。以前，学生们络绎不绝地来参观。他们借助大型望远镜观察夜景，满足对浩瀚无边宇宙的好奇心。现在我不确定学校是否还安排去那里的游学。

Feeling Disconnected

The Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching. There won’t be any grand celebrations here. Indonesians generally know nothing about this holiday. Even among the people of Chinese descent I know, most don’t really care about it. Indonesia doesn’t have autumn, and due to air pollution, the moon is often not visible in the big cities. No wonder the Mid-Autumn Festival is most commonly associated with mooncakes rather than with autumn or moon-gazing. Over these past few years, I had never bought mooncakes, but this year I specifically bought some. It might sound a bit cheesy, but I wish to maintain a connection with the homeland of my ancestors. I believe these small acts can remind me of my identity as a person of Chinese descent.

The moon is central to the Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations. After Chang’e drank the immortality potion, she ascended to live on the moon. People also believe that the moon is the dwelling place of the altruistic Jade Rabbit. This ordinary rabbit sacrificed itself to help the hungry Jade Emperor disguised as a beggar. Even if I want to gaze at the moon now, I probably won’t be able to see it. Exhaust from cars and smoke from factories obscure the moonlight. Near my childhood home, there is a famous observatory. In the past, students would flock there to visit and use large telescopes to observe the night sky and satisfy their curiosity about the vast universe. Now, I’m not sure if schools still arrange such field trips.