I have a few stories I don’t think I’ve yet shared about flags, which is this week’s topic for SundayStills. Hope you enjoy.

I’ll start with this one. I shall call this “The Trail that Broke Me.”

In 2018, after a few months without work, when I found out I got hired for a part-time gig, I decided to join the local hiking group to celebrate. The trail we were hiking that day was Flag Rock. The flag is there to commemorate all those who perished in the 9/11 attack.

Anyway, the hike wasn’t so bad on the way up. A bunch of switchbacks as we climbed up and up the mountain. I felt extremely triumphant when I saw the flag.

Yay, I made it! Now, there’s no way to go but down. We weren’t going back the way we came. No, we are pressing forward, which will lead us down the mountain. It was okay at first but soon, I was heading downhill with little to no friction between my shoes and the ground. Every step felt like I was walking on rollers. The combination of the loose pea-size rocks and the steep slope made the hike more challenging.

I cannot tell you how careful I was with my steps, maybe I was too careful, because I took not one but three tumbles, almost rolling off the mountain on my last fall. Thankfully, someone from the hiking group grabbed my backpack strap from behind to prevent me from doing just that. This trail honestly broke me mentally. It made me feel afraid about going on hikes and walking on any kind of slope, no matter whether the ground is paved or unpaved.

On the final day of my trip to Taiwan, I went to the National Museum of Taiwan. It was so fascinating learning about Taiwan’s early history like its indigenous people – the Formosan – and native animals. I saw a complete skeleton of an ancient rhino and honestly thought it was a dinosaur.

This flag caught my attention. On this flag is a tiger on a cloud and I’m guessing that’s fire at the top? This is an early flag of Formosa or what Taiwan was called when Europeans first discovered the island. I will have to do some research about this flag. I wonder why the tiger.

Here’s my third and final picture.

My mom always said it’s cool that people in the US can put the flag on anything – clothes, car, shoes. She said, “In China, no one would dared do that.” I’ve only lived in China for a decade and can’t remember much of it. So I’m taking her word for that.

Each year, at the city’s 4th of July parade, I get to glimpse at all the creative ways people show off the flag – from clothes to hats to cars. It’s amazing how many ways there are to display the flag.

For SundayStills