Electricity - feel the vibe in your heart

**I haven't listened to the song for a while, but as always, it just gives me goose-bumps and can move me to tears very easily. The lyrics, the melody, the dance, they're just perfectly incorporated. Only one word to say: Brilliant!

Ookina furudokei - by Hirai Ken

 大きな古時計

おおきなのっぽの古時計
おじいさんの時計
百年　いつも動いていた
ご自慢の時計さ
おじいさんの　生まれた朝に
買ってきた時計さ
いまは　もう動かない　その時計

百年　休まずに
チク　タク　チク　タク
おじいさんと　いっしょに
チク　タク　チク　タク
いまは　もう動かない　その時計

何でも知ってる　古時計
おじいさんの時計
きれいな花嫁やってきた
その日も動いてた
うれしいことも　悲しいことも
みな知ってる　時計さ
いまは　もう動かない　その時計

うれしいことも　悲しいことも
みな知ってる　時計さ
いまは　もう動かない　その時計

真夜中に　ベルがなった
おじいさんの　時計
お別れのときがきたのを
みなにおしえたのさ
天国へのぼる　おじいさん
時計とも　お別れ
いまは　もう動かない　その時計

百年　休まずに
チク　タク　チク　タク
おじいさんと　いっしょに
チク　タク　チク　タク
いまは　もう動かない　その時計
いまは　もう動かない　その時計

Translation:

My Grandfather's Big Clock

My grandfather's clock
Was a big and tall old clock
For one hundred years it always rang
A clock you could boast about
It was bought
On the morning that my grandfather was born
Now, that clock no longer rings

For one hundred years, without a break
Tick tock, tick tock
Just like my grandfather
Tick tock, tick tock
Now, that clock no longer rings

That old clock knows everything
My grandfather's clock
Rang on the day
That he got a beautiful bride
During the happy times and the sad times
Everyone knew that clock
Now, that clock no longer rings

During the happy times and the sad times
Everyone knew that clock
Now, that clock no longer rings

At midnight
My grandfather's clock rang
The time to say farewell had come
It told everyone
Rising to heaven, my grandfather
Said farewell to the clock
Now, that clock no longer rings

For one hundred years, without a break
Tick tock, tick tock
Just like my grandfather
Tick tock, tick tock
Now, that clock no longer rings
Now, that clock no longer rings

**It's been years since I last listened to this song. It came to me by mere accident tonight as I was looking around in my youtube's update list. The melody brought me back to my (nearly) very first days in university, when I was still so in love with what I got from school, including Japanese which charmed me the most of all at the time. I was so in love with my life as well as people around me, and my mind was filled with so many dreams and expectations. My heart was so pure and I could love anybody with all I have without any hesitations. I used to be so "full". To tell the truth, I really felt my tears welling up as my ears caught such a familiar melody tonight, like meeting an old friend after a long long time of parting, or meeting someone so dear having got lost and now coming back to me. The flow of emotions as well as old feelings and memories suddenly rushed back all at once and filled me up again. The old things - they still haven't gone and perhaps never will, I guess.

Break Away - by Kelly Clarkson

Grew up in a small town
And when the rain would fall down
I'd just stare out my window
Dreamin' of what could be
And if I'd end up happy
I would pray

Trying hard to reach out
But when I tried to speak out
Felt like no one could hear me
Wanted to belong here
But something felt so wrong here
So I prayed I could breakaway

I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly
I'll do what it takes till I touch the sky
And I'll make a wish, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway
Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget all the ones that I love
I'll take a risk, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway

Wanna feel the warm breeze
Sleep under a palm tree
Feel the rush of the ocean
Get on board a fast train
Travel on a jetplane, far away
And breakaway

I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly
I'll do what it takes till I touch the sky
And I'll make a wish, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway
Out of the darkness and into the sun
I won't forget all the ones that I love
I gotta take a risk, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway

Buildings with a hundred floors
Swinging round revolving doors
Maybe I don't know where they'll take me
But, gotta keep moving on, moving on
Fly away, breakaway

I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly
Though it's not easy to tell you goodbye, gotta
Take a risk, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway
Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget the place I come from
I gotta take a risk, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway

Breakaway
Breakaway...

**This is one of my favorite songs ever. It takes the words right out of my mouth, speaking out loud what I've always thought and wanted. Just simple feelings and desires by young, dreaming, curious and ambitious people like me, who want to break free and fly high away when the time comes. Maybe because right now I'm just in the mood, I feel the song, its melody and lyrics flowing so smooth in my mind, a mind that is waiting for its time to break away.

Painted Heart

画心
(电影《画皮》主题歌曲)
作曲：藤原育郎 作词：陈少琪

歌词:
看不穿 是你失落的魂魄
猜不透 是你瞳孔的颜色
一阵风 一场梦
爱如(是)生命般(的)莫测
你的心 到底被什么蛊惑
你的轮廓在黑夜之中淹没
看桃花 开出怎样的结果
看着你 抱着我 目光似(比)月色寂寞
就让你 在别人怀里快乐
爱着你 像心跳难触摸
画着你 画不出你的骨骼
记着你的脸色 是我等你的执著
你是我 一首唱不完的歌
*(我的心 只愿为你而割舍)

Painted Heart
(Theme song of movie “Painted Skin”)
Lyrics: Chen Shaoqi
Artist: Vicki ZhaoWei

Lyrics:
Unable to see through your wandering spirit,
Unfathomable, the colour of your pupils
A passing wind, a waking dream
Like life, love remains undefined
Your heart, what confuses it so?
The outline of your body disappears into the night
I watch the cherry blossoms, waiting to see their blooms
I watch you, embracing me, your eyes lonelier than the moonlight
And I let you seek happiness in someone else’s arms
Loving you, untouchable like a heartbeat
Painting you, I cannot paint your skeleton
Remembering your expression, my reason to persist in waiting for you
You are mine, a song that I will never finish singing
*(My heart, only willing to be cut for you)

[Lyrics & Translation by Sevenses - http://sevenses.wordpress.com]

** I truly love this song. Even though I don't really understand the meaning, it still moves my deeply. There are two versions of it, one by Jane Zhang (official OST) and the other by the movie's lead actress, Vicky Zhao Wei. I don't know if it's because she's the main actress, thanks to which she can "feel" the lyrics better, I felt in love with Zhao Wei's version right at first sight, which I think conveys deeper emotions than Jane Zhang's. I'll write more about the song for sure...

Wide Awake - Emi Fujita

The dawn breaks slowly in the east
As day defeats the night
The echo of your voice that greets
The feeble morning light
Is the only answer to my silent prayer
And the promises i never make
You are always with me - your always there
In my dreams - though i am wide awake

And sometimes a forbidden glance
Will give my heart away
The light that kindled our romance
May flicker through the gray
All the gold and silver at the rainbows end
All earthly goods - i'll forsake
For each shooting star - a wish i send
And i dream - though i am wide awake

You were the rolling tidal wave
That swept my barren shores
If you will let me share your day
My life's forever yours
I will never understand the reason why
We fail to learn from our mistakes
I will wait for you as the days go by
With my dream - though i am wide awake

*About the song:

This song was included in a CD my ex gave me a few years ago. From time to time, listening to this song makes me think of him - just "think of", not "miss". He's the only one whose heart has been broken by such a thoughtless, heartless and selfish me so far and I know for the rest of his life, never will he forgive me. But anyway, he really is a nice memory to keep with no trace of pain. Perhaps, we used to like each other so much in the past but the affection as well as our halfway maturity at the time wasn't enough to carry us any further.

Across the universe of time

When the sea falls from the shore
As the light sinks low, will I see you any more?
As the rain falls from the sky
Can I bring you back, from a distant lullaby?

Show me your vision, the story begun
Two lights are rising and burning as one

In the deep blue of the night
Shine the millions of stars and my spirit burning bright
Spinning on, into the sun, flying higher
Now my journey's begun... And the...

Cold, cold wind, it blows me away
The feeling all over is a black, black day
But I know that I'll see you again
And I know that you're near me

There's a star, calling my name
It's echo is true and the song is not the same
Take my hand and lead me away
Bring me back to you in your arms I'm going to stay...

Tell me your vision, the story begun
Two lights are rising and burning as one

All those years drifting in space
I have known you well, yet I've never seen your face
You turn around, looking at me, laughter in your eyes
And now I can see

And the cold, cold wind, it blows me away
The feeling all over is a black, black day
But I know that I'll see you again
And I know that you're near me

Is love alive?

- I can't give you this.

- Why not? I promised to find you another one later.

- You won't.

It'd been three days and he still failed to convince her. She kept rejecting him no matter how many times he'd begged or promised to trade anything for it.

- You don't believe me? - asked he.

- No - she answered coldly.

The determination in her attitude made him feel frustrated, but he couldn't give up. He'd found it after such a hard time lost in search so there was no way he would let it go at this point. At any cost, he had to have it, the tiny thing she was keeping in that little glass pot by the window. Seemed like it was the only thing that brought life to this house, where lived a girl who was famous for many strange things around her.

- Is there any thing I can do so that you'll agree to give me that thing? - asked him in patience.

- Tell me why you want it so badly? - giving a serious look in the eyes, she asked.

Although he'd anticipated she might ask him such kind of question, still he felt pretty uneasy when it came. It wasn't that he didn't want to answer, rather he didn't know where to begin nor how he should begin. The look of those clear eyes, however, kept him from avoiding the answers. They were so clear yet intense and persistent that thinking of making up a lie made him feel guilty. Looking down to his hands, one wrapping the other, laying on the round wooden table, he was struggling to find a right point to start.

Without a noise, she reached him with a glass of warm water, gently placing it in front of the strange man who was trying to take away her precious thing. She didn't say a word after the question, just patiently waiting for his answer. It was always difficult to guess what this woman could possibly be thinking based on her expression. Maybe many years of solidarity had frozen down her emotions.

He lifted his eyelids a little bit just to catch a glimpse of the water glass. He didn't drink but strangely it made the nervous side in him felt warmer bit by bit. Slowly he took a deep breath and began to move his lips, still not looking at the woman.

- It's for someone. - he murmured - She said it was important to her, as much as she was important to me.

He took a quick glance at the woman's face but her expression was all blank as if the introduction of his story was nothing special to her, even though it was about a girl, with whom he supposed she would be curious about his relationship. With no other choice than going on with what had been begun, he continued.

- She said if I could find it before the winter ended, she would marry me when spring came. It would be like an evidence of my love for her and she would treat it as a symbol of our destined love. You may assume she's an unreasonable girl with sour and scornful thoughts or crazy ideas, but actually she's not. Well... it's just... she has her own belief. So when she said it was important to her, I had no doubt about that. That's why I wanted to find it for her no matter what.

She woman was still sitting in silence. Her fingers were moving on the table, drawing some undefined shapes. She didn't look at him but he knew she was listening.

- What if you can't? - she asked suddenly, looking at him in the eyes.

- I'll wait for another winter. - he answered with no hesitation.

The door bell rang all of a sudden. A guest was coming in and he had to stop his conversation, which was also today's conversation. The woman owned a little coffee shop and even though it didn't serve many drinks, the shop was quite well-known in town for its unique taste of coffee and milk, flavored with cinnamon. The shop was decorated in brown and honey yellow, with all of its furniture made from wood and intentionally made to look old. There were many windows installed around so that even in winter, it was still bright inside without any lamps. People said with this shop's space and coffee, you could get through any harsh winter, and even the owner who seemed pretty reticent and strange, the way she looked at you could also warm up your heart.

Because of his promise to the girl, he'd spent many weeks and days looking for her desired thing. But it wasn't easy at all. In the middle of winter, everything was covered under a thick layer of snow. It was so cold that even time also felt like  freezing. He dug deep into the snow for yards, trying to find a hint of what the girl wanted but every day passing by just left him disappointed and hopeless. He knew her demand was almost the same as finding a unicorn alive, but also, he couldn't resist it, his desire to make her happy. After days tolerating the cold in frustration searching for her version of "unicorn", he decided to take a break in that little coffee shop, and that was where astonishment  stroke him when he found that thing in a small glass pot by the snow decorated window, shining in the dim sunlight.

He came back to the shop again to convince its owner. He didn't mean to take it for free, but the woman told him that even if he'd agreed to become her servant for free, she would never let it go.

- Don't you know that it's impossible to find it in winter? - asked the woman.

- I do.

- So why did you accept the challenge?

- I just want to make her happy.

- At any cost?

- Yes.

- Even if you may die?

The man found himself holding his cup of hot coffee tighter than usual, pressing both palms against the warm sides of the cup. He'd never thought of that. He knew winter would be very cold but even in his worst nightmare, that never was a possibility.

- I never thought of it. I don't think it can happen.

- Anything can happen in this world. I think you're risking yourself on a worthless thing. Don't you think your girl's demand is ridiculous?

- I don't. I guess it must mean so much to her so that she insisted of wanting me to find it in winter. She's never been an unreasonable person. So I believe she has her reason. But... - he paused - if it's just a worthless thing, why don't you agree to let me have it?

The man's question surely had hit some note in the woman. For half a second, her face expression changed from indifferent to stunned and awkward. But she quickly composed herself, leaving the man the bill and turned away.

The next day, still sitting at the same table, the man looked at the tiny thing in the pot more closely. Its vivid green stood out in the brown theme of the shop, and seemed like the white color of the window was also lending it some more light to shine. For a moment, he thought he could understand why these women would love it so much. In winter, it was the only thing that reminded people of the continuous life out there, or at least that was what he felt in this little space, where the tiny thing was enjoying some scarce sunlight of winter.

- It seems you haven't change your mind yet? - today he was the first to ask.

- Not at all. - she answered firmly.

- I don't know what else I can do... - he continued with a miserable facial gesture.

- Tell me what she means to you. - she demanded.

He found this an unexpectedly easy question to answer. Taking a sip of coffee, he began his story about how he'd met her several months ago, how bright her personality was, how he found it so comfortable talking with her about lots of stuff... The woman kept listening with an amusing face. Usually she never showed her true feelings about anything but something in this man made her feel different. She didn't really know whether it was his strong determination or strange honestly that impressed her, but she knew she wanted to get more about him.

- So you think you love her? - asked the woman after his long talk.

- If not love, what else could it be? - the man questioned in doubt.

Another day passed by and the man hadn't got what he wanted. "Give up", however, was a word that didn't exist in his dictionary. He kept dropping by the little shop everyday, asking the woman the same question about the little thing in the glass pot, hearing the same negative answer from her, but different stories and revelations were exchanged each time. He didn't recognized that the woman talked more than usual and himself, either. Sometimes they talked about love, or just about coffee, weather, few people around them and so on. He helped her with the orders now and then, thanks to which he could learned a lot about many kinds of coffee as well as how to enjoy them. He began to understand why people in town love this place so much, but not until the day winter ended, did he realize that coffee wasn't the only thing he loved in here.

Spring is coming soon and snow had started to melt. Along with that process of nature, his frustration was growing up to its peak. He knew today was his last chance before all of snow disappeared from the ground. In that small coffee shop, everything remained unchanged. The tiny thing was still staying in the little pot by the window and there was no hint that the woman had changed her mind. Today, he felt strangely sad. Just sad, not angry. He knew it was also very precious to her, so there was no reason for him to blame her in anger if she refused to give him the thing. If he couldn't get it from the woman within today, he might lose someone he loved and that, for sure, made him unhappy. But actually, it was not the only reason; yet he couldn't find out what the other is.

Seeing the sadness in his eyes, the woman didn't say anything. Today she made him a cup of hot coffee and milk flavored with cinnamon, not black coffee like usual. She said it would make him feel better for a long day. They didn't talk, just watching one another in silence. He took a last look at the tiny thing in the pot, casting his eyes around the brown-themed shop, its old furniture, the white window where there was hardly any snow left, and his eyes lingered a little bit more on the owner who was turning her back to him to do some cleaning.  He didn't know how long it would take him to be here again if everything turned bad between him and his girl. That was why he thought he should see this place more closely before leaving. Noted that the cleaning thing would take the woman some time, he left money on the table, slowly walked to the door and prepared to leave without a word. Suddenly, he heard a noise and then someone  gently pulled his sleeve. The woman flipped his hand, putting the little pot in it, and without letting him utter any words, she said:

- Take this and give it to your love. Don't say anything. I'm not in the mood for any "thank you" or "sorry". Just remember what I told you about love. Find the true one and never let it go.

The woman pushed the man out through the door and hurried back inside the shop. He was still stunned and speechless due to the woman's sudden grace. But excitement soon came up and won over, which drove him straight to his girl's house within minutes. No need to describe how happy and surprised the girl was as she saw what the man had brought. She asked him how he'd got it but without waiting for his full answer, she kissed him more passionately than ever and hurried him into a wedding plan in spring.

It'd been five days and our man had been quite busy with his wedding plan. Of course he was utterly happy because everything was going so smoothly for him, but still, something strange kept lingering in his heart which made him felt uneasy. Seeing how his fiancée treasuring the little thing, suddenly he remembered the woman's saying:

- Love is not what you can archive to prove something, rather it's how you go to the end for it, no matter you're successful or not.

Did his girl ever ask how he'd got through the icy winter to get the thing for her? Did she ever care what he'd done and what he'd had to cope with? Only the shop owner knew. The long walls in white of the girl's house as well as its well-pruned  garden couldn't warm up his feelings even though snow had all melted away, leaving room for slippy roads and wet ground. He found himself missing the old wooden table, the brown walls, the honey yellow light, the smell of roasted coffee, the warmth of the air, and... someone else in that picture. He missed those clear eyes, the soft voice, the tender movements, he even missed the silence between him and that person filled out by the nice flows of music. And fortunately, it didn't take his heart so long to recognize who she was.

It's been a month since the dear owner of the small coffee shop left the town. People missed her so much and they were all praying the best things for their beloved girl. She had to leave for a big surgery overseas and it was said that she had to trade her life for it. If the surgery failed, they would never have any chance to see their strange but heart-warming girl again. They loved and pitied their poor girl, whose far-living fiancé had died in a plane crash this winter while on the way to bring her the twenty-sixth birthday gift, which was found later in his remaining luggage, something tiny in a glass pot.

Several days after the leaving of the coffee shop's owner, the hired lady who replaced her to take care of the shop noticed a man who came by everyday, all alone, always drinking coffee and mink flavored with cinnamon. He said he was the owner's friend. One day, he came in carrying a small glass pot with a green tiny thing inside, a four-leaf clover which was said to be the symbol of eternal love if  found in winter. He asked the hired lady to place the pot by the window where he usually sat near by.

And like other people in this small town, he'd been praying with all his heart for the little lady to come back,

for his true love to come back...

Sound of silence

I loved you.

The full stop at the end of the sentence left her exhausted. Putting down the fountain pen on the old wooden table, eyes closed, she took a deep breath then looked over the letter once again.

I still remember the day when we first experienced the painful meaning of "separation". Don't you forget it? How we walked down in the chill of the continuous rain, hand in hand, both humming the melody of our favorite song, a song with no lyrics. I still remember your hand, wet but warm and soft, holding mine tightly as if it was a knot which could never be loosened between us. I wanted to hold on to it so badly that just thinking of letting it go for a while was enough to make my heart ache...

Yes, she still remembered it, the day he'd sent her off at the airport. Their city was covered with rain almost half a year and people are all used to the damp cold of the weather. The other half of the year was bright and sunny, which, of course, was loved and looked forward to by all of the city's citizens. They'd first met in the rainy half and she was glad that it'd happened in that season instead of the sunny one. In her city, there was a story that told couples who first met each other on a rainy day were destined to be together and never could be apart. Her innocent heart had truly believed in such romantic story and so it wasn't too hard to imagine how happy she'd been when her very first love had come to her in a chilly rain.

I thought we could be like that forever, side by side, hand in hand, smile after smile. I loved the days you drove me in the rain where we could share our raincoat and I could feel how warm it was to embrace you from the back, smelling you sweat and felt your gentle startle as I tightened my arms. You told me about your friends, how your first love looked like when you was five (She loved to wear pink dresses and white shoes. I was surprised to find out that we studied in the same kindergarten but I could hardly remember about that time), how you managed to play truant once in third year and so on. Just simple stories like our love. And maybe because it was so simple, I'd never imagine one day this love could hurt me so deeply.

She read again another part of the letter. The song kept playing again and again from the CD player. Their favorite song. She named it "the sound of silence" because she always felt like it was trying to tell her some story underneath such beautiful notes gracefully played by piano and violin. A sad story, perhaps. She loved to listen to the song on rainy days while looking at the rain drops smashing against the window in despair, they could never break through its glasses as well as she could never break through the shadow in her heart.

Do you still remember it, our song? I thought I was among the very few who like that kind of music, but you surprised me by showing your collection of the same artist and of all their works, we both liked the same song the most. You said it made you feel the loss of time so clearly, like a spring never stopped flowing  down away the mountain. Hence, it reminded you not to waste a single day of your life and live it to the fullest because you couldn't take back what had been swept away in time flow. At that very moment, all of my senses told me that you were the one I'd been looking for, the missing piece which completed the puzzle of my life perfectly. Thinking of days and nights we could spend together listening to the song made my heart shiver with happiness. And more than anyone, you know how earnestly I prayed for it to come true.

Rain kept falling down outside the window. The violin part of the song was like a sharp wire bit by bit squeezing her heart. Memories kept flowing back to her mind and made it flooded. She'd never thought of another ending to their story other than a happy one. The day they said goodbye at the airport, he'd promised to wait for her, he'd even joked that she'd better pick a sunny day to return so that he could bring a huge bunch of lilies, her most favorite kind of flower, to welcome her back. She'd stroked her hands along every figure of his face, reminding herself never to forget it as well as the bright smile which had always lit up her rainy days. The last-minuted checking had been announced on the speakers, and she could  have barely managed to turn her back and walk into the checking room. That day, she hadn't cried, as she'd strongly believed in a return as well as in his love.

Dear J,

How are you? I'm doing fine...

The salutation sounded fake but it was still far better than a grievance. She could hardly remember how she got through the funeral as well as days after that when people said she treated herself like a dead one, clinging to his picture. She was leaving this city again, maybe it was forever this time. Her family had almost finished the packing. They couldn't hide their happy faces when she agreed to move with them. She folded up the letter, put it in a pink envelop, wrote down his name on the receiver line. She held the envelop in both hands, gently stroking her fingers over his name then she stood up, slowly went to the fireplace and, after a short breath, she threw the letter into the burning fire.

Her mothered stepped into the room, carrying along something that looked like a little dress.

- Honey, I have just found this out in a corner of my wardrobe. You used to like this dress very much. Time flies by so fast, eh? I still remember how you always liked wearing pink dresses and white shoes in your kindergarten...

A gift of love

I really love the song and the drama and I'm content with my own combination of the two of them, which took me a white night. Rather than using words, I'm glad to find a new way to record moments.

After finishing this video, I realized that in none of the cut scenes I used were there any dialogues between the two characters. I just love the way love exposing itself in silence. Let's let the song sing for them, and that's what I did.

I don't really remember how I found this song out of thousand pieces of music on the Internet but I truly thank God for letting me enjoy such a nice melody where I feel like love is told by the softest breezes of winter.

Cool Whispers
by Ike Yoshihiro

Cool whispers drift from the north on the night
Yet you warm my heart for we hold the light
The land must fade from green into white
Hush my heart this love is a fire
This love will burn like a fire

Lie side by side in the soft winter white
Hold me close to you as we brace for flight
In time I pray they’ll see what we feel
Gentle love this pain won’t retire
This love must burn like a fire

Close your eyes and dream what I see,
peace for a moment the future unclear
Hand by hand as we stand on the wire,
the ending so near our start close behind
Light bends through trees, leaves spiral and wind
We’re far from here and frozen in time

Cool whispers drift from the north on the night
Yet you warm my heart for we hold the light
The land must fade from green into white
Hush my heart this love is a fire
This love will burn like a fire

Cool whispers
Yet you warm my heart for we hold the light
This love will burn like a fire
Hold me close to you as we brace for flight