Last week, I was asked by Albert Wan, friend and co-owner of Bleak House Books, to tell him what I am thankful for this year. He asked others in Hong Kong as well, such as Antony Dapiran (author of City on Fire: The Fight for Hong Kong), Louise Law (author of As If), Pete Spurrier (publisher of Blacksmith Books), and more. He included our responses in a Ming Pao article.

And here’s my response:

I am thankful for the members of the literary, cultural, and translation community both in Hong Kong and overseas who continue to carve out time to maintain and nurture meaningful and important discussions.

The pandemic has greatly affected people’s lives, and while it has incurred many restrictions, inconveniences, and, of course, loss of life, it has, paradoxically, brought the world closer together.

This, for me, is particularly evident in the (30+) online discussions that I have managed to host in the past eight months and more, and which were joined by people from different parts of the world.

I look forward to face-to-face events and activities, such as those at Bleak House Books, but I will not forget this period of time when we demonstrated profound solidarity, willingness, and trust in words, literature, and culture, to strengthen old connections and forge new ones, despite the fatigue and trauma.

What are you thankful for this year?

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Tammy Lai-Ming Ho is Associate Professor at the Department of English Language and Literature. She is the editor of Agora. [Click here to read all entries by or about Tammy.]