Pathfinding in the Forest: The Intersection of Two Journeys

2022-09-19

Her husband of 32 years died suddenly. Long Liyun realized that she had to extricate herself from sadness and let her life "return to a stable state". So she chose to take an amateur course in mycology to collect edible mushrooms in the forest to find the fun of life. In 2019, Long Liyun wrote and published Pathfinding in the Forest - About Mushrooms and Sorrow (introduced by the Commercial Press in 2022) in Norwegian. In her foreword, she wrote: "This book tells about two parallel journeys: one is external, entering the kingdom of mushrooms; the other is internal, enjoying the scene of sadness inside." As far as the author is concerned, "the territory of mushrooms" and "the labyrinth of sadness" are both "strange alien lands", and she tries to keep an open mind to face them. As an anthropologist, Long Liyun also adopted the perspective of fieldwork when exploring the mushroom world. Mushroom enthusiasts have become her informal objects of investigation: ceremonies, conventions, standard setters... She was impressed by the smelling ceremony of mushroom collectors, and soon realized some "unwritten rules", such as "private plots" where people can't step into others' daily mushroom collection without invitation and find something. She also humorously summarized how to politely avoid questions about specific information collected. The author was surprised to learn that there were different standards for the toxicity of mushrooms. In Norway, France and the United Kingdom, the types of fungi recommended in the field guide are different. Even in Norway and Sweden, the two neighboring Nordic countries, the understanding of the genus Filamentous fungi is also very different. In the section "Not black or white" of the chapter "Fifty degrees of poison", the author believes that this is because of cultural factors - "attitude towards potential toxins". In addition, smelling has a special role in the identification of mushrooms, but the descriptions of smells in authoritative mushroom books are "wet flour", "almond" and "raw potato" smells that are difficult for beginners to understand. She realized that these "internal jargon" might need to be revisited, and even considered organizing an aroma seminar. Long Liyun's sensitivity to authority and novice, center and edge is related to her immigration status and widowhood. She is a Chinese from Malaysia. In Norway, she is Long Litt Woon. She met Elf when she was an exchange student in Norway. They fell in love and married. She was 18 years old and he was 21 years old. Since then, they have witnessed each other's lives. They had no children. For a long time after Alf died, she was very confused about her widowhood. Mushroom collection can only be carried out outdoors. This kind of activity, which must be led by teachers and guides at the beginning, is crucial to the restoration and reconstruction of the author's personal life. This hobby needs to focus on the present, open your senses and fully pay attention to the surroundings - the shape, color and smell of mushrooms, the types of nearby plants, temperature and humidity. The author humorously created a new word "mushroom flow" to describe this state, which is similar to the "flow of heart" of athletes and the mindfulness of those who practice meditation. This is crucial for physical and mental healing. Many traumatized people are unable to operate their perception system and feel that they are really alive. The author's original very sensitive sense of smell was numbed by grief, and was activated in the process of learning and absorbing mushroom knowledge, "starting to perceive again

Edit:He Chuanning    Responsible editor:Su Suiyue

Source:People's Daily

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