TH: We are pleased to present Chris Song’s English translation of Mary Wong’s short story “Christmas Shopping” 聖誕購物, which is collected in Surviving Central 中環人. The story won the 25th Secondary School Students’ Best Ten Books Award.
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Ⓖ🅁Ⓞ🅄Ⓝ🄳……🄵Ⓛ🄾Ⓞ🅁
“It’s better for us to stay in the mall. It’s cold and noisy outside,” Terry murmured as if fearing some unspeakable dread outside. The mall’s music provided a sanctuary. John made no reply, his facial muscles seeming to have gone numb.
“Let’s stay inside. It’s cold and noisy out.”
“I hear you. I hear you,” John finally burst out, a shout that erupted amid the ongoing music. It was as if he was applauding, adding cheer to the holiday mood, but the women near the escalator looked terrified. People glanced their way, expecting trouble. Surprisingly, as the escalator approached the ground floor, the couple held hands and moved on.
This mall in Central oozed Christmas spirit, its crimson designs leading pedestrians to an anticipation of joy. Yet, neither Terry nor John felt it; neither did anyone else. Judging by their attire, it was a Christmas of pretend joy—but when everyone is pretending, perhaps the joy is real beyond dispute.
🄵Ⓘ🅁Ⓢ🅃……🄵Ⓛ🄾Ⓞ🅁
“Let’s go look at that shoe store,” said Terry, dragging John into a boutique. He followed mechanically. The store was mostly empty, the employees chatting among themselves.
“A pair of leather shoes cost seven thousand; even on sale, it’s three and a half,” Terry whispered into her husband’s ear. She picked up a pair of red horsehair shoes and examined them. “These are unique but so expensive.” The clerk eyed her but showed no reaction.
John sat in a corner, staring at the scant four or five pairs of men’s shoes hidden in a corner. His head hurt. Terry heard him and hastily said, “Let’s go,” exiting the shop with a longing glance back at the red shoes.
Ⓢ🄴Ⓒ🄾Ⓝ🄳……🄵Ⓛ🄾Ⓞ🅁
The couple moved up to a coffee shop, ordering Christmas pastries. They leaned against the railings, looking at the beautiful Christmas decorations below—snowscapes, mountain ranges, little cabins. “I wish we could live in one of those cabins. People inside look so happy,” Terry said, her eyes tearing up at a falling red ball that garnered applause.
“We could return to our old life…” she whispered, spilling her coffee. John’s numbed nerves awoke: “What was our old life?” She hesitated, then said, “Celebrating holidays. Christmas shopping.” They lapsed into silence, each lost in their memories. “If we shop, can we return to our old days?” John ventured, snapping out of his reverie.
🅃Ⓗ🄸Ⓡ🄳……🄵Ⓛ🄾Ⓞ🅁
They went into a high-end department store. While it looked like John was leading Terry, it was she who was propelling him, as if racing against an end-of-century deadline. The store was unnaturally bright and empty, with every item neatly and cleanly displayed. Terry was thrilled. She bought discounted earrings, nail polish, and without hesitating, three very expensive dresses. They both went quiet as if speaking would reveal a secret.
“What about my future?” John thought. Suddenly, he yelled, “I need size 41,” frightening the salespeople. The manager came out, saying they didn’t have that size. Terry hurriedly explained, “Sorry for the trouble.” The explanation only escalated the tension. They ended up buying a great number of items of men’s clothing, not even trying them on. As Terry paid by credit card, she seemed to see past and future, merging into an unsettling present made real only by the 200,000 dollars she spent.
Ⓕ🄴Ⓡ🅁Ⓘ🅂……🅆Ⓗ🄴Ⓔ🄻
Terry and John emerged into the streets in Central, each lugging more than ten bags. “It’s cold!” she exclaimed. The streets were empty; even the festive foreigners were missing. At some point, it had rained, leaving the roads slick and reflective. Red and green lights shone in the wet as they looked out toward Victoria Harbour. The Ferris wheel on the waterfront turned slowly against a silent urban background.
“It’s truly Christmas,” Terry said softly. Before she could finish, John had already picked up his bags…
2015
How to cite: Song, Chris and Mary Wong. “Shopping Story.” Cha: An Asian Literary Journal, 7 Dec. 2023, chajournal.blog/2023/12/07/shopping.
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Mary Shuk-Han Wong 黃淑嫻 (author) is a Hong Kong writer. Her short story collection Surviving Central (中環人; 2013) received the “25th Secondary School Students’ Best Ten Books Award.” Her essay collections include How to Live the Sad Days (悲傷的日子如何過; 2021), Against the Grain (亂世破讀; 2017), and From Kafka (理性的遊藝：從卡夫卡談起; 2015). She has also published an online poetry collection, Cave Whispers (絕地抒情; 2022), in collaboration with Hong Kong composer and photographer. She was the co-producer and literary advisor of two literary documentaries: 1918: Liu Yichang (1918：劉以鬯紀錄片; 2015) and Boundary: Leung Ping Kwan (東西：也斯紀錄片; 2015).
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Chris Song (translator) is a poet, editor, and translator from Hong Kong, and is an assistant professor in English and Chinese translation at the University of Toronto Scarborough. He won the “Extraordinary Mention” of the 2013 Nosside International Poetry Prize in Italy and the Award for Young Artist (Literary Arts) of the 2017 Hong Kong Arts Development Awards. In 2019, he won the 5th Haizi Poetry Award. He is a founding councilor of the Hong Kong Poetry Festival Foundation, executive director of the International Poetry Nights in Hong Kong, and editor-in-chief of Voice & Verse Poetry Magazine. He also serves as an advisor to various literary organisations. [Hong Kong Fiction in Translation.]