【Association】

Of course,

I am not speaking of that brand,

Nor of the slogan, "Without Lenovo, what would the world be like?"

That kind of association is a shackle on the mind;

What I seek is a leap that breaks free from established paths.

Do not let the sight of Orange Isle

Reflexively conjure images of "hills ablaze with red leaves";

Do not let the sight of wild geese

Habitually fix your thoughts on Hengyang.

Those are cultural clichés,

The inertia of a narrow perspective.

Do not simply move from tree to forest,

Or from river to ocean;

That is merely a shift in scale, not an upgrade in dimension.

And certainly, do not mistake the sound of the wind for the cry of a crane—

That is fear usurping the place of reason.

You might make associations like this—

Upon seeing the folds of the intestine,

Let your mind pierce the tissue to touch the catalysis of enzymes and the battle of microbiomes,

Witnessing the ceaseless symbiosis and struggle

Between the human host and that microscopic ecosystem.

You might make associations like this—

Upon seeing a beautiful exterior,

Focus your gaze deep within, piercing the aesthetic haze

To reach the roots of reproduction and the physiological truth of desire;

This is no offense, but the most honest way to behold life.

You might make associations like this—

Question common sense just as you would question gravity;

Scrutinize the giants of the field just as you would scrutinize Ambati.

Association is not a trail for blind followers,

But a spear that pierces the veil of consensus.

True association

Is a sense of awe that transcends time and space,

The secret interlocking of life and death;

It ultimately converges into—

That infinite biochemical network within the body,

And that cold, eternal, all-governing

Logic of mathematics.