Rimuy

Introduction

Rimuy takes on the pen of journalism to write about the latest current affairs, the pen of literature to write about human sentiments, and the pen of graffiti to illustrate legends. Her Atayal pen name is the name bestowed on her by an interviewee, and the lovely people play Rimuy’s song simultaneously at the foothills of Dabajianshan. The writer, through her journalism work, has traversed different corners of Taiwan to explore local customs and collect religious folklore and local culture. Outside of news topics, the writer is curious to know why the people in the news stories are persistent and why they seem to long for something. It is these sentimental people who attract the writer to go to mountains, seas, homes and temples again and again, just to be there to listen and witness the face of faith and live in the world of God.

Resident planning

During the three years of interviewing and observing, the writer witnessed the unique worldview of traditional Taiwanese folklore, where rituals can be said to be everywhere, from individuals and houses to entire villages, all of which are manifestations of sacred spaces. It made me think that the price behind the modernization of Taiwanese society is the loss of a set of symbolic worldviews that depict the value of existence in traditional culture. I hope to record these observations in the form of prose in this Writer-in-Residency Program. “Traversing the Mountains and Rivers, Exploring Taiwan ” encapsulates the field observation notes of a journalist, which are not included in the news features, the stories of miracles and subtle emotions that are passed down by word of mouth, are precipitated and transformed into prose through this residency program, and a world of legends is laid bare. Because of the focus on Taiwanese Hokkien language and culture, most of the first-hand data collected are in Taiwanese Hokkien. This time, I will also try my hand at composing in Taiwanese and Chinese in order to tell the story in a way that is close to the local spoken language. In addition, I hope to invite participants to weave stories from all over Taiwan through related residency program activities.