Zhou enjoyed the peaceful process of closing up the shop at night. The occasional car sped by on the road outside, but the only persistent noise was the hum of the heater and the swish of his broom on the floor. Zhou dumped the day’s dirt in the trash and then took a flashcard from his pocket. He happily checked “close up shop” off the list, and reviewed the remaining items: “Tomato Egg Rice for dinner, do laundry, review calendar, sleep”. Ah yes that’d be pretty tasty. “Hey Zhou, what’s cooking?” Hu came over, took the broom from Zhou and went to put it in the closet. “You down for some games tonight?” Most days Zhou would have gone. But today was really important, it was the day he reviewed his calendar. “Sorry Hu, gotta do some laundry”. “Ah, too bad, I got some really good ones!”. “Trust me, next time will be better, I doubt you want me on your couch in these gross clothes”. “I thought laundry was on your list yesterday too” “Hu, we literally played video games all night, how was I supposed to do my laundry?” “Ah good point, well see you tomorrow!” Hu walked out the door. When Zhou arrived home he quickly threw some eggs and tomatoes in a pan and idly tended them, while simultaneously starting his laundry. In a bit he sat down at his desk with a slightly burned dinner and got out his calendar. He added this day’s flashcard to a shoe-box filled with similar cards. He was a little dejected to see how many days his planned meals had been crossed off and replaced by instant noodles. A lot of days he just didn’t have the energy to make the fancy meals he originally planned. He flipped to the next month and was surprised to see a short note cramped on the top of the page, covering the boxes for the first few days of the month.

“Dear Zhou, I hope you’ve enjoyed the calendar and been eating well! By the time you find this it’s probably been quite some time since we last met. This is a reminder about our plan: to meet on December 4th, 5pm at the top of Stonehaven Mountain. I’m so excited to see you! Ever your friend, Lin” Zhou was shocked. He remembered 5 years ago when Lin left for graduate school, he said that they must meet up again at Stonehaven Mountain. In the first year Lin was away they had exchanged letters frequently, and had discussed the plan a few times. Then both their lives had gotten busy and the letters had been much less frequent. With regret Zhou realized that he hadn’t written Lin in more than half a year. He stared at the letter. Would Lin even come? Zhou had never known Lin to break a promise before. Zhou fondly remembered time spent with Lin. His favorite times were those spent hiking or cooking with Lin. Lin would always tell him interesting math problems that he was working on and inquire about foods that Zhou was learning to make. Zhou decided he would go and meet his friend. He checked the calendar. There were only 3 days until the appointed day, a Saturday. He got a flashcard out and made his agenda for tomorrow: Obtain a train ticket, pack some food and clothes for the trip, ask to take the weekend off from work. Then, tired but excited, Zhou went to bed.

Five days later at 7am Zhou anxiously waited in his car outside Hu’s house. Zhou’s boss hadn’t been too happy about them both taking the weekend off, but Zhou had been adamant, and his boss had finally given in. Should I call him again? he wondered. Their train left in under 30 minutes and Hu was not great at getting up early. After a few moments Hu rushed out the door, carrying a large bag of luggage and his bag of video-game consoles. Zhou helped him throw his bag in the car and they were off. “Where’s Wu?” Hu asked. “He can’t come,” Zhou said absently, focused on the road “told me last night.” “Ah shoot, how are we going to play Landing II?” At that moment Zhou spotted a cop on the road behind them. Zhou belatedly cut his speed, but the cop signaled for him to pull over. Zhou reluctantly did so. “I’m really sorry officer, I was in a rush, I didn’t even notice my speed, please give me a ticket.” “Not asking for leniency? Lot’s of young people do that.” “No I was in the wrong, I’ll pay.” “Well can’t argue with that” the cop chuckled and handed him the ticket. “Now get on your way, but slowly and safely”. “Yes, sir”. Zhou painstakingly drove the remaining 20 minutes to the train station, constantly checking the clock as it sped towards 7:30. He meticulously parked the car and then they scrambled out and towards the train. Zhou couldn’t find the train stop, but Hu had been there before and pulled him along to terminal A. They finally found it at 7:28, out of breath and rushed on board. They settled into their seats, and Hu settled into a nap. Zhou sat by the window seat and watched the scenery pass by. He pulled out the day’s flashcard, which he had prepared the night before, and gladly checked off “pick up Hu, get to train”. The remaining items were: “think about what to say to Lin, 1pm drop stuff at hotel and grab lunch, 2pm hike up the mountain, 5pm meet Lin.” Zhou stared out the window and watched the trees zip by. What would he say to Lin? Would Lin be disappointed that Zhou was working at 7-11 instead of being a chef somewhere? Would Lin even show up, or had he forgotten his friend as his life grew busy and they slowly grew apart, first separated by distance and then separated in connection? It started to snow outside, graceful flakes falling and thinly coating the ground.

Hours later the train finally arrived. The snow had really picked up now, but luckily their hotel was nearby. As they ran to their hotel the wind bit at their arms. After a quick lunch in their room they got out their winter gear and walked to the base of the mountain. Hu stared up the mountain. “Zhou…,” Hu screamed over the wind, “this is a freaking blizzard! I know you’re really eager to see Lin, but there’s no way he’s climbing the mountain in this weather. Maybe you can contact him and set up another meeting. We can go back inside and stay warm, and maybe play a round of Ascent VI.” Zhou stared up the mountain as well, not looking at his friend. Hu’s right. he thought. This is crazy. “You’re right” Zhou whispered, and turned around to head back with Hu. Dejected, he walked back to the apartment with Zhou and took off his gear. When he took off his jacket his daily flashcard fell to the floor. Zhou reached down, crumpled it, and attempted to throw it in the trash can. He missed by a large margin, and Hu laughed. This brought to Zhou’s memory something that Lin used to like to say “being crazy is the key to success in life”. If Zhou didn’t at least try to go to the meeting place he knew he’d regret it. “Sorry Hu, I just realized something.” “What?” Hu called, voice muffled as he plugged in the video-game equipment. “Life’s more exciting when you’re crazy sometimes”. Was there enough time still? Zhou checked the clock while pulling back on his snow equipment. No, not really. It was already 3pm. If he was fast, and if Lin waited for him, then maybe there was a chance. “Well, if you’re not back by night I’ll try and find someone to rescue you or recover your dead body” Hu helpfully called as Zhou ran out the door.

The hike up the mountain was cold and grueling. As the light slowly faded Zhou was tempted many times by the prospect of turning back. But he never did.

And from that day onwards Zhou was a little bit better at achieving the items on his flashcards.