See Shezi Island 01 "the last village in Taipei!" People who grow vegetables and burn incense to take in stray gods and guard the "diamonds in their hearts"

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One day on Shezi Island, from three o'clock in the morning, a series of headlights were on, flickering like fireflies in a vegetable garden. Professional vegetable farmers gathered fresh and tender vegetables for the market every day before the sun dried the dew. There are 170 hectares of agricultural land on the island, and it is roughly estimated that there are still hundreds of small farmers. The harvested vegetables supply Greater Taipei every day. In particular, sweet potato leaves account for 1 million of Taipei's supply, specializing in supplying the freshest and best vegetables in restaurants.

"the old people here are still living in accordance with the solar terms in the countryside, so they will say that White Dew and the Spring Equinox want to sow seeds," says Li Huaping, a spokesman for the Shezi Island residents' self-help Association. The residents here have a lot of memories of the land, and their ancestors have been in Taiwan for more than 200 years. Many people still remember which generation they came to Shezi Island.

"these fond memories of the year when it frosted and where to catch Loach made many people on the island feel a sense of belonging so that they would not get lost in bustling Greater Taipei." These ordinary details of life now make her feel particularly precious when faced with development expropriation. "as long as you cross the Zhou Mei Expressway and set foot on Shezi Island in the first second, you will feel relaxed."

Guo Qishan, a farmer on Shezi Island, picks vegetables at three o'clock every morning, picking an average of 150 or 60 kilograms a day to make a living. (photography / Lin Jiyang) the natural Changzhao community doesn't want to move to the building to lose humanity.

Faced with the development of district expropriation, residents of Shezi Island went to the nearest Chaumei, which was expropriated because of the "Beitou Shilin Science and Technology Park" development project, to learn about the living conditions of the rehousing. Xie Wenga, the governor of Shezi Island, said, "there are people who move out without getting a house, and people who sell their homes because they can't afford a loan. Finally, people from 1max 3 continue to live in the building."

"however, after Chau Mei moved into the building, she couldn't find her way home. Every door looked exactly the same. No one cared about anyone when the gate was closed. Just seeing Zhou Mei made her feel terrible." Li Huaping describes that because the surrounding land has been bulldozed, there is no function of life at all. on the contrary, it has lost the humanity of pastoral life and neighbors taking care of each other.

"if this is the end, it would be better to keep the original life." There is no park, but there are vegetable gardens everywhere, she thought. Neighbors exchange vegetables with each other, daughters who go to take the bus, neighbors and elders greet each other along the way, and the close neighborhood of Shezi Island is full of warmth and sense of security, although the transportation is slightly inconvenient.

For many Shezi Islanders, this land is like the song that celebrates the innocence and beauty of Shezi Island: "the Diamond in my Heart" is precious, but no one else can understand it.

Li Huaping, a spokesman for the self-help Association of Shezi Island residents, believes that the current Shezi Island is warm and full of human feelings. She is worried that the expropriation of the section will destroy everything (Photo / Lin Jiyang) the hens resist the eagles and use the efforts of flood and famine to protect their homes.

"Shezi Island is the village, and this is my home. In fact, you don't have to worry about becoming a mentally handicapped old man on Shezi Island. The strong neighborhood relationship naturally becomes a Changzhao community." Li Huaping says that after several years of struggle, the islanders have become more and more aware of the characteristics of Shezi Island and more and more identify with their own local culture. on the contrary, they no longer envy the bustling and high-rise buildings in Taipei.

However, the struggle comes at a price. Li Huaping has been sued for blocking the mayor's car and online exchange of words, and is now involved in two lawsuits.

When asked if she would be worried, she smiled and said, "of course," and used the analogy of the game of catching chickens with eagles. "thinking that there are so many villagers behind to support the old and young, I feel that we should make efforts to stand in front of the eagles and protect our homes together." After a while, she changed her tune. "the real hen is the strength of villagers' unity. When I am very depressed, these big brothers and sisters will give me encouragement and comfort."

Li Huaping's optimism and cheerfulness could not hide her gray hair, but she still did not hesitate to encourage the atmosphere at the scene of the protest, prompting the self-help Association to fight and shout. What she calls "big brother and big sister" is actually a member of the Grandpa and Mammy level of the Society for self-help on Shezi Island.

Grandma members of the self-help Association: protest during the day, burn incense in the middle of the night, and pray to the gods to bless the island.

In April, the Taipei City Metropolitan Committee examined the major plans for the development of Shezi Island. As soon as they heard the news that had been approved at the meeting, some elderly people could not help but burst into tears. A white-haired grandmother took out a prepared whistle and blew a shrill whistle desperately to express her angriest feelings.

Grandma's name is Yang Chen, who is 82 years old. as long as the self-help Association issues a mobilization order, she does almost everything, so she cleans up the housework early and hurriedly assembles.

Yang Chen, a member of the self-help Society, lives in Grandma and often wakes up in the morning to pray to the gods to protect Shezi Island from being demolished. (photography / Lin Jiyang)

Surrounded by others, Aunt Yang Chen, who was unwilling to share at first, revealed the secret in her heart. It turned out that for fear that people would laugh at her, Grandma Yang Chen always got up in the middle of the night to burn incense and knelt down at the Buddha's table to confess her uneasiness to the gods.

"if I didn't have to, I wouldn't have gone to make trouble with the government. After all, this broken Cuo Tsai is the only one left to live. I don't want to move and I don't want to leave debts to my children and grandchildren. Please bless me and let the development project be withdrawn, and our children and grandchildren will continue to live on Shezi Island." The pious and universal belief culture is a major feature of Shezi Island.

Although Shezi Island is not large, there are 80 to 90 temples scattered all over the island, and the Jiaotou culture is also very popular. Fu an Li Chau Di Yi Village alone can be divided into four corners: Laoliao, Xiaokou, Zhong Grottoes and Ha Chu Wai. Each village has its own land gong, and every year Yuanxiao's "Night Land Gong" activities around the border, each corner does not spend money to hire the head, so far, it is still mainly to mobilize the youth of the village to participate, and to retain the full culture of Zhuangtou.

The night land ceremony on Shezi Island still retains the traditional Zhuangtou culture, and all the members are still young and strong men in the village. (photography / Lin Jiyang) raise funds to maintain the small temple of the "wandering gods" and specially take in the idols drifting ashore.

The rich belief life of Shezi Island is reflected in daily life. Wang Mulin, the regular crew member of the self-help Association, laughs that he "can get a senior citizen card next year." after avoiding cancer three times, he still smokes in his hand, with an open-minded attitude like a fairy, enjoying himself in the midst of bitterness.

He gets up at three or four o'clock every day and is used to walking around the small temple in the corner of Nine Dazhuangtou on Shezi Island. His idea is that there is no shortage of incense and fire in those big temples and Zhuangtou public temples, but small temples in scattered corners. Because of the small population and no one to worship them, he regards lighting incense for small temples as the beginning of his day, and there is a philosophy in his belief.

The Dongshan Palace, on the side of the Keelung River next to the bike path, is a small temple jointly donated and maintained by Wang Mulin and his villagers. The particularity of the temple lies in the special reception of "stray gods", which can also be regarded as the resettlement homes of the gods. "Shezi Island is located at the confluence of the Tanshui River and Keelung River, and you can often pick up wandering statues drifting ashore." He explained.

"the people of Shezi Island believe in God very much. when they pick up stray gods by the river, they will invite them to the temple to offer offerings. If they are broken or injured, they will also send them to professional masters to help repair them." Over the years, people have been happy to raise money to maintain this homeless god residence.

If each of the stray gods picked up is disabled or injured, Wang Mulin and the villagers of the charity will send them one by one to repair and complete them, so each one has special feelings. (photography / Lin Jiyang)

"but oddly enough, we all feel that this god has no place to live and is miserable by human beings. why do people think that Shezi Island has been torn down and people have been driven away, and that it is not pitiful at all?" Wang Mulin muttered to himself that the fate of the wandering gods is like the incarnation of the Shezi Islanders, and the entanglement of the development project makes the islanders feel that their future is uncertain.

Participating in the struggle, the youth of Shezi Island redefine their hometown.

In the past, due to the stagnant function of life on Shezi Island, it was quite common for children to study in Shihlin, and it was also viewed by children in urban areas, and even hidden from the community.