FADE IN
Act 1
PETER and his WIFE are discussing something.
WIFE: Tomorrow morning, we'll go to Tsuen Wan Town Hall to support my nephew's son. He's competing in a musical festival.
PETER: We also want to have a delayed New Year lunch with your parents and my parents-in-law.
WIFE: His competition will begin at 9:30 am. As I don't know when it'll end, I've told my parents that we'd pick them up around 1:30pm.
PETER: That would cut short our lunch time as the restaurant we booked will close by 3.00pm.
Pausing.
PETER (Cont'd): It's important that we meet your parents as early as possible. Once your nephew's son has performed, we can leave...
WIFE: Okay, I'll advance our reservation to 1.00pm then.
Peter nods.
Act 2
INT. TSUENWAN PLAZA - 12:15
Peter sees his wife ending her mobile call.
PETER: So you've advised your parents that we're going to pick them up shortly.
WIFE: Father said Mother hasn't returned home yet.
PETER: Did you ring them again after we'd advanced our lunch time?
WIFE (embarrassed): No.
PETER: No wonder.
WIFE: We just go and wait for her return.
PETER: We're wasting our time in between though.
EXT. HILLSIDE PATH - 12:30
As their car approaches an uphill path, Peter's wife shouts.
WIFE: I see my Mother's back!
We follow Peter's wife to see her short, thin and old MOTHER struggling uphill, holding a stick in one hand and pushing a cart with merchandise in another.
PETER: Last time we met, she walked with pain and asked us not to visit her in the New Year...
Quickly, Peter parks the car at the roadside. His wife rushes to give her Mother a hand. Peter follows.
MOTHER: Oh, you're here already! I didn't expect you so soon.
Mother then refers to the merchandise in the cart.
WIFE: Wow, lots of oranges... They're heavy...
MOTHER: They're all for your family.
WIFE: Mother, you didn't have to do this...
MOTHER: I'm exhausted. I need to rest for a while.
They help her to take a seat by a bus stop stand.
WIFE: Mother, you don't have to return home...our car is nearby.
MOTHTER: No! I've to pick up a box of egg rolls for your family.
WIFE: Mother, we're doing just fine...
MOTHER: No!
WIFE: OK! Yes! I'm going up to pick it and will come down with Father.
Swiftly, Peter's wife moves towards to a residential block nearby as Peter stays watching his mother-in-law and the car.
PETER (V.O.): If my wife had called her Mother that we'd arrive by this time, my mother-in-law would have done all that earlier.
Later, we see Peter's wife appearing with her tall and old father who can't wait to make a remark.
FATHER: We don't allow your Mother to go out alone. But she has managed to escape this time!
PETER (to his wife): This reminds me of 朱自清 Zhu Ziqing's prose entitled "背影"(Back Shadow).
Pausing.
PETER (Cont'd): His is about love between father and son, and yours is between mother and daughter.
PETER (V.O.): Parental love and sacrifice are the same.
PETER (Cont'd): But your mother is twice as old as Zhu's father and she has severe physical limitations.
They exchange a heartfelt look.
Act 3
INT. LIVING ROOM - 22:00
Peter inserts an AI drawing entitled "Sustained by Love" to a text.
PETER (V.O): It's the love between two individuals that leads to the creation of new life. And throughout existence, beings seek love.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O) (Cont'd): Love may well be seen as the transformative and unifying force that brings meaning and fulfilment in existence ie the ultimate goal of life.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O) (Cont'd): In between the beginning and the end, I feel that life is also sustained by love.
FADE OUT
THE END
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