When I was doing my graduate studies at Xiamen University in 1978, memories of artillery shelling between Xiamen and Jin (Kin) Men was still fresh. Visiting the campus library, I would walk past a crater the size of a football in the middle of the road, said to be from shelling’s by KMT (Kuomintang) army at Jin Men. At night, the beach was a forbidden place, as PLA (People's Liberation Army) would patrol the beach, ready to pounce on any suspects, real or imagined. Still earlier in 1969 of the Cultural Revolution, I was once sent to a small island within earshot of Jinmen to promote a revolutionary textbook. Peering behind a reef, I saw KMT soldiers doing their chore with helmets on.

Eventually, no more shelling’s took place between the hostile parties. Eventually, propaganda loudspeakers ceased to provoke. Finally restriction was eased for people to travel across the channel. Now there are 20 ferry boats per day transporting passengers between Xiamen and Jin (Kin) Men, each boat capable of carrying as many as 300 or 400, and covering the distance in 35 minutes..

Yesterday （1-17-2017）, my brother accompanied me on a trip to Jin Men, for the purpose of renewing my visa to stay longer. At a glimpse, Jin Men is more like a small town while Xiamen is very metropolitan. No skyscrapers or cranes or boulevards. A lot of cars and motorcycles, but traffic noises are low, and drivers usually do not honk the horn to get attention. Inhabitants are invariably courteous, trusting and friendly, a quality you do not often see in mainland China now

In Jin Men, people speak the same dialect as in Xiamen and my hometown. The architect is similar too, except that they have done a much better job in preserving the historical buildings and old culture. My hometown used to have as many Buddhist temples and other worshipping places, but a lot of them were torn down or usurped into other purposes after 1949.

The most shocking revelation came at the store where kitchen knives were sold. The raw material for those knives was said to come from the projectiles delivered to the island during the 1958's hostilities. A lot of lives and bloods and damages must have been inflicted by both sides on their compatriots who speak the same language and dialect, who share the same cultural heritage and fate, and can both benefit if they learn to co-exist, and travel freely (almost), like now.

May 2017 continue to be a year of peace and prosperity, or 平安, for the Chinese people, wherever they are: Jin Men (Kin Men, Jinmen), Xiamen, or elsewhere.

1978年间在厦门大学读研究生时，金门炮战才过去二十年。去厦大图书馆的路上，金门打过来的炮弹坑清晰地镶在水泥路上。厦大海滩晚上依然是不能去漫游的，因为有持枪的军人在那里巡视，随时抓你，或抓你问话。更早的文革军管的年头（1969年初），我曾和同事林英为编更革命化教材去大嶝采访。在接待我们的民兵的指引下，我们曾经趴在一块礁石后眺望小金门岛，看带钢盔的“蒋军官兵们”上哨下岗。

慢慢地，双方不再互相炮击。慢慢地，互相对骂的大喇叭停了。政治家们开始探索一条互相接触的路径。两岸开始往来，坐船半小时之隔的厦门与金门终于有了小三通。每天八点到下午五点通常有二十班渡轮，每条渡轮可运载280到422人。（大陆居民入金门落地签所需准备材料及流程，见i海台“海峡客运票务平台”）

昨天（2017.1.17）弟弟陪我去了一趟金门。从繁华热闹的厦门踏入金门，有点像来到乡下的感觉。没什么高楼大厦。没什么工程吊车。路不宽，车不少，摩托尤多。但两地的差别立见，因为这里的人十分殷勤礼貌，这里的车很少按喇叭。坐渡轮时我坐在一排三座的靠窗位置。来了一个相当年轻的中年人，道声歉后在靠走道的位置坐下。中间的座位是空的。但他把东西搁在自己的脚下。也是慢慢地，我们聊天了。他来自台湾，在厦门、金门、高雄、日本之间跑。今天是到金门搭飞机去高雄。听他提到他带不少行李，船到后我问他要不要帮忙。他马上说要。取行李的人围了几圈。他接到行李就递到外圈给我，我再递给更外圈的弟弟。我心里想，如果在大陆，能够这样信任人吗？能够不担心东西被人踹走吗。过海关的时候，表格有到访地一栏，那位台湾朋友马上把他的姓名地址电话报给弟弟。这样的信任，大陆人之间大概也是不行的。

金门建筑风格跟石码很相似，但古屋古迹保存良好。金门跟石码很相似的还有一点：庙宇遍布。据传，解放前石码的大小庙宇有137间。解放后许多庙宇被拆了。我所知道就有三处。（1）新仙街（现解放西）居委会就占了庙宇办公（妈妈在那里当居委会文书，所以我知道）；（2）实验小学对面的“”四合宫”现在是修复了，但解放后很长一段时期，它是公家卖米的粮店。有一次我去买米，把家里盛米的香炉整个提了去，给大人当笑话；（3）我们家后面的五福禅寺，到1995年仍然被一家副食品加工厂部分占领。我当时还拍了照片。依我看来，民众求神拜佛不是坏事，信仰应该得到尊重。搞个人崇拜，搞“四个伟大“才是坏事。虽然这是文革的事，但历史不应该忘记，根源必须披露，否则怎么能吸取教训呢？

我们所参观的古屋古居，都有人住。但门庭敞开， 免费参观。主人都很热情很自豪地介绍他们的宝物。在一户人家，我们没有看到主人说的圣旨，老太太连忙出来带路。游览金门，心里十分放松，因为知道不会遇到不厚道的人。在一处店家，我们顺便询问如何去一处叫总兵署的地方。店主人马上拿出名片，建议我们把货品留在她处，空手步行去参观。我们也毫无犹豫地把刚刚向她买的四五千块台币的货物交她保存。

震撼最大的当属参观钢刀店。那一颗颗面目狰狞的炮弹壳，都在恸哭一段不堪回首的往事。希望两岸的聪明的同胞们永远不要再互相残杀。希望厦门金门，大陆台湾，永远友爱互助，永远合境平安。