A Letter to Your Grandchildren: The World Today

張貼日期：Nov 20, 2011 1:40:29 PM

Edith Chen

How are you today, my dear? Are you feeling strange about this letter? Actually, I am your grandmother, but I am only 20 today, and how old are you? Even though I do not know your age, your gender, and your appearance, I have to say that I am glad to write the letter to you. I still remember when I was little, my grandmother always told me about her world. Hence, I decide to write this unique letter to you. Nevertheless, I am not sure whether you will see this significant letter or not fifty years later, but I want to tell you something about the world today. I consider that the communication, transportation, and climate nowadays will be totally different fifty years later.

To begin with, I want to tell you two kinds of communication in the world today. In my generation, one of the commonest ways of communication is the mobile phone. For this reason, everyone has a mobile phone on his or her hands. The latest popular product of mobile phone is iphone. An advantage of iphone is not only for making a phone call, but also for taking the pictures, playing the games, and surfing the Internet by touching the screen. This is a great innovation of the mobile phone. Second, the Internet is one of the most essential things for my generation. We use the Internet to communicate with each other by MSN and Facebook, and we also use the Internet to send e-mails. Besides, the computer of my generation is getting smaller and smaller. The latest computer product is as thick as a thin book; we call it ipad, and this is the first time we do not have to use the mouse to control the computer.

Second, I want to tell you about the transportation. The transportation in my generation is more convenient than my mother’s. I think the most convenient public transportation is the MRT because this important transportation relieves the crowded traffic condition of Taipei. We can use the easy card to pay for the MRT’s fare, and go to wherever I want to go without driving cars. And when I have free time, I will take a trip to the south of Taiwan by the high speed railway, which reduces the time of traveling and makes the travel more convenient and enjoyable. If I do not want to take a short trip by the high speed railway, I can buy a plane ticket, and go to Japan without the visa.

The last thing I want to tell you is the climate in the world today. According to my mother’s experience, the weather is getting hotter and hotter. In my mother’s generation, the winter in Taiwan is very cold. People needed to prepare the cotton-padded jackets for the cold winter. The weather in my generation is getting strange. There are more massive floods and droughts than usual. Perhaps, you will wonder the reason for the variation of weather. The fact is the world today has a serious global warming phenomenon. It is the main reason that causes the weather to get hotter, and it speeds up the melting of the iceberg. Even so, we still overuse the CFCs, and this is the main reason that results in the hole in the ozonosphere. The global climate is also not very stable. For instance, the temperate areas are getting hotter, and this is really strange.

Finally, I hope that you will have a chance to read this letter. I think you must be curious about the world of your grandmother just like me, so I give you this letter. I do not know what the world will be like in fifty years. Maybe the way of communication and transportation will be more convenient than the world today, but I want to give you some advice. Please love our Earth, and please be kind to our beautiful planet. We have only one Earth, and we have the responsibility to make the environment better.