Many people have only known about "Ten Years" and are unaware of the song "明年今日" (Tomorrow Today). Or even if they have heard it occasionally, they simply consider it as a Cantonese version of "Ten Years" and pay no attention to it. In fact, "明年今日" was released on July 24, 2002, while "Ten Years" was released on April 1, 2003. It can be said that "Ten Years" is the prelude to "明年今日".
In fact, I only started listening to "明年今日" seriously in the past two years. Specifically, it was because of its lyrics. The reason I did this is because I suddenly became obsessed with the lyrics written by Lin Xi, just like how I love the poems of Li Shangyin and the lyrics of Li Qingzhao.
There are many legends about this song online.
One legend is that Lin Xi, who wrote this song, was going through a period of anxiety disorder at the time and wrote mostly negative and dark songs. And this song is one of them.
Some people also say that this song was sung by Eason for his ex-girlfriend Yang Qianhua at the time. Everyone knows that it was a deeply memorable love, but the two of them had to separate due to some helpless reasons. Their separation was quiet, without the need to prove anything to anyone, and they silently missed each other.
Of course, the most widely spread and touching legend is about a concert. It is said that Eason Chan did something very romantic. He pre-sold tickets for his concert a year in advance, limited to couples only. One ticket could get two seats, but the couple's ticket was divided into a male ticket and a female ticket. The couple would each keep their own ticket, and only when the two tickets were combined a year later would they be valid. The tickets sold out quickly, perhaps this was a way for the couple to prove their love. "We will be together for a lifetime." "One year is nothing." The following year, there were indeed many empty seats in the couple's section that Eason Chan specially arranged. Facing those empty seats, he sang a song: "明年今日" (Tomorrow Today).
Various legends, whether true or not, cannot be verified one by one, but these legends precisely illustrate the position of this song in the hearts of fans.
"Tomorrow today, not seeing you for a year,
Who is willing to change,
Leaving you for sixty years,
I hope I can recognize your children,
And hear you say goodbye before parting."
Tomorrow today, even if we haven't seen each other for a year, I haven't been willing to change in the slightest. Only in this way can I keep thinking about you in that relationship. Lin Xi's use of the word "willing" is very appropriate. Although the departure of the female lead broke his heart and left him in despair, he still deeply loves the female lead, and deeply misses that relationship. Only by not changing can he continue to immerse himself in his emotional world. Even though reason tells him it's not right, he needs to move on from this relationship and seek a new life. But how can he be "willing"?
In this song, the author subtly tells the audience that the male lead will love the female lead for the rest of his life, until the moment he closes his eyes. Even if he knows he may never see this person again.
"In the moment of life, to meet you,
It seems like I've used up all my luck,
Until this day, I realize,
I've breathed the same air."
These last few lines are the essence of the whole song.
Time and space are vast and endless, and a hundred years of life is just a drop in the ocean. Therefore, a lifetime seems like just a moment. It is so lucky to meet someone you like in the vast sea of people. You see, among billions of people, the person you like happens to like you back, how low is the probability of that? So, the male lead using up all his luck to meet the female lead is not an exaggeration. He will never fall in love with anyone else for the rest of his life. Of course, this is also the male lead's own choice. He chose not to move on from this relationship, so he used up all his luck.
I believe the last line "Until this day, I realize, I've breathed the same air" must have puzzled many fans, appearing abrupt and unclear. In fact, it is at this point that Lin Xi points out the theme. When two people are in love, they may often see each other and keep in touch, and when they are together, they don't feel that seeing each other is so precious and rare, and they don't feel that those sweet words are worth remembering for a lifetime. Today is just a repetition of yesterday, and tomorrow will be the same as today. Will tomorrow be any different from today? Everything during the time of being in love is like breathing, so natural and ordinary that it doesn't make people cherish it. We never realize how precious the time spent together is. It is only when we lose it that we realize how valuable it is. It's like we never paid attention to the air until the moment we suffocate.
Throughout the whole song, both the lyrics and the melody try to maintain restraint. The male lead doesn't cry out or shout. He is just quietly melancholic in the corner, unable to sleep or eat. Maybe everyone congratulates him on losing weight, it seems like his fitness is effective. He can only smile and say, "I've lost weight recently, it's not because of illness or alcohol, it's not because of autumn sadness."
He doesn't want to salvage anything, he knows he can't; he doesn't want to seek new love, he knows he won't be able to love again. He uses all his energy to avoid disturbing the life of the female lead. The biggest effort in his remaining life is to not forget, to keep everything unchanged, to remember every smile and even recognize her children sixty years later.
All those seemingly ordinary and taken-for-granted details in the past will be savored and chewed on countless times in his remaining life, until the moment of death. I hope that at that time, there will be a chance to hear her say "goodbye" again.
If there is a saying that goes "I love you, but it has nothing to do with you," then "明年今日" is saying "I miss you, but it has nothing to do with you." In fact, this is just deceiving oneself. When someone misses another person, don't they hope to get a response from them? It's just that they know there won't be a response, so they have to deceive themselves.
Among all the versions online, my favorite is the 2007 concert version. In the middle of singing, Eason suddenly shouted loudly, "Listen carefully, everyone." I don't know if this is the concert that was rumored online, and I don't know if this shout contains his reluctance and concern for his ex-love. But I believe if you have had an experience like this: for whatever reason, one day you suddenly realize that the person you used to see every day, the person you were used to, you may never see them as often as before, have you ever wanted to shout to the people around you, "Treasure it!"
Perhaps, the stranger you casually meet on the street is the person someone else dreams of meeting.