I always believe life is like rowing a boat against the stream: You have to keep on rowing, and cannot stop lest the boat start going backwards. You cannot simply resume your normal duties: that only keeps your boat floating in the same position, and keeps it from being pushed backwards. If you want to actually progress, though, you must work harder and push against the stream. Only then can you move forward. This is what I have been doing all my life, using all my efforts to move forward. It becomes an unconscious habit, so that I am not even aware of how much effort I am exerting. If you asked me to relax, I would not know what to do!
—Alice Han, from the Foreword