Love, a forever topic in human history, is also an everlasting theme(永恒的主题) in Chinese literature and poetry. What symbol means love in your country --the heart, rose, swan（天鹅）, or dove（鸽子）?
There is a famous classic Chinese poem,"Love Seeds". It is a Tang Dynasty poem, written by poet Wang Wei. He used red beans to express his longing for one of his friends. Red beans are also seen as "love seeds" in China. As time goes on, Chinese people have been using red beans to express a feeling of missing between lovers.
Red beans have a strong meaning in Chinese culture. Red beans are often hard and come in a heart shape. They are similar in color to that of blood and can be stored for a long time. Red beans mean love and fidelity(忠诚). Men give red beans to their lovers to show their fidelity, while women wear jewelry(首饰) made of red beans for a happy life.
The poet wishes his faraway friend to collect as many red beans as possible, as the beans will remind his friend of the poet.
Instead of expressing love to others by saying "I love you" or "I miss you", Chinese people are more likely to express feelings of love in a symbolic way in Chinese literature. For example, poets use pears (the same pronunciation as"离") to describe the moment of parting.
Chinese people love to use poems to express their deep thoughts and feelings. The charm (魅力) of Chinese culture and words is shown by several words because of this.
