In 1974, two major events occurred in Ashan's family: one was joyous, and the other sorrowful.
The joyful news was that Ashan’s eldest sister met a fortunate match in Mr. Hung, an overseas student pursuing a Ph.D. in engineering. Though in his early 40s and still single, he was seven years older than the eldest sister. According to her letters, this "naive scholar" was awestruck upon meeting her for the first time and relentlessly pursued her. With a few subtle strategies, she managed to win his heart completely. When she realized he was genuinely serious, she candidly revealed her past, including her divorce and having a daughter. To her surprise and great admiration, he fully accepted her and her situation.
Dr. Hung even penned a heartfelt "thesis" to her parents, who readily gave their blessing. Plans were made for their wedding, and arrangements were also made to bring her daughter, Yinyin, to the United States. When Yinyin, under the airline staff's care, flew alone to join her mother, Ashan’s mom, as always, was overcome with tears. This time, however, she explained they were tears of joy, as her beloved daughter had finally found an ideal partner.
The misfortune came in the same year when Ashan’s father passed away during the winter due to heart failure. Ashan received the news while working at the Taichung Harbor construction site and couldn’t believe it. Despite his father’s age, he had always appeared healthy, with no prior heart issues. By the time Ashan rushed to the hospital, the doctor had already declared his father’s passing. Overwhelmed with regret for not seeing his father one last time, Ashan broke down in tears.
He had always hoped to work hard so his father could enjoy some peace and comfort in his later years. But the sudden loss shattered that hope, leaving him feeling it was cruelly unfair. Remembering the old adage, "The tree longs for stillness, but the wind does not cease; the child wishes to care for their parents, but they are gone," Ashan now fully understood its meaning. What pained him the most was never having had the chance to tell his father, "I love you." The realization cut deeply.
The doctor tried to comfort Ashan, saying it was a blessing for the family. If his father had been bedridden for an extended time, it would have caused much suffering for both him and the family. But Ashan couldn’t accept this—he would have preferred even a short period of care, just to fulfill his filial duty.
His mother, now visibly aged, looked fragile and drained. Upon seeing Ashan, she broke down in grief, crying, "How can you leave me like this? How am I supposed to go on without you?"
Ashan knew he couldn’t let his mother spiral further into despair. He tried to arrange for her to return home for rest, but the family, including Ah-Mei and Ah-Tu, had already arrived at the hospital to provide support. None of them knew what to say or how to comfort each other.
When Ashan finally calmed down, the family gathered around him. Seeing Ah-Mei and Ah-Tu standing before him with tear-streaked faces, he embraced them tightly, crying again. Ah-Tu lamented, "Ashan, you saved me before, but I’m too foolish—I couldn’t save your dad." Ah-Mei simply held Ashan close, trying to share his grief silently.
With the help of his father’s former military comrades, Ashan arranged a proper funeral. The eldest sister and her family returned to Taiwan for the service. In front of the father’s memorial, their mother wept, saying, "Dear husband, your beloved daughter, granddaughter, and the wonderful son-in-law you’ve never met have all come back to see you. Please wake up to meet them, even just once!"
在民國六十三年 (1974 年)，阿三家裏發生了兩件大事，一件是喜事，一件是喪事。
喜事是大姐幸運地碰到一位洪姓留學生，還是個工程博士，年紀已過四十還是光棍一個，比大姐大七歲。據大姐來信吹說，這位呆頭鵝博士第一次見到大姐時就驚為天人，一直想辦法追求大姐，大姐略施小計就把他整的服服貼貼。當大姐發現這位洪博士是真的很認真的時候，也就一五一十把自己離婚又有一個女兒的事情全盤托出。沒想到這位博士是完全接受了大姐的一切，令大姐非常的感動。
洪博士了一篇文情並茂的「論文」給爸媽，當然馬上獲得首肯。兩人於是準備結婚，同時也要把茵茵接到美國去。老媽還是像以往一樣，當茵茵在航空公司人員的照顧下隻身飛往美國時，眼淚又奪眶而出。不過老媽特別申明，這是興奮的眼淚，心愛的女兒終有了理想的歸宿。
不幸的事是阿三爸在這一年的冬天，因為心臟衰竭去世。阿三得到這個消息時是在台中港工地，一點都不敢相信，老爸雖然年邁，但是身體一直尚稱康健，從來也沒聽說有心臟的問題。趕到醫院時，醫生已經宣佈死亡。天啊！老爸最後的一面都見不到，真是太不孝了。
阿三實在再也忍不住，好好的痛哭了一場。本想努力工作讓老爸享點清福，沒想到居然上天連這一點時間都不給，太不公平了！以前在小學時就唸過「樹欲靜而風不止，子欲養而親不待」，阿三現在才真正體會這句子的涵意。最遺憾的是因為老爸一生不苟言笑，平常跟老爸能說的話就少，也從來沒有當面跟老爸說過一聲「我愛你！」現在要說也來不及了。想到這裏，阿三的心就有如刀割。
醫生勸告阿三說，這是全家的福氣。如果是長期臥病在床，那病人與家人才是痛苦。不過阿三聽不進去，他情願老爸臥床一段時間，至少他還有時間、有機會去照顧老爸，盡一盡為子之孝啊！
老媽也顯得蒼老多了。無神的眼光，虛弱的氣息，看到了阿三只有抱頭唏噓，泣不成聲了。阿三媽力竭聲嘶地呼號著：「老頭，你怎麼可以拋我而去，沒有了你，我以後怎麼活的下去啊！」
阿三猛然醒了過來，不能再讓老母親悲傷下去，想要找人幫忙把老母親先送回家去。其實阿美一家早就趕來醫院陪著阿三媽，只是全家都是老實人，阿美又不會說話，見阿三衝進醫院直奔向急診室的老爸病床，誰也不敢上前去，因為不知該說些什麼安慰的話。
此時見到阿三冷靜了下來，都圍上前去，阿三看到阿美及阿土滿面淚痕站在跟前，像見了親人一樣，把兩人抱住再度流下眼淚來。阿土直說：「阿三你救過我，可是我笨，我救不了阿三爸。」阿美只能緊緊地把阿三抱在懷中，好讓阿三聽到她心中的悲痛。
阿三經由老爸以前軍中的同袍協助，妥善地安老爸的後事。老姐全家也趕回來奔喪。阿三媽在老爸的靈前哭道：「老頭子啊！你最心愛的女兒及外孫女，還有你未曾見過面的好女婿回來看你了。請你醒過來見他們一面吧！」
