This morning, Julie and I drove to First Markham Place. She had an appointment with her hair stylist, while I settled down in the food court with a cup of coffee to wait.
For about an hour, I simply sat, watched, and observed.
The food court was peaceful. Only a handful of people were enjoying breakfast or chatting with friends. It was quite different from what I remembered.
Years ago, especially on weekends and even weekday mornings, this place was bustling with activity. Finding a seat could sometimes be difficult. Some of the most popular restaurants, such as Chung Kee BBQ House and Excellent BBQ House, often had lineups of more than twenty people waiting patiently for their turn.
This morning, there were no lineups at all.
The restaurants were open, the lights were on, the delicious aroma of roasted meat still filled the air, but the crowds were missing.
When Julie finished her haircut, she shared another interesting observation. Her hair stylist told her that business had been unusually slow throughout June. There simply were not enough customers coming in.
It made me wonder whether many families are becoming more careful with their spending. Rising living costs, higher grocery bills, housing expenses, and economic uncertainty may be encouraging people to postpone dining out, shopping, or even getting a haircut. Perhaps they are waiting for better times.
As retirees, Julie and I have also become more mindful of how we spend our money. We still enjoy going out, but we appreciate the simple pleasures—walking through the mall, sharing a coffee, meeting friends, or enjoying a modest lunch together. Happiness does not always require spending a lot.
One quiet morning in a shopping mall may not tell the whole story, but sometimes everyday scenes reveal larger changes taking place in society. A less crowded food court, empty restaurant queues, and a quiet hair salon may be small signs of how people are adapting to today's economy.
Life continues, and businesses will hopefully become busy again. Until then, perhaps we can support our local restaurants and small businesses whenever we can. Every customer matters.
As I prepared to leave, I took a slow walk around the food court for one last look. That was when I noticed something else that caught my attention.
Five small storefronts were vacant, their shutters pulled down though their signs still there. I have no idea why they had closed. Every business has its own story, and it would not be fair to assume the reasons. Still, seeing several empty shops together was unsettling.
For many years, First Markham Place has been one of the most vibrant Chinese shopping centres in the Greater Toronto Area. It has always been a place where families gathered, friends met over dim sum or bubble tea, and entrepreneurs built their dreams. Seeing a number of empty storefronts made me feel a little sad. I could not help but wonder how challenging the past months have been for some small business owners.
Behind every closed shop may be years of hard work, long hours, family sacrifices, and hopes that did not unfold as planned. Whether the closures were temporary, permanent, or simply part of normal business turnover, they reminded me that many local businesses continue to face difficult times.
I sincerely hope First Markham Place will once again become as lively as I remember. Thriving local businesses are more than places to shop or eat—they are part of the community, creating jobs, serving families, and giving neighbourhoods their unique character.
As I left First Markham Place, I realized that retirement has taught me something valuable: slowing down gives us time to notice the little things that others often rush past. Sometimes those little observations tell surprisingly meaningful stories.
Perhaps that is one of the gifts of growing older—not only seeing the world, but truly observing it.
第一广场一个宁静的早晨
今天早上，前院的大树修剪工程完成后，我和 Julie 一起前往 First Markham Place（第一广场）。她预约了发型师剪头发，而我则在美食广场点了一杯咖啡，静静地坐着等她。
大约一个小时的时间，我只是坐在那里，四处观看，默默观察着周围的一切。
美食广场十分安静，只有零零散散几位顾客在吃早餐，或与朋友轻声聊天。眼前的景象，与我记忆中的第一广场有着很大的不同。
很多年前，尤其是周末，甚至平日的早晨，这里总是人潮络绎不绝。有时候想找个座位都不容易。一些最受欢迎的餐馆，例如 Chung Kee BBQ House（忠記燒臘） 和 Excellent BBQ House（味香園燒臘），門口經常排著二十多人，大家耐心地等待入座。
然而今天早上，竟然完全沒有排隊的人龍。
餐廳照常營業，燈光依舊明亮，燒臘的香味仍然瀰漫在空氣中，只是昔日熱鬧的人群卻不見了。
Julie 剪完頭髮後，也告訴我另一個值得留意的現象。她的髮型師說，整個六月生意都異常淡靜，進店的客人明顯減少。
這讓我不禁思考，如今是否越來越多家庭開始更加謹慎地控制開支。生活成本上升、食品價格上漲、住房開銷增加，以及經濟前景的不確定，都可能令不少人延後外出用餐、購物，甚至連理髮也選擇再等等。也許大家都希望，情況會慢慢好轉。
作為退休人士，我和 Julie 近年也更加留意每一筆開支。不過，我們仍然喜歡外出，只是更珍惜那些簡單而平凡的快樂：在商場散步、一起喝杯咖啡、與朋友見面，或者共享一頓簡單的午餐。
幸福，其實未必需要花很多錢。
一個商場裡安靜的早晨，也許不足以說明整個社會，但有時候，生活中的小細節，往往反映出更大的變化。美食廣場的人流減少、餐廳門前不再排隊、理髮店顧客稀少，或許正是人們逐漸適應當前經濟環境的一些小小寫照。
生活仍然要繼續，我也真心希望各行各業能夠慢慢恢復往日的活力。在此之前，如果能力許可，不妨多支持本地餐館和小商戶。對他們而言，每一位顧客都十分重要。
準備離開之前，我又慢慢繞著美食廣場走了一圈，希望再仔細看看四周。
就在這時，我注意到另一個令人感觸的景象。
竟然有五間小店舖空置著，鐵閘拉下了，但招牌依然還掛在上面。我不知道它們為什麼停業，每一家店都有自己的故事，我也不應該隨便猜測原因。然而，看到幾間空置店舖同時出現在眼前，心裡還是感到一絲沉重。
多年來，First Markham Place 一直是大多倫多地區最具人氣的華人商場之一。這裡一直都是家人聚會、朋友相約飲茶、喝珍珠奶茶，以及不少創業者實現夢想的地方。
如今看到幾間店舖空著，不禁令人有點感傷。我也不由得想到，過去幾個月，對不少小商戶而言，日子或許真的很不容易。
每一間關閉的店舖背後，也許都有多年辛勤努力、無數加班工作、家庭的付出，以及一個尚未完成的夢想。無論這些店舖只是暫時停業、永久結業，還是正常的商戶更替，它們都提醒著我們，許多本地小商戶仍然面對不少挑戰。
我衷心希望，First Markham Place 有一天能再次恢復我記憶中的熱鬧景象。
繁榮的小商戶，不只是提供購物和飲食的地方，更是社區的重要組成部分。他們創造就業機會、服務居民，也讓每一個社區擁有屬於自己的特色與溫度。
離開第一廣場時，我忽然體會到，退休生活教會了我一件很珍貴的事情：放慢腳步，才能看見那些匆匆而過的人容易忽略的小細節。
而往往，就是這些看似平凡的觀察，背後卻蘊藏著值得我們細細思考的人生故事。
也許，這正是年紀漸長帶給我們的一份禮物——不只是看見世界，而是真正學會了用心去觀察世界。
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