The country's major festivals pay attention to the celebration of the first ten years and the first celebration of the fifth year, and in Nanjing, the traditional customs of the common people also pay attention to the whole birthday. No, this year coincides with my 70th birthday, and I just happened to arrive at my son's house in Nanjing, and my eldest son and daughter-in-law said that they would give me a 70th birthday according to Nanjing customs. In fact, they are very hard and busy at work, my birthday is calculated according to the lunar calendar, it happens to be their working day, I try to downplay the birthday arrangement, neither want to delay their work nor let the children spend for me, but still can't resist their filial piety. After dinner on June 30th, they dragged me to Wanda Plaza despite the fatigue of a day's work, said they wanted to give me a birthday gift, and bought me branded clothes, pants and shoes. July 1st happened to be Saturday, and they chose the special day of July 1, the party's birthday and the 53rd anniversary of my work, to hold a birthday banquet for me, and invited the in-laws and old family members in Nanjing to accompany me, and the birthday banquet was arranged at the nearby Tongqing Building Wanda Plaza store. Nanjing's Tongqing Building has been famous for a long time, is a Chinese time-honored brand built in 1925, in Nanjing is a relatively high-end catering club, the price of dishes is not cheap, ordinary people usually eat here to consume, I lived intermittently in Nanjing Hexi for six or seven years, passing by the Tongqing Building Wanda Plaza store every day, only to know that the interior decoration luxury consumption high-end but never entered. The eldest son and daughter-in-law said that they would let me get my wish. Try it and open your eyes.
In order to make my birthday happy and make the birthday banquet a little atmosphere, the eldest daughter-in-law customized a beautiful Yuanzu fruit birthday cake for me in advance, the old birthday star made of chocolate on the cake and a number of birthday peaches decorated with blessings for their father's happiness and health, a diamond-shaped red background yellow birthday sign made of chocolate is inlaid around the cake, and the Arabic numeral of 70 stands in the middle of the cake, indicating that I have spent 70 this year.
The dishes of the birthday banquet are also discussed, specially selected dishes that I don't usually eat very often, the number of dishes is moderate, exquisite and delicious, very suitable for my and my family's appetite, there are salmon sashimi, cold jellyfish head, crispy vegetarian roasted goose, tang made garlic anchovies, fried abalone with southern shoots, black garlic sweet and sour stewed eel, steamed cinnamon, pepper and salt lamb chops, braised beef hoof tendon, beef fried buns...
During the dinner, my son, daughter-in-law and little granddaughter toasted my birthday together, and the old couple sat on either side of me, chattering frequently to talk about the friendship between the two parents.
In the past two years, I have been shrouded in an inexplicable haze, and I am very lonely without the company of my wife and children. I haven't been so happy for a long time, but I am particularly happy today, and I usually don't drink much, and I have more words: earnest encouragement to my granddaughter, happy expectations for my son and daughter-in-law, sincere blessings to the in-laws, accompanied by delicious wine, frequent toasts, and witty words...
Although today's birthday banquet was not held on my birthday, I still feel that it is particularly meaningful because this year's birthday was spent in Nanjing, and it was on the same day as the party's birthday and the 53rd anniversary of my participation in the work. I'm someone with a nostalgia complex and a fondness for the past, and today's scene reminds me of my 60th birthday in my first year from the workplace. In 2013, I had just retired from my post when the hustle and bustle of my career suddenly fell silent, and I was a little confused. That year, I was 60 years old, and on my birthday, my wife set up two tables of banquets at the Jiexiu Taotao Hotel, one to celebrate my birthday, the other to relax me, and asked my eldest brother and third brother and several old friends to accompany me on my birthday. At noon, the guests of the meal have arrived, left and right and waiting only to see the second son and two sons, call them and they said that it was fast, according to the scheduled meal time about forty minutes, the son and daughter-in-law's car finally appeared at the door of the hotel, their faces were sweaty, I was about to complain about their lack of punctuality, my son and daughter-in-law opened the trunk, a brand new Trike shift bike appeared in front of me, my son said, they rushed all the way back to Jiexiu, First went to the store for me to specially choose a fashion trend version of the bicycle, as my 60th birthday gift, suddenly I complained that their unpunctual thoughts disappeared, difficult for the children, you think really thoughtfully, really timely, you want dad to let go of the past, let go of the future, let dad go out of the outdoors to strengthen the body, such a son and daughter-in-law what else can you say?
From the age of sixty to seventy, a full decade has passed, whether my birthday is in my place of residence or in Taiyuan and Nanjing, the children accurately remember that as long as I am by their side, the two sons and daughters-in-law must make careful arrangements for me, prepare gifts for me, arrange birthday banquets for me, let me have a happy and very satisfying birthday, and occasionally when I am not by their side, they will also send blessings from afar to me in advance.
Birthday Japan is a common human feeling, for their parents birthday is also every family of children to remember things, every year to parents to arrange a birthday banquet or send a parent favorite birthday gift is also every child can think of do, the reason why I praise my children here, in fact, there is another emotion in my heart: children can return to their parents, give the elderly a birthday, a birthday gift full of filial piety is of course good, but many elderly parents need more than that, The spiritual gifts that their hearts crave are more than material needs! Nowadays, Chinese society has entered the aging stage, for various reasons, not everyone can stay by their parents' side, birthday is only once a year, even if the New Year and holidays, some children in other places can only go home for a short reunion for a few days, some because of the long distance or busy work or can not go back, let alone often go home on weekdays.
I have heard a story: an elderly man who subscribes to newspapers all year round, but seals the newspaper box entrance at the door, the newspaper delivery man is puzzled, and knocks on the door again and asks the old man, you let people send newspapers specifically, why do you seal the newspaper box opening? The old man said, I live alone, my two sons are abroad, I hope you knock on the door every day and personally deliver the newspaper to my hand, if you can't knock on the door one day, it may be that I am already dead, I will tell you my son's phone number now, and then you will call my son according to the phone number I gave you and tell them that I have died. In fact, I never read the newspaper, and I pay to subscribe to the newspaper to pay people to knock on my door every day to see if I am dead or alive. This story is estimated to make many children in other places listen to sadness, but also reflects the helplessness and sadness of elderly parents, indeed, many elderly parents, frail and sick, life self-care ability is getting worse and worse, they need real daily care, but also need children often shouting and warmth and spiritual comfort, especially when they encounter insurmountable difficulties or illnesses and pains in their lives, how much they hope to have a child by their side! But many old people in the same situation as me dare not have such luxury, children have children's difficulties, children have children's all kinds of suffering!
Generally over seventy years old, people are old. At the twilight of life, like most people of this age, I have experienced many things, encountered many difficulties and pains that I do not want to mention, and what sustains my tenacious life are: two small families who are still struggling and happy and harmonious and my two healthy, lively and lovely grandchildren, but what remains unchanged is the love and filial piety of my two sons and daughters-in-law.
About the author
Zhang Cunming, male, born in 1954, ancestral home in Xiyang, currently living in Jiexiu, retired employee of Fenxi Mining Equipment Repair Factory.