Text: Jade cherishes poems
Editor|Jade Cherish Poems
Preface
In the fifth year of marriage, my husband took me to Japan to celebrate my anniversary. In the booked B&B, we met the middle-aged landlady Chuanzi, and after checking in, Chuanzi took us to visit the B&B.
Chuanzi first introduced us to the B&B, and then told us about her relationship with China. After chatting, I found that I was amazed that Chuanzi's story with China was really wonderful, and when I heard her talk about the reason for going to China in the first place, my jaw dropped directly.
[This article is a fictional story, the names and place names in the article are pseudonyms, and if someone carries it, they will be held responsible]
The Chinese edge of the landlord
After checking in, it was getting dark, so my husband and I packed our bags briefly, and then we went out to find a Japanese restaurant to try authentic Japanese food.
But before we could go out, Chuanzi stopped us. She told us in English that she wanted to treat us to dinner and make friends with us.
Seeing that Chuanzi was so enthusiastic, my husband and I did not refuse. We waited for Chuanzi to finish the task at hand, and then followed her to a Japanese restaurant. At the dinner table, Chuanzi always said that she liked China very much and visited China when she was young. I don't know if I don't talk, but I'm shocked when I talk about it.
Chuanzi also gave us an even bigger surprise, in addition to her ability to speak English, she can also speak a few words of Chinese. I never thought that I would meet such an interesting Sichuan in a foreign country. Worried that I wouldn't be able to understand the Japanese menu, Kawako explained the menu to us in English, which she only spoke in Chinese.
In this way, we slowly became familiar with Chuanzi. "I really like China, and when I was in my 20s, my husband was transferred to China to work, and I used to live in China with him for a while. "After hearing Kawako's words, I became a little curious about her, and I wanted to know what China was like in the eyes of the Japanese.
So, I started chatting mode and chatted with her. "We lived in Beijing for a few years, and I really like the long history of China. In Chuanzi's eyes, China is a country with a lot of heritage, and she feels that everything she has experienced in China is the best time in her life.
In China, she once found a job that she liked very much, and she and her husband traveled everywhere when they were not busy, they drank bean juice in Beijing's hutongs, ate roast duck, listened to cross talk in Tianjin, and went to Jiangnan to see small bridges and flowing water. These belong to Chinese culture, which makes her feel infinitely charming.
"The two years in China were the most unforgettable of my life. Speaking of this, Kawako's eyes were already filled with tears. I couldn't help but ask her, "Do you like China so much that you haven't been there again?" Chuanzi shook her head, and then she lowered her head.
The cage of marriage is bitter
"I left China and I never went back, and this year is the 10th year. "When I talk about this, I feel Kawako's regret, and I feel a little sorry when I hear about her experience after returning to Japan. Chuanzi specifically asked me if I had a job and if I was a housewife.
"I'm not a housewife, I have my own business, I have my own coffee shop, and my husband encourages me to pursue my dreams. After listening to me, Chuanzi's eyes revealed a trace of envy. Kawako told me that she really envied me for being able to meet such a partner, not to be bound by my family, not to be a vassal of marriage.
At first, I didn't understand why she said that. When I got to know her family, I realized what she meant by envy.
"In Japan, many women are bound by traditional thinking, where family is everything, and husbands and children are their careers. When I returned to Japan, I became such a woman. ”
After hearing Kawako's words, I felt very sorry in my heart, I didn't expect that the current situation of women's lives in Japanese society would be so difficult, and I didn't expect Kawako to have such an experience.
Two years passed in a flash, and when Kawako returned to Japan, she was asked by her husband to quit her job and become a housewife. Despite her reluctance, she had to do it. Since then, family has become the whole of her life, and she has to revolve around her husband's family every day, either serving her in-laws or picking up and dropping off her children.
Later, she slowly got tired of this life, and she mustered up a lot of courage to tell her husband that she wanted to go out to work. But the result was not satisfactory, her husband did not agree with her to go out to work, and even warned her many times not to start looking for a job.
I never imagined that in a developed country like Japan, the status of women and men would be so unequal. And Chuanzi's experience shocked me even more. At that moment, I slowly understood why she said she envied me. What she envies is not only that I have my own career, but also that I am envious of the social environment in which I live.
In China, there are more and more independent women, and there are countless women who have their own careers. There may have been injustice to women in society, but today, the status and rights of women have improved significantly. Marriage is not a prison for women, and even if they are married, there are many women like me who have their own careers and live wonderful lives.
A new life of awakening
When I was lamenting Kawako's "misfortune", Kawako suddenly told me, "Don't feel sorry, I've found my own way of life." Kawako told me with a smile, "I have filed for divorce from my husband, and now I am no longer the housewife who follows my husband and children." "I am glad that Kawako has woken up and admire her courage.
In such a society, at such an age, it takes a lot of determination and courage for her to dare to say "no" to marriage. Leaving the family means that she has to start all over again, she doesn't know what she will experience in the future, whether it is good or bad, she needs to bear it herself.
Landladys are all lucky, leaving the family, she has found her own rhythm of life. "After the divorce, I was silent for a while, but I quickly pulled myself together. Because I still have children to raise, I opened my current homestay, and the business is not bad. Relying on sincerity, Chuanzi's homestay business is getting bigger and bigger.
She receives visitors from all over the world and we are just one of them. "I'll travel to China again after I'm done, and hopefully we'll be able to sit down and eat and talk together. After hearing Chuanzi say this, I nodded again and again and told her: "When the time comes, I will be the master, and you will be a guest, and I will definitely make arrangements for you clearly." ”
At the dinner table, my husband and I raised a glass of wine to Chuanzi, and it was a lucky thing to meet such a sincere person as her in a foreign country. I hope that in the near future, my husband and I can become her guides in China, take her to eat Chinese food, feel the customs of China, tell her about the great changes in China in the past ten years, and tell her how good and powerful China is now.