Zhangtai High School in Suiping County, a little-known township high school, is a treasure of feng shui for us to go out of our hometown and out of the yellow earth. Zhangtai High School is our spiritual home.
Although Zhangtai High School only existed for a short few years, it cultivated talents for our hometown and left us with pride and glory.
It's so evocative to relive that history. At that time, the campus, the teachers at that time, the classmates at that time, and the scene at that time were like scenes of historical dramas, so clear and intimate. The teachers at that time, the classmates at that time, were so simple, so lovely, and so respectable.
Two years of high school, unforgettable in this life.
Zhangtai High School was born in this barren land after the catastrophe of the flood. She was born in a time of danger and was destined for her hardships. Her first and second high school students have dug for stones, dug stones, went up the mountain to collect firewood, and dug up Chinese herbal medicine to build our campus. It was all with the hands of these senior brothers and sisters that the prototype of Zhangtai High School was constructed.
We are in the third year, and we immediately put into the labor of building the campus after arriving at the school. First and the mud wall. Mix some wheat straw in the soil and make a good deal, and stack it against the wall with all your might. Thousands of kilometers of mud walls were stacked raw. A heavy rain came down, and some places were soaked in the rain, and we continued to stack them.
In order to build the school building, we went to the brick factory to produce the kiln. A few days after the fire went out, the bricks in the cave were still hot, and in order to produce bricks, I was not afraid of burning my hands or spicy eyes. The kiln factory is ten miles away from the school, and on the way to pass through a section of river beach, the roadbed is not real, and it will sink deeper and deeper if it is not good. In order to build the campus, the students are not afraid of hardship and tiredness, unite and work hard, and pull back to the school with bricks.
In order to work and study, the school leaders and teachers led us to a barren hill a few miles away and began the labor of stacking land to make fields. It was like a big battle, with school leaders, teachers and classmates working together and gnawing together.
The east gang of Zhangtai is a barren hill, and there is a saying at that time: Zhangtai is a poor mountain nest, and there are not many stones in the land...... The land on Donggang is indeed barren, full of stones, and only a thin layer of soil. In order to create fields, we used shovels to dig and plan, and our hands shook when we planed. Dig out a little bit of soil, load it into a cart, and push it into a field made of stones. A shovel and a cart have created more than 20 acres of fertile land.
This practice was later promoted throughout the commune. The villagers also learned from us to create a lot of fertile land, so that the silence of the barren hills and barren slopes was broken, and there was vitality, and they were dressed in green.
Our teachers are high school graduates who teach high school, but their spirit inspires us to this day.
Our principal, who was in his twenties at the time, was a graduate of Suiping No. 1 High School and taught us math in the liberal arts class. Sometimes the teacher said, "This question is put here first, and I will ask you Teacher Wang, and I will talk about it tomorrow!" Teacher Wei, who teaches physics, couldn't continue to talk about it, so he found a few students who studied well, discussed and calculated in the corridor until he figured it out, and then talked to the students in the class. This may be a joke today, but it is this spirit of seeking truth from facts that inspires us to work hard and work hard.
With such a teacher, such an education, and the efforts of the students, we had more than 20 students admitted to the college entrance examination in a high school in a mountainous area. This was indeed a well-known thing at that time, attracting many schools in the district to visit and study, and Zhangtai High School became famous for a while.
The learning conditions at that time were difficult. In our first year of school, there were no desks, only stools, and we took notes on our laps. There was no electricity, so we used small homemade kerosene lamps, one for each person. At night, kerosene lamps burned, and students quietly did their homework. At that time, even if the teacher was not there, no one was walking around and talking, everyone was silently doing their homework and learning knowledge with hunger and thirst. The next morning, when I washed my face, I blew my nose and blew out a nose of oily smoke.
Each class is equipped with a bright gas lamp. Before lighting the lamp, it must be fully inflated, and there is a special person in charge of pumping and lighting the lamp in each shift. After it was lit up, the classroom was bright, and it seemed that the whole classroom was much more spacious. At night, the campus is brightly lit, and the classrooms are quiet, only the sound of gas lamps burning.
The food is a black nest made of sweet potato noodles, which is steaming when it is just out of the cage, and it sticks to the touch. When I first ate it, it was sweet, but then I ate too much and made me vomit sour water. The porridge drunk is so bright that it can illuminate people's faces, and naughty students use it to wash their hands.
There is a stream to the west of the school, and in the winter, I get up in the morning and wash my face by breaking the ice with stones. Stayed in a big bunk at night. The big shop is to build a low wall with bricks, and then lay wooden boards, and students bring some mats, mattresses and other things to lay on, and then they can sleep.
It is under such conditions that the students study hard and work hard.
Shortly after the resumption of the college entrance examination, there was a shortage of learning materials, so the school mimeographed review materials as prizes to encourage students to study.
Principal Zhang took the lead and set an example, teaching in person, asking questions if he didn't understand, and not going to school. Teachers at that time were not afraid to "embarrass themselves" in front of their students. In order to create an environment for learning English, Principal Zhang learned English himself and took the lead in speaking English. Every day in class, you must say "Bi to Ingelas", and the class leader is required to stand up and sit down in English.
The first time I learned English, it was very awkward and difficult to learn. Later, because English was not included in the overall score, I didn't learn it again, but I still remember those two spoken English sentences.
Our teachers and our students have achieved such good results by relying on a spirit of unity and hard work.
Zhangtai High School is a beacon and a beacon in our lives, shining brightly in our lives.
The banner of Zhangtai High School will always fly in our hearts.
It was Zhangtai High School that made us, it was Zhangtai High School that cultivated us, and it was Zhangtai High School that nourished us. She has given us endless nourishment and infinite strength.
She is a song, a high-spirited song, a song of struggle, and this song will be sung forever among our classmates.
She is a spiritual treasure that will last a lifetime for those of us who have come out of her bosom.
Zhangtai High School, a short but glorious history, but engraved endless memories.
Zhangtai High School, although it is an epiphany, shows a brilliant show.
About the Author
Wang Haiyang, male, from Suiping, Henan. He is now a member of the Henan Writers Association, a member of the Henan Reportage Society, a director of the Zhumadian Writers Association, and the chairman of the Suiping County Writers Association. He has published many works in "Henan Daily", "Selected Essays" and other publications. He is the author of a collection of essays "White Acacia Flowers".