As the afterglow of the setting sun gradually faded at the end of the stairs of the nursing home, Mr. Wang sat alone by the window, looking at the outside world, and his heart was filled with an indescribable melancholy. He remembers the first time he walked into the nursing home, the discomfort almost crushed his strong exterior. The air here, the rhythm of life here, and the home he remembers, are very different.
"Dad, have you eaten?" On the other end of the phone, Wang Qiang's voice was full of concern.
Mr. Wang replied softly, "Eat, your child doesn't have to worry." But he knew in his heart that no matter how delicate the food here was, it couldn't compare to the simple bowl of hot noodles at home.
In the days of the nursing home, Mr. Wang was like a heavy book, lying quietly on the shelf, waiting for people to flip through it. During the day, he would bask in the sun with other elderly people, play chess, and occasionally participate in some activities organized by the hospital. But when night falls, loneliness follows like a shadow.
On this day, an old man in the courtyard inadvertently knocked Mr. Wang's beloved teacup to the ground, and the teacup "clicked" and split into two halves. Mr. Wang's face suddenly sank, it was the teacup that his son specially selected for him, but at this moment, his anger made him forget the affection behind it.
"I said, where the hell are your eyes?" The trembling in his voice was not only because of anger, but also because of the helplessness and remorse that no one knew.
The old man was stunned, and soon his astonishment turned into self-blame, "I'm sorry, Mr. Wang, it's me who is not good." ”
"Dad, you have to learn to be considerate, after all, everyone is the same." Wang Qiang comforted on the other end of the phone.
Mr. Wang leaned back in his chair and sighed, "I know my son, I will do my best." ”
As the days passed, Mr. Wang gradually realized that if he wanted to find peace here, he had to open his heart and accept every warmth and indifference here. He began to try to communicate with other old people, and although every word was like a toddler, he knew that every step, despite the difficulty, was the way to go.
And Wang Qiang, who is busy outside, is a different situation. His work has become increasingly heavy, and overtime has become the norm every day. Even sometimes, it was difficult for him to find time to make a greeting call to Mr. Wang. "Father's side shouldn't be fine, right?" On the way home late at night, Wang Qiang often asked himself this.
That night, Wang Qiang received an urgent call from the nursing home. On the other end of the phone, the nurse's voice was unusually heavy, and the ominous premonition was like a cold snap, coming from the other end of the phone. He knew in his heart that there might be the last thing he wanted to face.
Suddenly, everything around him became so far away, Wang Qiang froze in place, feeling an unprecedented heartache and confusion.
As time passed, Mr. Wang's life in the nursing home gradually got on the right track. Before the meal, he was no longer alone, but sat around a table with a few old friends and chatted; In the afternoon chess game, he was able to talk and laugh and integrate into this new collective.
One afternoon, the sun in the yard was warm and peaceful. The old people enjoyed this rare and comfortable time. Mr. Wang slowly let go of his stubbornness, and he smiled and said to his old friends: "Look at this chess game, I am messing with myself." The laughter of his old friends was mixed with the warm sunshine, which illuminated his heart.
During this time, Wang Qiang did feel the dual pressure from work and life. Overtime has become the norm, and phone calls with my father have gradually decreased. He could clearly feel that there seemed to be an invisible barrier between himself and his father.
One Saturday evening, Wang Qiangqiang squeezed out time to visit his father in a nursing home. When the father and son met, they were less enthusiastic in the past, and a little more worried and restrained.
"Dad, are you used to living here?" Wang Qiang didn't know how to start the topic, so he had to ask such a sentence.
Mr. Wang raised his head and looked at his son, with complex emotions in his eyes, "Habit is habit, it's just... Sometimes it's quite homesick. ”
That night, father and son didn't say much, and the silence seemed to separate them even further. When Wang Qiang returned home, he couldn't help but fall into deep thought. Is he really good enough? Has he fulfilled his duty to his father?
One day not long after, Wang Qiang received a call from the nursing home, and the news on the other end of the phone made him thunder - Mr. Wang was seriously ill and in critical condition. The moment he hung up the phone, Wang Qiang's heart sank to the bottom.
With deep self-blame and uneasiness, Wang Qiang rushed to the hospital. Looking at his father in a coma, his heart was full of remorse. All the busyness and excuses seem so pale at the moment.
"Dad, it's me who is wrong, it's me who hasn't fulfilled my responsibilities as a son. Wake up, give me a chance, let me make amends..."Wang Qiang held Mr. Wang's hand tightly, tears blurring his eyes.
The moment he stepped out of the hospital again, Wang Qiang's world seemed to have changed. He understands that no matter how busy life is, he can't give up the companionship and care with his family. This sudden change, like an icy wind, wakes up the soul that has been sleeping for a long time, and the coming storm is quietly approaching.
In the blink of an eye, Wang Qiang's mood was already full of guilt and uneasiness. That early morning, before the sun was fully shining on the earth, a phone call pierced the peace and shattered all the peace - Mr. Wang died in a nursing home.
This news was like a bolt from the blue for Wang Qiang, and he didn't want to believe it was true. He hurried to the nursing home and rushed into his father's room, where it was quiet, and his father was no longer breathing. Wang Qiang knelt on the side of the bed, tears streaming down his face.
"Dad, why did you leave like this?" Wang Qiang muttered to himself, his voice full of unrelieved grief.
The huge loss of a loved one made Wang Qiang wonder if there was a problem with the care in the nursing home. He insisted on checking the surveillance footage, hoping to find some clues. At his strong request, the nursing home finally agreed to his request.
On the side of the video recorder, the dean said bitterly: "Mr. Wang, please be a little prepared. ”
In the video screen, Mr. Wang, as usual, is doing morning exercises and eating breakfast with other old people, his expression is peaceful, and he can even see a little smile. None of the shots were unusual. Until that moment, Mr. Wang's health suddenly failed, and someone immediately went to help, but in the end, the old man closed his eyes quietly.
Wang Qiang looked at all this blankly, his heart like a knife. He had to come to terms with the brutal truth that his father walked so calmly and without any negligence or neglect. For a while, doubts and self-blame came flooding, and it was difficult to extricate myself. Wang Qiang finally understood that the countless nights of busyness and overtime could not be an excuse for his failure to fulfill his filial piety.
On the screen, his father's disappearing back seems to remind him that cherishing family affection is more important than anything else. Wang Qiang knelt on the ground, tears streaming down his face, his body sobbing, like a sad child, tears couldn't stop dripping into a river of sorrow.
"Dad, I'm sorry..."Wang Qiang's call went unanswered, only echoing in the empty room, dissolving silently with his tears.
Wang Qiang's mood could not be calm for a long time, and he sat alone in front of his father's tombstone for a long time. In the days after his father left, he often recalled the bits and pieces of getting along with his father, those who asked for warmth, those who pushed the cup and changed the lamp, and those warm moments of father and son's filial piety, became more and more vivid in his memory.
After a few autumn rains, he stood in front of the window, staring at the leaves swaying in the wind, his thoughts drifting far away. He thought deeply about what was more important in his life besides work, fame and fortune. Mr. Wang's figure appeared in his heart several times, and he faintly told him that it was the family and the deep affection that was connected by blood.
Wang Qiang finally understood that the warmth of family is the most precious wealth in life, and the passage of time is unstoppable, only those precious family affections can leave a unique warmth in memory. In the limited years, the family should be the greatest responsibility and emotional home.
"Son, how are you doing now?" Grandpa always asked him that.
"Dad, I'll be fine." Every now and then, Wang Qiang would reply like this.
Wang Qiang began to change, trying to find a balance between work and family. He no longer devotes all his time and energy to his career, but accompanies his family more and shares the bits and pieces of life. He also began to care for those relatives and friends who were just as busy as he was, and advised them not to forget the importance of family. During the weekend, he learned to cook a few dishes that his father liked, and although the taste was still a little worse, he knew that this was his father's greatest expectation of him.
Life continued, and the painful experience turned into a seed in Wang Qiang's heart, and he deeply understood that he should cherish the people in front of him and pass on the temperature of the family with love and action. He has also grown into a person who understands responsibility and emotion better, all thanks to the deep and tender love from his father, the power that will never die in his heart.