Text: Ding Jianzhong
The white river in my hometown, meandering from Nanyang, like a jade belt around the land of Xinye, gurgling, churning with joyful waves slowly flowing southward, she is like a young girl open her beautiful heart to embrace the small village that gave birth to me and raised me.
My hometown is by the White River, and this is where I was born and raised. How many days has she haunted me, how many nights have she made me think......
My hometown is about 3 kilometers away from the county seat, and the Baihe River forms a big bend here, like a pale green fluttering ribbon, soft and beautiful, clear, turquoise, and tranquil.
On the north side of the embankment, you will see a small village. Low-slung farmhouses are nestled among the trees. My house is located in the middle of the village, with a red tile roof, adobe walls, and a small farm yard. This is the paradise where I grew up, it is like a song that sings my pursuit and yearning for a better life, and it is like a poem that leads me by the hand from dream to reality.
The walls of the courtyard are covered with green vines, as if the courtyard is dressed in a coat full of vitality. There is a stout old fir tree at the door, which will support a dense green shade every summer.
When I was a child, I used to play in the small courtyard. In the spring, I plant all kinds of flower seeds in the yard and watch them sprout and bloom with anticipation; On summer nights, I would lie on a mat in the yard, counting the stars in the sky, and listening to my grandmother tell stories about the past; In autumn, my friends and I picked up fallen leaves in the yard and put them together into various interesting shapes; In winter, when the courtyard is covered in snow, I will build a snowman and have a snowball fight in the yard, and even though my little hands are red from the cold, I am still very happy.
There are also two small chicken coops in the small yard with a few lively hens. I feed them every day, and I can't be happier to watch them peck happily. Because the eggs can be used to change oil and salt, there is an old wooden table and a few stools in the corner of the yard, which is where my family eats.
My parents raised three sons and two daughters, and I have three older brothers and one older sister. Born in that poor era, children were often hungry for a full meal, and it was common for them to lack food and clothing. In order to get rid of poverty, the young eldest brother gave up his studies at the age of 15, joined the Rong pen, and participated in the army of Liu Deng who liberated Xinye at that time.
Although liberated, the family's economic conditions were not good, and the adult second brother witnessed the family's difficulties, so he signed up for the Chinese People's Liberation Army and immediately rushed to the battlefield to resist US aggression and aid Korea, embarking on the road of the eldest brother. Only the third brother stayed at home to take care of the family.
The stars are moving, spring is going to autumn. But the small courtyard just couldn't receive the news that the two brothers were outside, and the elderly parents were in a hurry to turn their hair gray and spend their days in torment.
Time flies, flowers bloom and fall, the eldest brother who participated in Liu Deng's army in the early years finally has news, he has participated in countless battles, in one battle his brain was pierced by shrapnel, lost his memory, and has no impression of his hometown. Later, through treatment, he slowly regained his memory. So, he wrote a letter to his parents. On the day when the parents received the letter, the magpie climbed the branch and kept calling on the big tree in front of the door, the sun shone on the earth, the white river sang jubilant songs, and the flowers in the small courtyard competed with each other, as if telling people surprises, and the small courtyard was immersed in happiness.
Just after the eldest brother contacted the family, the second brother, who had not been heard from since, also had news, although he was wounded, he returned from the Korean battlefield. The whole family hugged each other happily after receiving the two letters, and the sky above the courtyard was filled with sorrow and joy.
On a sunny day, the second brother finally came back and brought back a beautiful daughter-in-law from the Northeast. My mother was in tears, leaning in front of the small courtyard and crying silently, and the second brother held his mother's hand and cried into tears.
The second brother said: "I participated in the Battle of Shangganling on the Korean battlefield, repelled the attacks of the American ace army many times, and held the position. But he was wounded, lost an arm, and passed out on the position. He was later rescued and saved his life. I couldn't write at the time, so I didn't get in touch with ......."
After speaking, the second brother knelt in front of his parents and confessed his mistake. The mother cried, holding the empty sleeve of the second brother in her hand, and hammered this "unfilial son" fiercely......
Because the second brother was a demobilized cadre in the army and was arranged to work in the provincial capital, a national cadre came out of the courtyard, and everyone was envious. What makes everyone especially happy is that there is a young, beautiful, virtuous and kind Northeast girl in the courtyard.
"The deceased is like a husband, reluctant to give up day and night". The spring breeze of reform blew across the land, and in just a few years, buildings rose from the ground along the White River, and the life of the small village became better and better year by year. What makes us even more pleased is that the two children of the third brother are also very competitive, one was admitted to Nanyang Normal School, the other was admitted to Zhengzhou University, and two college students came out of the family, and the small courtyard was full of jubilation.
Time slipped by before my eyes like flowing water. Later, after graduating from college, I was also arranged to work in the county seat. The courtyard gradually moved away from me, but every Sunday, I would set out on my way home, walk into the house, and get close to the courtyard.
In the spring, I would replace my father in the fence, renovate the soil, dig the ridges, and plant the seeds. In the summer, I would follow my mother's example of fertilizing and watering the seedlings with dew, and remove weeds from the furrows. In autumn, I would climb the tall trellis and pick the melons and fruits that my parents had raised with their sweat one by one, and put them all together. In winter, I braved the biting cold wind, stepped on the hard ice slag to the river to collect firewood, and piled stacks of firewood in the small courtyard for my parents to make a fire to keep warm in the cold winter. An ordinary farm yard not only planted the hard work of my parents, but also formed my strong feelings.
Now, my parents are still living in the old house, running the contracted land, and repeatedly tempering the ideals and happiness of the small courtyard. Looking back at the spring and autumn of the small courtyard, the "wind and cloud meeting" is vivid; A long and short sigh back and forth rhyme Ru Xintian; A piece of spring planting and autumn harvest fruits overflow the eyes; Meals of coarse tea and light rice are happy.
The small courtyard of your hometown, you have left the best memories in the hearts of the wanderers, left me a thick family history, left an irreplaceable warm childhood, and left my never-fading nostalgia for my hometown!
Now, whenever I think of that small courtyard, I feel a strong sense of longing in my heart. It is not only a small courtyard, but also the sustenance of my childhood, and the eternal home in my heart. No matter where I go, no matter how many winds and rains I go through, that small courtyard will always be in my memory, giving me warmth and strength!
【Author's profile】Ding Jianzhong, a demobilized officer of the Lanzhou Air Force. He is a member of the Chinese Calligraphers Association, a member of the Nanyang Writers Association, and a reporter of Xinye TV, and has published more than 1,000 articles on Xinhua News Agency, People's Daily, Science and Technology Daily, Farmer's Daily, Henan Daily, Farming Magazine, Rushing Magazine, Henan Prose Literature Association, Prose Network and other platforms. His hobbies include literature, photography, calligraphy, sports, etc.
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