Parent-child reading | Children's Literature "My Dear Sweet Orange Tree"

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Today's sharing of "My Dear Sweet Orange Tree" is one of my favorite books. I remember the first time I watched on the train, I cried like a dog. After watching it many times, it is still unfinished.

This book is the masterpiece of The legendary Brazilian writer, José Mauro de Vasconcelos. Growing up with his uncles, José not only learned to read and read on his own, but also won swimming and soccer titles at the age of nine. By nature, he studied medicine, painting, law and philosophy. He loves to travel and has traveled extensively in Europe and Brazil. He has worked in professions that are beyond the imagination of ordinary people, fishermen, teachers, models, dancers, waiters, film, television and its drama actors, and so on. Many of the characters and scenes in his works come from his rich life experiences.

José began writing at the age of 22, established his place in the literary world with the publication of My Canoe Bridge Rohinha in 1962, and six years later published the autobiographical "My Dear Sweet Orange Tree", a novel conceived for 42 years but completed in only 12 days, reaching the peak of his creation. It has been adapted into a movie twice and a TV series three times, and has been distributed to 13 countries around the world so far, with a Douban score of 9.1.

To understand José's work, one has to mention a passage he said. That passage can be said to be a key to understanding the meaning of his work. Literature, he says, is the most complex art because it gives the work the colors and lines of the painting, the sound and melody of the music, and the dynamics. Writing is the way I find to express my life experiences, to convey my joys and sorrows and a long-forgotten feeling—tenderness. There is no point in living without tenderness.

There is no point in living without tenderness, so what exactly is gentleness? Some people may say that gentleness is a gentle and supple character, an innate personal trait. But following Zeze through his growth path, we will have a new understanding of gentleness.

The first layer of tenderness is what Zeze taught us. Even if you are scarred, you must hug others. Zeze, like Mary in The Secret Garden, is an imaginative child. In Zeze's world, the sweet orange tree named Mingino could speak, and was a horse that could carry him freely between heaven and earth.

He would think of the backyard as a zoo and the humble little ditch as the Amazon River. He would take his brother on a tour of the zoo and introduce him to the animals in his heart, and even the ordinary scene of the wind changed in his eyes. After a while, a little fairy flew over on the white clouds. The branches, the grass in the ditch, and the leaves of Suluruka all swung and shone brightly.

If zeze, who has imagination, is a little angel, then there is a small demon in his heart, which prompts him to break through one disaster after another. Every prank bothers the neighbors and their families. Being beaten has become commonplace. He was often blue and purple.

Once he was concentrating on making the first paper ball in his life, and when he was about to finish, the eldest sister tore his paper ball to pieces in one breath after repeatedly asking him to eat without getting a response. Sawazawa was also anxious and insulted his sister with "bitch". Beaten half to death by his brother and sister, his teeth were knocked out, the injury was not good, the lyrics of the song he sang to his father mentioned the he did not understand, and his father thought that he was deliberately trying to provoke himself, and let him repeat it over and over again.

As a result, he was beaten to the point of fainting. Is Zeze trying to provoke his father? No, he just saw that his father was unhappy and wanted to sing a song to make him happy, but where did the young man know what a was. It seemed to him to be nothing more than a cheerfully paced song.

Is Zeze, known as the Little Devil, necessarily a bad boy, and a bad boy necessarily bad? Both "The Catcher in the Rye" and "Orphans of the Mist" give us a negative answer. Zeze is mischievous, but has a heart of gold. He loved his father, and even though he didn't have the money to buy him a Christmas present, he still went to shine other people's shoes to earn money to buy cigarettes for his father. He loved his mother, and even though she beat him, he said she loved him because she thought she hit him the lightest. He loves his sister and skips school but sells with a bard, just to give her a record. He loves his brother, and even though he encourages him to fight with the eldest child, causing him to be beaten to the point where his nose is blue and his face is swollen, he is still willing to give his marbles to his brother. He loves his brother, even if he wears patched clothes, he has to dress him up clean and beautiful and take him to a Christmas event. He loved the teacher who was not beautiful, and he did not even hesitate to pick the roses in other people's yards, and he did not want the teacher's vase to be empty.

Whoever says that gentleness must be a person who has a good life. When a child who has been treated violently can warm others, we understand that no matter what the world has done to us excessively, let us understand how terrible suffering is, and we must also cling to a trace of goodness in the dark, and then tell yourself that you must not become a dark part of this world and become a bad person. If the world is too dark, then make yourself the sun.

The second layer of tenderness is what the old Portuguese taught us. If Zeze told us that gentleness may be just a flower, a pack of cigarettes, a few small change, then Lao Lu told us that gentleness is even more when you are beaten by life, and someone stretches out a pair of hands; when you are cold and heartbroken, someone gives you a tight hug; it is when you feel hopeless that you want this remnant, someone vigorously pulls you back.

Is the old Portuguese gentle personality? No, on the contrary, he is a cool old man who will race with cars and trains, and can win the train handsomely every time. He would viciously drag the townspeople down and spank them as they stomped on the backbar of his car. He would smoke a cigarette and talk to others in a loud voice, and look like an evil person, but it was such an insensitive old man who taught Zeze gentleness. It is also such a person, who was initially regarded as a sworn enemy by Zeze, and warmed Zeze's sensitive and wounded heart.

After not fighting with Zeze and not knowing each other, Lao Lu and Zeze became friends for a long time. Old Portuguese is like a big friend, buying him marbles, buying pictures of movie stars, taking him for a ride, listening to him tell all the pain in his heart, and Zeze also regards Old Portugal as his best friend, like another sweet orange tree.

He began to quietly talk to Lao Lu about his heart, and after being beaten by his father's unforgettable heart, he said sadly to Lao Lu, I will kill him in my heart. When you no longer like someone, he will slowly die in your heart.

When everyone is high on Zeze, only Lao Lu crouches down to listen to Ze Ze's heart, and Lao Lu will naturally become the guide to dissolve the hatred in his heart. Lao Lu let Zeze understand that gentleness is more likely to affect a person's hatred than violent punishment, he made Zeze feel gentle and loving, Zeze became gentle with everything, he no longer played pranks, and no longer called his sister a bitch, and his sister even felt that he had become another child.

Old Portugal's tenderness does not stop there, when he knows that Zeze wants to go to the tracks, Lao Lu disrupts his suicide plan by taking him on an outing, and that night, he silently waits until the last train passes, making sure that Zeze did not go to the sleeping track of Old Portugal before leaving.

In the book, it is described that the old Portuguese embraced the scarred Zeze. He turned slowly, a happy smile on his face, and then, with open arms, embraced me for a long time.

The gentle embrace after being beaten is simple but also makes people sour. It was also after this hug that Zeze made a request to Lao Gu for the first time, and he said to Lao Gu, can you come to my house and let my father give me to you? I promise to be a good kid in every way. If they don't give, you can buy me, and if they ask too high, you can pay in installments.

Old Portuguese was shocked and heartbroken to the extreme. He tells Sawazawa that there is more than one way to change his life, that he cannot snatch Sawzawa away, but that he can treat Sawazawa like his own father. Old Portuguese really did it. Take Zeze out to play, protect Zeze's imagination, do not deny Zeze's strange thoughts, and only hope that Zeze will always "have beautiful dreams".

The gentleness and love of lao Lu have become the driving force for the healthy growth of Zeze in despair. But this driving force, with the car accident of the old Portuguese abruptly stopped, do you think that the meaning of gentleness ends here?

No, Sawazawa also conveys a third meaning at the end of the story. Only by killing attachment to pain can we attain true tenderness. The unexpected death of Lao Lu gave Sawazawa a sudden blow, and his world collapsed in an instant. So he fell seriously ill, and he was bent on death, asking to go to heaven to find Old Portugal. Because he knew that no living person could get there.

Just as he was unconscious, the little sweet orange tree suddenly came out of his window, carrying the bat he hadn't seen since moving, as well as the various treasures of the stars in American Western movies, which was actually a farewell. It is Zeze's farewell to the "fantasy world", a farewell to childhood.

The strong and brave Zeze finally recovered. He decided to have a race with the train that killed the old Portuguese. If you beat the train, you will let go of your grief and live again. Fortunately, he won in the end, crossing one of the most difficult chasms on the road to growth. The appearance of Lao Wei planted a sweet orange tree in the real world for Zeze, and also gave the whole book the meaning of a coming-of-age novel.

Old Portuguese taught Zeze the gentleness of life, patiently listening, caring, and guiding this sensitive young but astute and kind child. Allowed him to experience pain, but still be the same person he was. Still willing to "believe in others and their goodness." This tenderness not only made the two of them transcend the legend of blood affection, but also saved Zeze and became the background and motivation for his future life.

What Lao Lu brought to Zeze was not only tenderness, but also heartbreak. It is to understand the true meaning of pain in heartbreak, and to understand the value of gentleness and the weight of bravery. The departure of the old Portuguese, the sweet orange tree into the ripening period, the first small flowers that bloom, all indicate that Zeze has ushered in the growth of blood and tears. That colorful and dreamy imaginary world no longer exists, and the reality in front of us is real and painful.

But people's hearts are big, and they can put down everything we like. Only when you stop liking someone will he slowly die in your heart. Therefore, in this sense, Lao Lu not only has not left, but will always live in Zeze's thoughts and lives.

This heartbreak story, but also a brave story, the gentle legend created by Lao Lu will continue to be written by Zeze and generations of readers, and continue to bring more happiness to every heartbroken person.

There is no point in living without tenderness, and gentleness is both a tunnel to meaning and meaning itself. At this point in the story, perhaps everyone will want to ask a question, has Zeze's family never given him tenderness? In fact, he was also given that his second sister always stopped him when he was beaten and bandaged him when he was injured. When he was beaten to death several times, his mother waited all night and rushed to work early the next morning. Uncle was always the one who admired him and saw his angelic side.

And after Dad finally found a job, he held Zeze on his knees and rubbed Zeze with his bearded face, zeze was disgusted, broke free and sat on the steps, Dad followed again, tears, several families knelt down and said to him, we will not be poor in the future, we will have a big yard, you can pick a tree you like. Zeze told him that my sweet orange tree had long been cut down. In Zeze's heart, Dad is already dead, as he said, when you stop liking someone, that person will slowly die in your heart.

At the end of the book, it is not written whether Zeze reconciled with his father and the gray of childhood when he grew up. But since he can send beautiful marbles and star photos to others, he may one day be able to understand his biological father, the helpless tenderness behind the tyranny.

Old Portuguese did not go to his house to ask for his purchase, that is, to understand that his family may be difficult, perhaps grumpy, or rough, but in his heart, Zeze always retains the warmth of blood and affection. Those slaps and leather whips raised high are cathartic to the pain and helplessness of the parents' own chicken feathers. This is not intentional, but they are beaten by life fat, unconscious stress response and vicious circle.

In real life, how many children from such a native family finally raise their palms or whips high for their children. Growing up may really be about killing something to get. Killing resentment can only get forgiveness, killing attachment to pain, you can get tenderness, of course, this resentment to forgiveness, attachment to pain to get tenderness is a huge gap, how many people can cross it, can you cross it?

The title of "My Dear Sweet Orange Tree" itself is also very meaningful, and before meeting the old Portuguese, the sweet orange tree is all of Zeze. He talks to the sweet orange tree, tells it all his grievances, gets a little comfort from the sweet orange tree, and perhaps the author also hopes that the parents under the sky can be like the sweet orange tree. Not only to be able to speak, but also to listen to the voice of the child. The child's world also needs the gentleness and love of adults, and I sincerely hope that every child has a gentle life and can be treated gently.

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Zhao Zijun, an article a day, recording work life, reading and learning. Be a seed that spreads love.

Public number: Zhao Jun. Writing is not just about recording, it is evoking some beautiful hearts that are sleeping.