My godfather and godmother
Text/Xu Sutian
My godfathers and godmothers are ordinary farmers, but they are all very noble and kind to me!
My godfather and I are from the same village. When I was three and a half years old, my grandmother calculated a hexagram for me, hexagram cloud: I have a disaster in my life, and I need to worship someone to help me get out of the disaster and survive, which means that I have to worship a godfather and godmother. It just so happened that my father had been out to earn a living for a few years and had not returned, and the family also needed the help of close relatives and friends, so my grandmother and mother decided to do this. First, I looked for a family surnamed Guan, which meant to lock up my life, and then I weighed it again and again, saying that it was better to keep it than to keep it, so I decided to recognize this godfather surnamed Liu, so as to determine a very important kinship in my life.
I can't forget the day I recognized my relatives, and I really let my godmother put on a very fat pants with a lot of care, and then my godfather picked me up, pulled away one of my godmother's trouser legs, put me in and slid it down, as a symbol of my "regeneration". After that, my grandmother taught me to kowtow to each of them three times, and shouted loudly to my mother, so I recognized this family affection. Seventy-six years have passed, and that scene is still fresh and unforgettable, and it is a wonderful and beautiful memory in my heart.
I only know that my godmother's surname is Ma, I don't know her name, when I was nineteen years old, I married my godfather who was six years older than her, both of them were born poor peasants, illiterate, and all their lives are very good at living a farmer's life.
The godfather's surname is Liu, and his milk name is "Dafa". He doesn't say much, but he speaks gently, in a reasonable way, his face is majestic and gentle, his eyes are deep and kind, a pair of thick eyebrows, a short beard, people have a sense of justice and respectability, if you want to find someone to compare his appearance, to be honest, the first impression in my mind is that Zhu Laozhong played by Cui Wei in the old movie "Red Flag Spectrum", it is indeed like. In the field of the production team, he can often be seen skillfully handling the plough and rake, and he is constantly seen waving a long whip on the dirt road in the field, driving a wooden four-wheeled ox cart to transport manure and manure, and load crops. And because of his sincerity and love for people on weekdays, he is highly respected in the village and has a very good popularity.
My godmother is not handsome or ugly, but she feels very sunny and healthy. She was born with a thin and slightly long face, high cheekbones reveal a hint of strength, the dark formed by childhood labor has become the tone of her complexion all her life, and there are also some red and yellow colors, such a complexion makes people feel more industrious, thrifty and loyal and amiable. Her eyes are very bright, and she often shines like autumn water, and she always looks so radiant. Although the teeth may have never been brushed, it is said that she continued her mother's habit of rinsing her mouth with salt water every day, so her old teeth are white all her life. If you want to compare her style and appearance with someone, it is the hard-working and cheerful Li Shuangshuang in the old movie. The godmother's feet are well-known, because she was born in a poor family, so she is not bound by the etiquette rules of everyone's ladies, but she was lucky to escape the torture of binding her feet. Because of her big feet, her steps are fast, she walks steadily, and she works neatly, plus she has a generous and unrestrained personality, and her surname is Ma, so the neighbors gave her a nickname called "Carriage", and after being called it, everyone forgot her original name, and "Carriage" became a mark of her life.
After recognizing my relatives, I often went in and out of Liu's house, so I got a very precious parental love and sisterly affection. In the autumn of 1944, my father, who was not yet 20 years old, left his hometown to earn a living because of his family's poverty, and he has not been heard from since. My mother was not yet 22 years old at the time, and I gave birth to me five months after my father left. This love and love have finally been made up to a certain extent here by the godfather and godmother. The Liu family has six biological children: four sons, two daughters (three of whom died of a sudden illness when he was 6 years old), and the eldest son is only one year younger than me. We quickly became one and became intimate.
At that time, my family was very poor, my father was gone, my grandfather was sick all the year round, my aunt and uncle were young, my mother was young, it was really difficult for my grandmother to lead the family, and it was really difficult for my mother to be widowed. Under the predicament, it is inevitable that there will be some disputes between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. At this time, the godfather and godmother leaned over, on the one hand, he painstakingly exhorted and enlightened his mother-in-law and daughter-in-law to get along and overcome difficulties together, on the other hand, he often took our mother and son over to eat and talk, and constantly helped us with a little money and food. Now that I think about it, if it weren't for their spiritual and material dredging and help, the living environment and atmosphere of our whole family would be really unimaginable. The years after I was three years old were the most difficult years for our family, and thanks to the help of my godfather's family, our difficulties were greatly alleviated. I remember that every time I went to Liu's house, I saw a kind and enthusiastic smiling face, and every time I came here, there was a feeling of safety, warmth and comfort, and all the depression and haze in my heart would disappear. The godfather's greetings and warmth, cordial comfort, the godmother's good food and food, and the younger brothers and sisters holding hands and playing, everything is like rain and dew, sprinkled in my heart, warmed me, inspired and illuminated my future life. This marriage is really the blessing of my life.
My godfather and godmother treated me as if I had come out, loved me more than my own children, and took care of me materially. There are so many children, but they give me priority to buy the latest clothes every year, and when the Spring Festival is approaching, they always buy me a large string of firecrackers and a lot of crackers early, and give me one or two yuan of New Year's money (enough!). You must know that the children's New Year's money at that time was generally one dime or two cents), which made my godbrothers and sisters envious.
The most memorable thing is that although the godfather and godmother have no culture, they are filial to the old and love the young, and have good moral character and interest in life. When the godfather is not busy, he loves to be with the children, sometimes leading a few of us to the pond to swim, catch fish, dig loaches, when swimming, we are all bare-bottomed, down to the pond to pounce, the godfather grinning, sitting on the shore to watch over us, like a kind old lady releasing a flock of ducklings. Sometimes the godfather would pull us with an ox cart, take us to the field to do some farm work, dig some wild vegetables, catch grasshoppers, and occasionally when we were thirsty, he would also lead us to the melon orchard of the production team, please see the old man award for us a few melons to eat, it was a very sweet and happy time for us. But my godfather also instructed and warned us again and again that without permission, we are absolutely not allowed to take anything from the production team and other people's houses behind our backs, and we will not be able to do that kind of bad thing in our lives. When I stayed at home, my godfather loved to talk to the children, especially me, and we all liked to listen to him tell the stories of Guan Yu Qin Qiong and Bao Gong Hai Rui. He may have heard these stories at a street dining room or at an elderly listening room. The so-called restaurant refers to a habit in our place, that is, when eating, people always like to take their own meals, go to their own gate or on the street to eat with their neighbors, while squatting to eat, while talking about all kinds of news and interesting things. The so-called listening hall for the elderly refers to the place where the middle-aged and elderly people gather in a wide courtyard when they are free, where they exchange some information, discuss some things, or listen to a certain cultural person read to them. The listening hall in my village is the courtyard of an 85-year-old grandfather, Liu Si, who was in fact a cultural center for the elderly in our village at that time. At first, my godfather often took me there to play, so that the adults teased me and coaxed me, and then I went to school to read and have culture, and became a small reader in the listening field, on Sundays or holidays in the agricultural slack season, I often went there with my godfather to read for everyone, I remember that I read, there are "Three Heroes and Five Righteousness", "Sui and Tang Romance", "Yue Quan Biography", "Yang Jiajiang", "Jigong Biography", "Sanqi Zhou Yu", "Wu Song Fights the Tiger", "Havoc in the Heavenly Palace", "Flame Mountain" and so on, at first I read a little stammering, Later, the more I read, the smoother it became, the godfather and those old and young masters were fascinated, squinting and listening, applauding from time to time, it seemed that he was enjoying the feeling very much, and when he came to Liu Si, Grandpa would always give me a little candy cubes, peanuts and other small rewards. Godfather also often led me and my younger siblings to participate in some cultural and recreational activities in the village, there is a local theater in our village, there is an amateur art and art troupe, godfather introduced me to the class owner, let me go on stage and say a few times Allegro, or sing "majestic, high-spirited, across the Yalu River" and other songs, the whole village knew me, and later I became one of the most outstanding characters in the village, is the first key college student in our village, but I have always maintained a close relationship with the villagers, and has always enjoyed a good reputation, Among them, the painstaking guidance and cultivation of the godfather is indispensable.
Later, when I grew up and savored it, I slowly realized the good intentions of my godfather who took me to participate in these activities, and I found that although he was an ordinary farmer, his heart was very delicate, and he had a lot of feelings and ideas. He took me to, firstly, let me show up more, often contact with the villagers, learn to get in touch with people, avoid a closed and lonely character, and deepen the mutual understanding and feelings with the villagers, let me get more people's love, and improve my prestige and self-confidence from an early age; The second is to let me get some training and improvement in cultural learning, so that I can be more talented, in short, he is cultivating me with his heart; The third is that he himself wants to "show off and show off", explaining to everyone that he is a very good godson and he has a good face. Facts have proved that my godfather's doing this has indeed had a profound impact on the development of my life, and later my performance was also competitive, and I also won glory for him, and his hard work was not in vain.
I was in our village, I have never quarreled with anyone, and there are a few arrogant naughty boys in the village, who always like to bully the old and the young, and make trouble, but they have never bullied me, and they are quite polite when they see me, on the one hand, it is related to my loving and upright nature, and on the other hand, because they know that there is a majestic godfather behind me. Godfather is a righteous and courageous person, who does not bully others, but also does not tolerate anyone's bullying, coupled with his burly body like Zhu Laozhong, it is even more powerful, we are chickens, he is an eagle, so under the care of my godfather, I have a full sense of security throughout my teenage years. I remember one time, my godfather said to me earnestly: "Tian Tian, your father and I have been tempered since childhood, we are good friends, don't worry, Xiao, with me, no one will dare to bully you!" Of course, we can't bully others lightly! Poor and rich, we all have to treat others the same, respect others, and help others! ＂
Godfather is still a person who does not care about fame and fortune and keeps to himself. I remember that once during the Cultural Revolution, when I went home to see him, he told me a confidant: "Tian Tian, a few days ago, the brigade wanted me to be the chairman of the Association for the Poor, but I thought about it, but I didn't do it. I asked him why, and he said: "It's good to be an ordinary farmer by relying on your own old style, if you become the chairman, you have to take care of it, fight, don't say it, now you are living socialism, enough to eat and drink, what kind of strength do the villagers still fight!" I don't want to mess with that. I have no education, I haven't thought about being an official and making any money, but I still concentrate on planting these lands well, planting good land for my own food and clothing, and contributing to the country. I looked at his loyal and kind face and listened to his honest words, and my heart was so moved! He is not interested in fame and fortune, sincere and generous feelings for people, high-profile work and low-key character, which is exactly what I recognize and uphold in my heart, and his role model is also an excellent inspiration for me.
Writing this, you should understand, I used so much pen and ink to describe an uneducated peasant godfather, is it worth writing?! My godfather, although he has no position, no power, no money and no power, is just an ordinary person, but he has a beautiful heart, and there are too many fine traditions and virtues in him, and the nobility is contained in his ordinary. He has given me so much light and love, filled my heart with warmth, and enriched my life, although he is not my biological father, but he is better than my biological father! I love him and miss him!
A few years later, a child from a neighboring village surnamed Wu came to the door, but the godfather and godmother couldn't help it, and accepted another name. But soon, the Liu family suffered a huge disaster. My godbrother Lao San suddenly suffered from acute meningitis and died after rescue efforts failed. This third brother is just over six years old, he is six years younger than me, this is a very handsome, smart and obedient child, is the most popular "bowl top" of several children, he also loves to play with me, laugh when he sees me, is my favorite little godbrother. I could see that the godfather and godmother were extremely sad, the godfather was secretly sighing and crying, and the godmother's eyes were swollen from crying, but when they saw me, they pretended to be fine, and a reluctant smile appeared on their faces, but I cried more and more. Soon rumors spread in the village that the godson took his own son's life. My heart is also very entangled, there is always a shadow of uneasiness and a sense of shame, is it really as superstition says, it is our two godsons who took the third child together? If that's the case, I'm really sorry for the kind godparents! My godfather was a very careful person, and he probably saw what was on my mind, so he said to me very gently: "Tian Tian, don't be uncomfortable, no matter how uncomfortable we are, it's useless." As the saying goes, there is no young or old on the road of life and death, and your third brother is this fate, which has nothing to do with you. He's gone, and I still have a few of you, aren't you the same as my own son! You are a good boy, when your godmother and I are old, won't you still be the same filial piety! Greatly believe that you will... I nodded my head very seriously, and my godfather looked at me with satisfaction and love, and gently wiped the tears from my eyes. He and his godmother did not show the slightest remorse, they still loved us like that, even closer and better than before.
Later, I grew up, went to college, worked, got married, had children, and finally got through it, and they grew old. Although the years are going by, the complex of being a son will never grow old. It's time for me to repay and honor them, so no matter where I am, it goes without saying that I celebrate my birthday every year, even when I have free time, I always love to go to the home that has given me countless love, countless care, countless warmth, and countless joys, and look at the amiable and respectable parents, even if I don't go, I will let my wife visit often. But life and death are rich and noble, but the godfather who has worked hard all his life is an unblessed man, and as soon as the good days began, he left us in a hurry and returned to the west.
In the summer of 1986, as a member of the teaching and research group of the Heze Regional Mathematical Society and the Mathematics Center, I went to Liangshan County to attend a conference. After lunch on the last day of the meeting, I suddenly felt extremely unwell, dizzy for a while, upset, flustered and short of breath, my colleagues hurriedly took me to the outpatient department for medical treatment, but the diagnosis was that there was no major abnormality in the organic and related indicators, it was a neurological occasional room early, and the doctor recommended taking medicine to rest. After taking two tablets of Valium and Tranquilizer Heart Tonic Pills, I quickly returned to normal. When I returned home the next day, the first news I got was that my godfather had passed away yesterday afternoon due to an acute cerebral hemorrhage. Yikes! Wasn't that exactly the time I had an illness yesterday in Yangsan! I was grieved and amazed, and I felt a deep sense of telepathy. At that time, I was out of town, and I couldn't be contacted by phone at home, let alone a mobile phone, so I didn't expect my godfather to convey a message of farewell to me in such a special way. To this day, I can't explain this particular way of delivery. Dad, why don't you wait until your son comes back and leave! He was only 66 years old, and he usually only knew that he was in good health, but I really didn't expect to leave so suddenly, and I really cried in front of his spirit, and he was very peaceful, as if he was silently listening to my sorrow... I miss him very much, and many times afterward, I met him in my dreams.
The godfather is gone, so let's double down on my godmother. However, not to mention honoring the elderly, for a period of time, I couldn't protect myself, which made the old people worry and confess. For nearly a year from the end of 1988 to the end of 1989, I suffered from a severe neurosis in which I was overwhelmed by the heavy burden of my family, work pressure, and sense of responsibility for my career. I have eaten hundreds of decoctions, but it is ineffective; Practicing Qigong is not the right way, and the condition becomes more and more serious. At this time, my wife and the old godmother were helpless, so they adopted unconventional methods of seeking medical treatment with good intentions, and went around to pray for God for me. My mother and godmother found someone to make a stand-in scarecrow for me and burned it at the entrance of the village, in order to borrow my body to revive my soul. The godmother also went to Shuimiao Village again and again to pray for the fairy "Master Gao". The goddess asked her, "Carriage, who are you asking for so much?" At such an old age, be careful not to run away from the wheels. The godmother said, "This is one of my beloved sons!" I'm desperate to get his life back, even if I run the two wheels to pieces, I want to get his life back. This child has had a hard life since he was a child, and he has never seen his father in his life, which is the lifeblood of his mother and my heart. If this kid is good, the sky will fall on our two old sisters. Old God, you must beg Master Gao to bother to lead the way for the child and give him a way to live. "The godmother also made a wish for me on the spot: on the fifteenth day of the new year, I will burn incense and worship treasures and light cigarettes for Master Gao and the gods.
Later, I went to Jinan for treatment, and Aunt Liu Shourong, the wife of Vice Governor Lu Hong (my mother has been a nanny for her family for ten years, and she is my great benefactor) arranged food and accommodation for us in the provincial capital, and personally took me to the Affiliated Hospital of Shanyi for five Qigong physiotherapy, and then I took 18 decoctions back to my hometown in the countryside to recuperate. During the nearly three months in my hometown, my two mothers waited by my side all day long, chatting with me, playing bridge, adjusting food and drink, and maintaining a positive attitude, so that I could fully enjoy the double maternal love. It may be that the curative effect of qigong has played a role, and a little bit of maternal love has touched the heavens, and after three months, my condition has finally improved significantly, and after a while, my body has basically recovered. Today (2024), I have lived another 35 years. Thank God for my loved ones, and of course, I will never be able to thank the old godmother who prayed to God for me.
In my heart, I have three mothers in my life - my mother, Aunt Liu Shourong and my godmother, and because of them, my life is relatively happy. In 1990, my aunt passed away in a car accident, and in 2002, my biological mother also passed away. In the following ten years, only this old mother was left to become an important support for my soul. I visited her from time to time and sent her many gifts. She is always so gentle, so hearty, so kind, so kind, holding my hand tightly, conveying the sincere love in her heart, the still bright eyes radiate the light of happiness, and her mouth keeps murmuring: "Little, I came to see me again, my son, don't think about me all the time", wiped her eyes as she spoke, and then the old tears remained. Godmother is getting old, getting older and older, looking at her face full of vicissitudes, thinking back to the ups and downs of more than 60 years, I can't help but feel a burst of sourness in my heart.
In 2015, the godmother was 89 years old, and in the summer, an accidental fall caused a fundamental change in her physical condition, and she was paralyzed in bed and unable to take care of herself. Most of the elderly who are injured by accidental falls will most of them turn into senile dementia, their consciousness is clear and muddy, and their state is good and bad, and the same is true for her godmother, she often does not eat, drink, speak, or know her relatives, and her consciousness is chaotic. But every time I visited her, she was very sober, still holding my hand tightly, kissing and saying, "Small, I'm here, I'm here, I'm here", and I gave up my seat, and I gave her water, and I brought her gifts, she also ate and drank, and her spirit was very excited, and even the relatives who accompanied her would look at each other in amazement. I know this is no accident. The spiritual power of people is incomparably powerful, and how many people can interpret the 68 years of affection and righteousness between our mother and son? !
It's not bad, the godmother finally survived to the age of 90 in this muddy mental state, during which the children were able to do their filial piety, and the service was in place, and my wife and I also visited many times. The old man's last old age is finally perfected. But the deadline has finally arrived. I remember that it was half past one o'clock in the morning of the fourteenth day of the lunar month, after I got up at night, I couldn't sleep anymore, I didn't know what it was for, I usually slept until dawn, what happened? Sure enough, something happened, the phone came as soon as the sky was bright, it was the voice of my fourth godbrother, he had not opened his mouth, an ominous premonition had hit my heart, only to hear him say in a low voice: "Big brother, our mother is gone." I asked urgently, "When?" He replied, "At about 1:20 a.m., if a mouthful of phlegm doesn't come up, it won't work." ＂
Rest in peace, godfather, godmother, rest in peace, great parents, thanks to you, we and our children and grandchildren have such a beautiful today! Sometimes I always naively think, I wonder if we can meet again in the next life? If you could, that would be great! Pray to Heaven to give us such a favor!!
(The first draft was completed on December 19, 2016, nearly 8 years ago, on the occasion of the 2024 parents' double festival, slightly revised and organized, dedicated to family and friends readers, and you share the true love of righteousness)
About author:Xu Sutian, born in 1945, a native of Dingtao District, Heze City, Shandong, was admitted to the Department of Mathematics of Shandong University in 1962, graduated from the Cultural Revolution in 1968, and was assigned to teach at Jiang Tuan High School in Laiyang, Shandong. In 1988, he was declared as the first batch of senior mathematics teachers in Shandong Province because of his outstanding performance, and retired in 1999. Since childhood, the author has loved reading, literature, and writing, and his works have been published from time to time.