This article is a fictional novel, the pictures are all network pictures, and the names of people and places are all apocryphal.
1
The uncle in the family, all the time, is probably one of the eccentric people I know.
He is 1.7 meters tall, always wears a little old clothes, and the expression on his face rarely changes, and with our relatives and neighbors, I feel that I am always separated by a thin layer of fog, and I can't see his mind clearly.
Every time the old Zhang Tou in the downtown area has a 30th birthday banquet, or the child in the second aunt's house opposite is full moon, the people in the village inevitably want Zhang Luo, wrap a red envelope, and join in the fun.
But this uncle has always been an exception.
Even if he knew, he casually said "oh", then changed into his old working pants, took the toolbox, and went out to work.
Whoever has a red and white affair, people are busy preparing, but he doesn't seem to have anything to do with it, either he doesn't follow the courtesy, or he simply doesn't go.
I'm only in my early 30s, and I don't really have much contact with my uncle, but occasionally listening to my parents talk about it at the dinner table, I still show a little dissatisfaction.
Mom and Dad both said that in these days, the red and white things of relatives and neighbors are all bridges to maintain friendship.
Uncle is like that, it's too much to break the rules.
But because they are a family, it is difficult to say a lot of words, so they endure it so much, and their hearts are panicked.
Uncle lives alone, in a dilapidated hut on the outskirts of the city.
I usually rely on a few handicrafts that I can occasionally receive, such as repairing water pipes and changing electric lights to make some money.
Even if he can barely make ends meet, although he is poor, it can be seen that he seems to be used to this kind of life.
Sometimes I think that my uncle's personality and lifestyle must be inseparable from his past experiences.
I heard his parents occasionally mention that he was full of dreams when he was young and wanted to go to the big city, but he was polished by life and lost his initial enthusiasm.
His attitude towards money, perhaps taught him by this life, is frugal and unwilling to spend too much on the so-called "face".
His relationship with our family is like an invisible thread, both connected and far away.
I would visit him occasionally, and every time I went, he would simply greet him, and then he would go his own way.
I tried to chat, but I didn't seem to be able to talk deeply, just like that, and kept a distance from each other.
Life is separate, and Uncle lives in his own way, although we don't understand it very well, but this is probably the path he chose.
Everyone has their own way of life, and Uncle is the most unique one in our big family.
2
However, it was such a "withdrawn" uncle, but when his son got married, a "strange thing" happened.
On that day, I received an invitation from my uncle's son to get married, with the words "Sincere Invitation" written in Phnom Penh on the top and a joyful red seal on the bottom.
For a while, I felt a little surprised, after all, it was really surprising that my uncle had such a life style in the past, and suddenly had a happy event.
Uncle made a lot of money for this wedding.
I heard that not only did he invite half the village, but even his cousins who I hadn't seen for years sent invitations.
For this reason, he was busy working outside almost every day that month, and sometimes took his son and daughter-in-law to deliver invitations to other people's homes.
In our village, when people get married, they usually pay a few hundred gifts, but my uncle's family, he said, this is his only son, and he wants to have a grand event.
When it finally came to the wedding day, I arrived half an hour early and wanted to help.
But when I arrived at the scene, it was deserted all around, and there were more than a dozen tables set up, and only two tables were seated.
The uncle was dressed in a new suit, sweating profusely at the door, and his eyes revealed a trace of anxiety.
I walked over to say hello, and the uncle smiled reluctantly, but his eyes frequently glanced at his mobile phone, as if he was waiting for someone's call.
As time passed, the scene that should have been lively became more and more deserted.
Most of the relatives who came were just old faces, and most of the gifts were only a few dozen yuan, and even a few came empty-handed.
I felt bad for a while, after all, seeing my uncle so anxious, anyone would be unbearable.
When the meal was almost served, the uncle's daughter-in-law couldn't help it, she muttered about the tablecloth, and complained to the uncle in a sharp voice: "It's all your previous style, now in this predicament, how can people give you face?!"
The uncle saw that the people around him were watching, and his face showed unspeakable embarrassment and helplessness.
He swallowed and tried to explain something, but was interrupted by his daughter-in-law.
The two of them are like this, standing by the stage decorated with flowers and balloons, one second they are still the joy of being newly married, and the next second they are caught up in family disputes.
I stood aside and watched this scene with mixed feelings.
This is indeed strange, after all, red and white ceremonies are big events in the village, and it is impossible for the neighbors to not be popular.
But it's not too strange to say it's strange, after all, what Uncle has done over the years has really offended many people......
I think this may be the consequence of my uncle's past behavior.
Uncle Xiao's loneliness and eccentricity in those years finally gave him a bitter fruit.
At the end of the wedding banquet, the scene was still cold, but there was a little more embarrassing silence.
When I left, I glanced back and saw my uncle standing at the door, watching every guest who left, and that weak smile made me unforgettable for a long time.
3
After the wedding, the uncle sat in the empty living room, looking depressed and helpless.
The lights dimmed, casting his long figure, at that moment, I looked at him, as if I could feel the indescribable pain in his heart.
He lowered his head and fiddled with the unopened red envelopes, and said to me in a hoarse voice: "I feel that I have done a lot of wrong things, and my past behavior is really inappropriate." ”
I sat across from him, looking at this usually tough uncle, and suddenly I didn't know what to say.
In the past, he did offend many people for some reasons, causing many relatives to even be reluctant to deal with him.
Today's situation is somewhat reasonable.
After calming down, the uncle began to reflect, and he decided to slowly change his attitude and try to mend the relationship with those relatives and neighbors.
In the following days, he became more diligent and friendly, and when he had free time, he went to help his neighbors in the village with some work and participate in some public welfare activities in the village.
Whenever he met relatives who had been separated by some misunderstandings in the past, he would take the initiative to come forward to say hello, and sometimes even take the initiative to invite people to sit at home.
People, after all, are flesh and blood, although many people were skeptical about these changes of Uncle at the beginning, but after a long time, everyone slowly accepted him.
Although in the hearts of many people, there is still some guilt about some of his past behaviors, but after all, they are all relatives, and the family affection that blood is thicker than water is still difficult to give up.
I remember one time, my uncle went to the city to buy some good things and brought them to a distant cousin who had conflicts in the past.
At first, the cousin was a little unhappy, but seeing that the uncle was sincere, he finally reconciled.
Since then, whenever there is something at home, the cousin will come over to help.
Today, although the uncle's life is still so ordinary, and his monthly income is only three or four thousand, he has learned to cherish the people around him, and understands that trust and respect between people are more important than any material things.
With sincerity and action, he slowly melted the ice in people's hearts.
Life is like this, day by day, although there are still some ups and downs and difficulties, but at least, Uncle is no longer the lonely person.
This story is purely fictional, the names and events in the story are fictional, and the purpose of using place names is only for the purpose of describing the plot and making it easy to read and understand