走过的路

曲曲弯弯走过的路,追寻着向往和幸福
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My Brother and I 我和我哥

(2022-02-04 09:22:09) 下一个

I learned my first Chinese characters not from a schoolteacher but my older brother. He is five years older than me. According to Chinese astrology he is a pig born in 1959 while I was born in 1964, a dragon. Believe it or not, that means something, and it's been proven by our lives. The dragon flew all over the world while the pig stayed in the village all these years. 

My older brother went to primary school in our village while I was a preschooler helping my mother with our younger brother at home. I was always curious what was written in his very thin textbooks. But I could only guess what was there by looking at the simple illustrations. So I begged him to read for me. He, not just reading from the book, was always creating his version of the stories. I didn't believed him totally because I knew he was not reading to me exactly from the textbook. Eventually my brother grew tired of me and told me if I wanted to know what was in the book, I should learn from him how to read. I think he just wanted to be a teacher. Years later he became my real teacher in the same village school after he finished high school at the best school in the county. 

So began our lessons. It was still the time of the Cultural Revolution. The school textbooks were full of propaganda.  No surprise that the first phrases I learned from my brother were: Long live Chairman M, Long live the Com- Party, etc. He would write down a line of slogans with the white chalk on the dusty floor of our living room, and I would repeat five lines of the same words beneath it. After school he'd check on my homework. I always felt his writing was so pretty and neat, while mine where tiny tree branches twisting and straining beneath his beautiful characters like some funny, bouncing clowns. But I was so happy that I could begin to learn to become a more educated person. 

One day my brother asked me "do you want to learn how to write your own name?" Of course, I wanted to learn! So the very first time in my life at the age of six, I learned the three Kanjis of my name. I was so proud of myself! 

One day the neighbor boy came to brag about his new school life. I could hardly believe it! What! He was in school but why wasn't I? I am half a year older than him!  But he said all of the kids his age in the village started their first grade in school but me! Damn it! 

There was no kindergarten in my time. The villagers' children begun their education at age of seven. It turned out I was not registered for school because my mother decided I should stay home for a year longer to help her take care of my three-year-old little brother.  It was later I realized that at the same time my mother was in her midterm pregnancy with my youngest brother. But I was already seven and half years old! My mother wanted me to stay home another year?! I was so mad and shocked by the news. "I want to go to school"! I declared, and I cried and shouted at her like nothing would stop me from my desire of going. 

Eventually my mother agreed that I would go to school in fall that year of 1972.  During the same semester my older brother finished his primary school in our village and started middle school in the headquarters of our township. In the same winter my lovely youngest brother was born to my great disappointment. Because I dreamed and hoped that my mother would give me a little sister. 

Today my youngest brother and I talked over the phone for two and a half hours. The time went by without notice. In a few days his daughter my niece will start high school in Xi'an entering a new era of her life. Congratulations! Now it's yoga time for me. 

Scorpion

我的第一个汉字不是从老师那里学来的,而是跟我哥学的,他比我大五岁。根据中国属相他是1959年出生的猪,而我1964年出生的龙。不管你信不信我相信这里有说法的,我俩的生活轨迹已经证明了这一点。这些年来,龙飞遍了世界,而猪则一直留在了村子里。

我哥在我们村上小学时我还是学龄前儿童在家里帮助我妈带弟弟。我一直很好奇我哥他很薄的课本上有什么。我只能看课文里少量插图来猜,我求哥给我读课文,可他不是读而是自己创作故事版本。小小的我不信他总是烦他给我读。我哥烦我的纠缠就说要想知道课文里写了啥,我就该向他学认字。我猜那时候他就想当老师啦!多年后他在我们县里最好的学校读完高中,就成了我们村小学的民办教师成了我的老师。
 
然后我们的课就开始了。那时候还是文化大革命时期,学校的课本上充满了宣传口号。一点也不奇怪从我哥那里我学到的就是毛主席万岁,共产党万岁等等。我哥用粉笔在我家屋地或院地上写一行,我在下面重复五行相同的字。放学后他就检查我的作业。我一直觉得他写的字好漂亮好整洁,而我写的就是一个个小树枝在他的美文扭曲和紧张地排在那里,就像一群好笑蹦蹦跳跳的小丑。可我很高兴,我学写字了,我要成为文化人了。
 
有一天我哥问我:“你想学写自己的名字吗?”当然,我想学写自己名字!所以在我六岁那年就学会写完名字的三个汉字。好骄傲啊!
 
一天邻居男孩来吹嘘他的新学校生活。我简直不敢相信!什么!他都上学了可我为什么没有?我还比他大半岁呢!但他说除了我村里所有他这个年龄的小孩都上一年级了。 该死!
 
我们那个时代不知幼儿园为何物,村民的孩子七岁开始接受教育。后来指导是我妈没有给我注册,她想让我在家多待一年帮她照顾我三岁的弟弟。后来我才知道当时我妈正怀着我小弟。但那是我已经七岁半了!我妈妈要我再呆一年?!我对这个消息感到非常生气和震惊。 “我要上学”!我倔强的对她大声喊对她生气,我非要上学不可! 
 
最后我妈同意我在1972年秋天上学。同一个学期我哥在我们村完成了他的小学转到镇上开始上初学。这个冬天我妈给我们又生了个弟弟。太令人失望了,我做梦都想有个妹妹。
 
今天我和小弟在电话里聊天,时间不知不觉两个半小时就过去了。再过几天他女儿我侄女将在西安开始上高中,进入她人生的新篇章了。恭喜!瑜伽时间到。
(初稿于2021-08-20)
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