Retaining homesickness and beautiful prose
"Open wells pour into springs, and stone mills turn to dry Kun". In the former countryside, people's lives could not be separated from two treasures, which were relied on by villagers. Regardless of spring, summer, autumn and winter, sunrise and sunset, they are silently contributing to the villagers. These two treasures are the "wells and stone mills" in the village.
There is an ancient well in the middle of the village. Every morning, the villagers come to fetch water in an endless stream. The spinning pulley sounds beautiful, and it is a good day for generations. This well is full of water, so the villagers cherish this old well like old friends. On holidays, it is particularly festive to tie a red silk on the well shelf, so the old well has become the most beautiful scenery in the village.
I remember one year when there was a flood, the old well was submerged in a piece of Wang Yang, and I could only vaguely see the sharp derrick coming out of the water, so that I could recognize the position of the old well. Every family is worried that their children will fall into the well, and put colorful flags by the well to remind people to be careful. The wind is blowing, the water is rippling, and the flying flag is like a sail on the water.
After the flood receded, the villagers had the idea of drilling wells in their houses. Well drilling is a technical activity, so a well drilling master was specially invited to choose the site and make the shaft wall. The shaft wall is made of two-inch iron pipe, which is more than ten meters long. There are many small holes under the iron pipe and covered with plastic net. My father said it was a water inlet. The top of the shaft wall is more than one meter high, the bowl mouth is generally thick, and an arc finale is installed on it. An iron bar is worn under the finale, and a black rubber sheet is worn in the iron bar as a sucker.
Everything was ready, and my father asked several villagers for help. Under the command of the well driller, the villagers began to choose the site. The location of drilling wells is near the north wall of my old house, one meter away from the wall. First, dig a well here with a shovel, which is half a meter deep and 30 centimeters wide. Then, put the drill bit into the well. The drill bit is hollow, with a sharp head at the bottom and a hole in the middle for putting mud. When people rotate the drill bit and inject water into it, the sediment will be transported up. When the well reaches a certain depth, the drill bit will be lifted and the two-inch iron pipe will be put into the drilled deep well. The driller connects the prepared iron pipes one by one and goes down to the well, extending to the bottom of the well. Then, bury the soil around the shaft wall and tamp it, and only a small section of well pipe is exposed on it.
After the installation of the shaft wall is completed, the next process is to wash out the sediment at the bottom of the well. Tie a thin and long iron drum with thick rope. The bottom of the drum is very sharp, with a round hole covered with rubber. After putting the drum at the bottom of the well, several people pulled the rope and squatted down repeatedly with heavy iron drums, and the soil at the bottom of the well was dug into the drum. People pull the rope together and salvage the mud to the ground again and again. This is called Tao Jing. It usually takes a day to drill a small well. Now the adults keep pulling the rope to dig out the sediment, and the sediment salvaged is less and less, and most of the barrels are muddy water. Soon, the water will become very clear.
After completion, the driller began to install wellhead water pressure. The wellhead is a big bowl of iron pipe with a movable press shaft and the sucker mentioned above. Hold the iron bar by hand and move it up and down, and the well water will be pressed up and flow into the water tank. Everyone tasted the hard-won well water together and praised the well water for its sweetness and lubrication. The villagers also praised my old house as a treasure trove of geomantic omen. The key is to produce sweet and clear water.
Father said, "It's not easy to have a look at the little well. Site selection is very important. We live in the same village. This family can pump water, and that family can't pump water. " It is lucky to dig a well. Some people just can't get water at home, so they have no choice but to choose a place in the yard or garden. Sometimes they are lucky. Therefore, the old well in the middle of the village still came in handy. Villagers who have not drilled wells have been drinking water from old wells, and old wells have been providing villagers with a steady stream of water.
My water pressure well is sweet and clear. My mother said, "The well has dug an underground river, so the water vein will continue." Father is also unique. He opened a small skylight on the roof above the wellhead. Don't underestimate this small skylight. The reflection of the blue sky can be directly projected into the well, so you can see the water waves at the bottom of the well.
In hot summer, the water in this well in the old house becomes colder and colder. Press a bowl of well to pull cold water to drink, especially to quench your thirst, let alone how happy you are. Every morning I will stand in front of the well, grab the iron bar with my hand and press it gently, and the water will flow into the water tank. The water source in the village belongs to weak alkaline water, so there are many long-lived old people in the village, and there are more than a dozen in their 90 s. They are all healthy, disease-free and in good spirits.
The soil in my hometown contains alkali. Therefore, the well water of every household in the village will be very lubricated, and the clothes washed with alkaline water will be very clean. Villagers will drink alkaline water to lubricate their intestines and rarely get sick. Therefore, the water source in my hometown has a nickname "holy water". It is a blessing for the villagers to drink such sweet well water.
I remember one year when the old well in the middle of the village dried up during the drought, but my small well was still full, and all my neighbors came to fetch water. Every morning, there will be squeaking pressure from the outhouse. Since the well was built, the water tank has been full. There is also a big water tank in the yard. Mother brought a pipe from the wellhead, put the water pressure here, and the water will flow into the water tank along the pipe. Mother said: "If you put water in the sun, the water temperature will rise, which can be used for washing clothes, watering vegetables and taking a bath.". This little invention will be imitated by every household. "
Besides, the well in the middle of the village. In winter, due to frequent pumping, the edge of the well platform and the surrounding walls will be covered with ice. Over time, the ice will gradually thicken, and finally even the bucket can't be put in. Father found several young people with shovels and long ice drills on their shoulders. First, the ice on the drilling platform was dug away with a pick, and a clearing was flashed out. Then use an ice drill to plunge into the hard ice, tinkling and ringing, and pieces of white ice fall into the well water, splashing. In one day, more than half of the hard ice around the wellbore wall was knocked off, and there was almost no ice under the wellbore wall, so the space was very spacious.
Next, I will salvage the ice that fell into the well water. I saw my father standing on the well platform, clutching the rope tightly with both hands, shaking the rope from side to side so that the bucket could be put down. The ice cubes floating on the water were obediently poured into the bucket, and then slowly turned the pulley, only to see a bucket full of white and transparent ice cubes, shining with the luster of Ying Ying.
At this time, women who like to eat ice swarmed in, and some simply picked up a large piece of ice from the iron bucket with their hands and held it in their arms. As soon as the ice touches the clothes, it will stick to them firmly, and no matter how you tear it, it won't fall off. They can only run home with a big piece of ice, just like holding a big jade in their arms.
two
The warm sun in winter, like a toddler, slowly passes through the village, and the frosted flowers on the window meet the sun and quietly melt into fuzzy patterns. At this time, the countryside is the quietest time. Only sparrows falling on the eaves stare at a pair of shiny little eyes, look around, twitter and sing winter songs.
It was getting dark, and the stars spread out and slowly appeared in the sky. My mother and I came to the well with flashlights and cut the ice on the side of the well wall with a kitchen knife. I tied the small basket with rope and stood at the edge of the well platform at a distance. The small basket is placed at the bottom of the well edge, and the cut ice cubes just fall into the basket. I was worried about my mother's feet when I was lighting a flashlight. Mother knelt on the ice of the well platform with one leg, and the kitchen knife made a crisp sound on the Bai Bing and passed over the silent village. ...
"Mom, I'm full. Go home quickly." Mother agreed, with a small basket in her hand, stood up slowly and crept out of the cold well platform. When I got home, my mother put the ice cubes in the small basket into the basin, poured cold water into it, took out a large piece of ice and poured the rest into the water tank.
It's cold. I quickly sat on the hot kang. My mother broke the ice cubes into small pieces with an awl. I picked up a piece of Bai Bing with my frozen hands and put it in my mouth. Suddenly, the ice touched my tongue and I didn't dare to tear it. I'm afraid my tongue will lose a piece of skin. After a while, the temperature in your mouth will melt the ice and the ice will leave the tip of your tongue. Then, I chewed it with a bang, and my mouth was cold. That was an addiction.
In the cold winter, people's hearts are hot, so northerners have the habit of eating ice as the weather gets cold. Besides ice, I also like to eat frozen persimmons, frozen pears and candied haws. Frozen pears should be slowed down first. If you put them in cold water, they will gradually become soft and taste cool, sweet and sour. Frozen pears not only quench thirst and moisten lungs, but also are nutritious. Therefore, eating frozen pears and persimmons is the favorite of northerners.
The villagers not only like to eat frozen pears and persimmons, but also like to eat hometown dishes, golden "sticky bean bags". Mother put the steamed sticky bean bag on the curtain and took it outdoors for freezing. In the twelfth month of winter, the sticky bean curd is frozen as hard as a stone in less than ten minutes. Mother collected the sticky frozen bean bags and put them in a small jar in the barn to eat slowly.
I like frozen bean buns best. I took out two at a time, sat by the firewood pile, basked in the warm winter sunshine, and tried my best to chew frozen bean bags. Only a few tooth marks are left on the bean bag, and the frozen bean bag can only be chewed slowly. I'm impatient, and I'm still munching on sticky bean bags. I was surrounded by a group of chickens, ducks, geese and dogs. Watching me eat seemed like an earth-shattering performance. My audience is very enthusiastic, and the old hen cackles from time to time. ...
three
There is a stone mill behind my old house, which has been idle for many years and has become a good place for children to play. The base of this stone mill is round with neat stripes on it, and the edge of the stone mill is smooth and bright. Put a stone roller on the stone mill and install a log on the smooth stone roller. When pushed by hand, the stone mill will turn and rumble. When I started the stone mill, I felt heavy. Just move and it will be light and roll around the center.
When I was a child, I watched my grandfather grind millet and corn residue with a stone mill. Grandpa put the millet on the stone mill, spread it out in the center of the stone mill, and then pushed the wooden pole on the stone mill, and the round big stone roller would roll slowly, and the golden millet would be crushed after several turns.
I remember that year when I was 10, I went to the mill to help my mother. Mother took the donkey to the village and put it in the mill. This stone mill has two layers, like hamburgers now. In order to prevent the donkey from stealing food from the stone mill, the mother put a mask on the donkey's mouth and covered the donkey's eyes with thick cloth, so that the donkey could not steal food from the stone mill.
However, this method is not completely effective, especially when you meet a clever and slippery old donkey. Donkeys bully children. Mom went home for dinner and showed me the stone mill. After her mother left, the donkey didn't know why she could see that the child was watching the mill, so she began to make a scene in the mill and stopped grinding. They stick out their long tongues from the edge of the mask and lick the food on the stone mill. I was frightened and shouted. The donkey ignored my cry, and still went its own way, frantically ruining the grain on the stone mill. I was so scared that I cried and attracted my uncle in the yard. Strange to say, when my uncle arrived, he just gave a gentle cry, and the donkey turned obediently and tried to pull up the mill.
In my memory, watching the mill is the most difficult job. It's hard, because I'm particularly afraid of donkeys. A stone mill is covered with two donkeys, and the space between them is less than one meter wide. My mother told me that the ground corn flour should always be put away with a dustpan, and corn kernels should be added to the grinding top. Diligent donkey tried to turn around and pull the mill, and the ground corn flour kept coming. Before the dustpan touched the millstone, the donkey's footsteps caught up with my heel. I could only run in circles with the donkey in front, and tried to leave the millstone several times before I managed to escape.
At this time, I heard someone shouting "change the set", that is, let the donkey rest and put on a new donkey mill. I shouted "Xu" at that time, and the donkey immediately braked. I tore off the rope from the donkey with my little hand and timidly led a donkey out of the mill. The donkey went outside and suddenly rolled on the ground, scaring me to lose my rope and run to the distance to see it. Mao got up and ran to the back of the donkey shed to roll. I took a new donkey into the mill, put on the reins and masks at random, and then unloaded the other donkey. Because of my previous experience, it was successfully completed this time. Busy for a long time, another donkey also went to the millstone. After checking and tying the reins, he shouted "Drive". Two diligent little donkeys kicked their hooves like arrows, turned their hooves and turned their hands, and the millstones rumbled, and the corn flour on the ground fell like snowflakes, piling up like mountains. ...
Mom finally came and began to circle around the millstone. She collected the ground corn flour with a dustpan and quickly added corn kernels to the millstone. I stood by and watched my mother's skillful movements, admiring and ashamed. ...
The era of eating food with a stone mill is gone forever. I think the funny experience of grinding has been stored in my personal file and has become a treasure of my childhood. Today, the stone mill has long since withdrawn from the historical stage and is quietly placed in my backyard. Stone mill is like a weather-beaten old man, watching the villagers live a comfortable life. The scars on the stone mill record the vicissitudes of time and the annual rings that the villagers have passed.
"The shepherd boy came back across the cow's back, and the piccolo blew without a cavity." Beautiful countryside, the sky is vast, the distant mountains contain beautiful flowers, and the sunset glow is crimson. The country road is long, the sunset is long, the dry Kun is dazzling, and it has changed the world. Nowadays, the villagers' good days are undergoing a qualitative leap. Farmhouse, rural scenery, this is the life that people yearn for most. Both the stone mill and the hydraulic well have fulfilled their glorious historical mission and have been cherished and protected. In the hearts of villagers, the feelings for stone mills and wells are still very deep. These two treasures in the village will always be worthy of the respect of the villagers. Nowadays, the villagers are full of vitality and confidence, and realizing a well-off life is their goal. By 2050, the life of farmers in China will be more affluent.
Keep homesickness, be grateful for your hometown, and let your youth look back again and again in the surging homesickness, quietly blooming a pure beauty. The two treasures of my hometown, the old well and the stone mill, have long been placed in my heart, keeping pace with homesickness, silently guarding the distant home, watching the sunrise and sunset, feeling the lights of thousands of households, and accompanying the villagers into a new era.