There is a writer in the United States, Betty Smith, who has lived a very poor life since she was a child, and dropped out of school at the age of 14 to work, and has experienced the ups and downs of life.
However, she did not give up and was admitted to university through self-study, specializing in writing.
Influenced by the writer Zola, she had a dream of "raising a child, planting a tree, and writing a book".
The content of her "There is a Tree in Brooklyn" is exactly her entire growth process.
This exquisite** has been included in American middle school Chinese textbooks, and even adapted into the movie "Tree of Heaven" has won an Oscar.
Betty uses simple words to describe the story of Francie, a girl from the slums, and her family how they are strong and rooted in the face of adversity.
After reading their stories, we understand that poverty is not the root of life.
Poverty can't stop love
At the beginning of the 20th century, Francie was born in Brooklyn to a poor family. Her mother was a beautiful and persevering woman who supported herself by working as a cleaner for three homeowners.
Since she was a child, Francie and her younger brother have been picking up garbage and selling waste to ease the burden on her mother. Her father, Jonny, also works hard, although his income is unstable and he sometimes drinks. But Francie still thinks he's the best dad in the world.
My father always kept clean and tidy, he ironed his cheap clothes evenly, and every day when he came home from work, he would bring joy home with a smile on his face.
During the holidays, he took the children out to sea to fish, and although he was out of the country and even ruined his only decent clothes, he still made the children feel loved.
Francie was bullied at her first elementary school and wanted to transfer schools, so her father wrote to the principal to help her fulfill her desires.
But bad luck still came, and when Francie was 14 years old, her father died of pneumonia caused by excessive drinking.
Many years later, at a graduation party, she was surprised to receive a red flower and a congratulatory card with the theme "Love Your Dad" arranged by her father before he died.
Paternally's love gave Francie the courage of her life, and although he failed to solve the family's material troubles, he brought comfort and warmth to his children with his demeanor and kind love.
Let him be full of love and expectation for life, and in the future life, he will no longer hesitate and helpless.
Poverty can never stop the transmission of love。Even in the life of coarse tea and light rice, cloth clothes and vegetarian food, the family is still kind and full of enthusiasm.
Xi Murong once said: "Poverty is not an insult, no money is not a sin, and there is not much difference between coarse tea and light rice and fine clothes and food." ”
As long as we have love in our hearts, no matter how difficult the child is, there will be a smile.
Life is indeed frustrating and bumpy, but love is always the driving force of life and can warm everything. As long as you firmly believe that someone loves you, you can survive the cold winter of life.
Poverty does not stop dignity
Katie's mother never complains about the hardships of life and does not give in to fate.
She made the only moldy bread in the house in a variety of ways;When there is no food to eat at home, she makes up stories to distract the children.
Francie likes to smell coffee, but she doesn't like it, and Katie pours her steaming cup of coffee every time. In her opinion, if a cup of coffee is wasted, it can make the child feel the feeling of being rich and capricious, and it is also worth it.
Every Saturday, she will take a little time to take her children to watch performances and entertainment, because in this way, the once troublesome days are also brightened. She has always wanted to provide for her children to go to college, so that they will not continue to live in poverty.
So, every day before going to bed, she persevered in reading to her children, five pages each of her two important books, the Bible and Shakespeare. Save a few dollars a day from the day's food consumption to save for the time when the problem is difficult.
She was so happy to see that there was a piano in the house, and Katie cleaned the piano teacher's house in exchange for the same amount of piano lessons. After she has learned to play the piano, she will teach the child how to practice.
She repeatedly insisted on writing pneumonia on her husband Jonny's death certificate, the cause of death was this, she couldn't rewrite other **, she couldn't write a diagnosis of alcoholism, and she didn't want her children to be ridiculed by outsiders for being an alcoholic father.
With Jonny tragically passing away and the family struggling to make ends meet, the bar owner takes out a sum of money and lies that Jonny has left some extra money for drinks during his lifetime, but Katie flatly rejects his kindness.
She allows the children to work part-time at the bar, but is reluctant to give money and mercy.
Francie is sensible and strong and wants to help her mother with manual work, so she has the idea of dropping out of school and looking for a job, but Katie encourages the siblings to work and earn money while going to school non-stop.
They went through all kinds of hardships, but in the end they also crossed the most difficult moments.
In the end, Katie accepts Officer McShane's marriage proposal, but she makes it clear, "I don't want your money." We were poor, but we were doing well. We try to make life as glorious as possible, so that our families can live with dignity and dignity
It is often said that no matter how hard life is, you must not lose your dignity.
It is not a mistake for people to be poor, it is a fault to do evil, it is not uncommon for people to be rich, and it is important to have a good heart.
Poverty can't stop ideals
Under the influence of her mother, Francie was fascinated by reading from an early age. She went to the library every week to borrow books, read extensively, and fell in love with writing. After her father's death, her mother took her to live with her younger brother and her unborn sister.
In order to ease her mother's burden, she and her younger brother worked part-time at a bar while finishing junior high school.
After graduating from junior high school, only one child will go to high school, and the other child will have to work part-time to help with tuition and family expenses.
The younger brother is a person who does not like to read, but Frances is different and has always wanted to study and go to school.
However, her mother let her younger brother go to high school to complete his studies, and Francie dropped out of school to work to earn money and wait until the next year to go to high school. Francie felt that her mother was partial, but ** was ineffective, she understood her mother's helplessness and could only obey the arrangement.
In the process of taking up the post, Francie still worked hard to read and read. Then, she was determined to skip high school and apply for the university she wanted.
She also studied hard at work, studied the content of compulsory high school courses on her own, enrolled in summer school in order to break through, and was finally admitted to the University of Michigan at the age of 16, becoming the first college student in her family.
She persevered to realize her dream of studying and leapfrog into class, overcoming obstacles and going through the years of poverty, hardship and lowliness.
There is no shame in being poor, but it is shameful to be willing to be poor and unwilling to change.
Although we can't choose our background, we can work hard to achieve the future of our dreams.
The beginning doesn't determine the end, and when you move forward, the world will make way for you.
Instead of complaining about being born in poverty, it is better to pursue your goals and reach the end of your desire for success.
Francie's family also bloomed happily in a barren life.
Whether it is a tree or a person, no matter how barren the environment is, they can all find the meaning of hard work.
The ancient Roman Seneca once said, "We do not praise poverty, but those who never lose their heads in the face of poverty." ”
Poverty is indeed a dilemma that prevents you from moving forward, and it is not intended to stop your hopes and dreams.
But as long as you are indomitable and never bow your head, poverty will not be able to trap your life at all.
Author |A body of pride.