Entering the twentieth day of the lunar month, the village began to be lively, and there was an endless stream of people returning to their hometowns for the New Year, and the sound of children's firecrackers and the greetings of neighbors filled the whole village, and the flavor of the New Year became stronger.
I found that people in the village began to ask me if I was going to go home for the Chinese New Year. Uncle also asked me if I planned to bring my family back, and if I did, he would be willing to help clean the house so that we could celebrate the New Year at their house and add a little bit of excitement.
Many years ago, after my grandmother passed away, our big family lost its backbone, and the Chinese New Year became much more deserted.
I grew up under the care of my grandmother, my parents died young, my uncle and second uncle took special care of me, and we were together every Chinese New Year. Although our family got together for the New Year, most of the New Year's goods were prepared by the eldest and second uncles, and I rarely paid for them. Even though I got married after working, my grandmother didn't want us to spend the New Year apart because she thought I wasn't mature enough and needed their care and guidance.
However, after my grandmother died, the atmosphere in the house became much more dreary. Although the uncle has been presiding over the family, he has lost the company of his grandmother, he seems helpless, and he has become very unhappy during the New Year.
The second uncle's family lives in Fuzhou, and it takes a long journey to go home every year, so they decided not to go home for the Chinese New Year. I also have a child, and the child was born in the winter, and there is no heating in my hometown, so my uncle suggested that I wait until the spring is in full bloom before going back.
Over the years, our family has been separated for the New Year, and we can only keep in touch through **, and I always feel a little lost in my heart.
But this year, heavy snowfall is frequent and the road conditions are dangerous, and Uncle is worried about our safety and advises us not to go home for the New Year. The second uncle could not come back because of the distance, and the two sons of the eldest uncle could not return home early due to work reasons.
In this way, there are only two people left in the family, the uncle and the aunt, and they must feel lonely.
After much deliberation, I decided that I must go home for the Chinese New Year this year.
When I set off, the snow had stopped, the sky was clear, and I slowly hit the road. Although I was anxious, I knew that as long as I kept going, I would eventually reach home. After my uncle learned the news that I was going home, he was very excited, and almost every day he called ** to inquire about the departure time, whether he took the child, the route chosen, etc., full of expectations. He even said he didn't have to bring anything, as long as I came back.
At eight o'clock in the morning, I informed my uncle before I set off and chose the high-speed route. However, until after five o'clock in the afternoon, the uncle did not reply to my message, which made me feel puzzled and worried. Isn't he expecting me to come home?My wife guessed that he might be busy with New Year's goods, but I thought it was unlikely because it was already five o'clock in the afternoon.
So in a service area, I called the uncle. After connecting, he nervously asked me if I had arrived home. I explained that not yet, there was a traffic jam on the road and some sections were closed, and we kept taking a detour and it was very slow.
Uncle breathed a sigh of relief, it turned out that he was worried about disturbing my driving, after all, the road was slippery in snow, and it was not easy to drive. I reassured him not to worry, we had already had a meal, take our time on the way, as long as we arrived safely.
Normally, I get home at six or seven o'clock in the afternoon, but this time it's different, the road is slow and there is a traffic jam, which is worrying. We can only drive carefully and move slowly.
It wasn't until more than ten o'clock in the evening that we left the highway and hurriedly called the uncle to persuade him to rest early. We didn't feel hungry and we didn't want him to wait for us at home.
Uncle agreed, and told us to be safe.
Normally it takes us an hour to get home from the highway, but it was late and the road was covered with snow, so it took us nearly two and a half hours to cross the main road and finally reach the village.
The child had fallen asleep, and the wife was relieved, glad that she had finally arrived at the door.
It was still snowing outside, and snowflakes were falling outside the car window.
The road was straight and narrow, all the way south to our village.
Beside the road were patches of fields, but now they were covered in a thick layer of snow, and nothing could be seen but snow.
The snow is thick and the road surface is slippery.
It was about two miles away from the entrance of the village, and the car skidd. Maybe I was overexcited, and the car slid into a ditch on the side of the road.
Luckily, the ditch was full of corn stalks thrown by the villagers, and there wasn't much standing water. The front of the car sank a little and stopped.
The child was woken up, and the wife began to panic.
I reassured them and told them that it was okay, that the car had stopped and that something seemed to be blocking it.
But the wife began to cry.
She said she shouldn't come back, and if she hadn't come back, there wouldn't have been such an accident.
I tried to comfort her and the child and began to walk out slowly.
Just then, I saw a flashlight flickering around us.
I heard hurried footsteps.
Who doesn't come out of sleep late at night?
Wait, why is that sound so familiar?
Jiawei! Is that you? Jiawei! "
It's Uncle. Uncle, we're here! "
Uncle ran towards us in a panic, he was obviously worried too, speaking incoherently, but still trying to keep his composure.
Luckily, the front of the car just sank and the doors opened.
Uncle hugged my son and looked very panicked"I heard that it was snowing, and I was always worried that something would happen to you on the road, so I waited with your aunt at the entrance of the village for an afternoon, and your aunt just went back to get the coat, and we rushed over. "
Only then did I know that the uncle and the aunt had been waiting for us at the entrance of the village.
Uncle said that he saw a car driving very slowly, thinking it was us, until he saw the car fall into the ditch, he didn't care if it was our car or not, he quickly ran over to see the situation, but the more he ran, the more panicked he became, so he shouted my name.
The car stopped in the ditch, and we followed the uncle home.
When I arrived at the entrance of the village, the eldest lady had already brought a coat and hurriedly put it on for my wife, and kept asking if she was cold or hungry.
When my aunt heard that my car fell into a ditch, she was also frightened, blaming the uncle for why he had to let us come back for the New Year. What if something happens?
Uncle smiled and said, finally nothing happened!
But I am still afraid to think about it, along the way, there are too many car accidents, which makes people afraid.
When I got back to my house, the snow was thinner and the road surface was clearer.
The eldest lady smiled and said"As soon as your uncle heard that you were coming back, he started clearing the snow last night, and today he has been waiting for you to come back, and he will sweep a little bit of snow every time it falls. "
I looked at the uncle and said what are you doing clearing the snow, children like to play in the snow, it doesn't have to be so hard.
The eldest lady smiled and said"Since I knew that you were back, your uncle couldn't sleep well yesterday, and he didn't go to the market today, he has been waiting for you at the entrance of the village, and he will come back to clear the snow when he is free, and you have excited him! "
Unexpectedly, I drove all the way, but the uncle waited at the entrance of the village all day.
Perhaps he was really worried about our safety and didn't dare to disturb our trip, so he could only wait silently.
Perhaps, in his heart, this day seems to have been waiting for a long year.
Until late at night, until I appeared in front of him.
Early in the morning, the next day, the uncle gathered the people of the village early and helped drag my car out of the ditch. Some people lamented that this was a blessing, but others warned that even if the journey was safe, it was difficult to expect problems after arriving home.
Perhaps because of the proximity to my door, I began to let my guard down, thinking that there was only one last short distance left, and I could easily reach it even if I slowed down.
My heart was full of excitement, and when I saw the houses and verdant crops at the entrance of the village, I knew that I was nearing home. Compared to the cars that are still stranded on the road, I am already very excited.
However, it may be due to negligence that the car accidentally fell into a ditch.
After returning home, I assisted my uncle in preparing the items needed for the New Year, rushing to the New Year's fair, and buying New Year's goods.
Unexpectedly, Uncle has already purchased a large number of New Year's goods, including all kinds of poultry, fish and vegetables.
These vegetables are buried in the soil of the yard and can be taken out and used at any time, which is a trick that grandma taught us.
During the Chinese New Year, chopping wood and cooking meat is a traditional activity. In the past, my cousins and I liked to be a part of it. We would go to the second uncle's house to pull firewood, and then pick up an axe to chop firewood, and the eldest and second uncle would take turns chopping firewood, and we would be responsible for carrying the firewood to the kitchen.
Grandma sat in the yard and watched us chopping wood, slaughtering chickens, or tidying up the yard, always smiling. She likes to wear the red cotton jacket that her uncle bought, and a pair of shoes made by her mother. Even though we buy her new clothes every year, she always says that she should keep them for her guests to wear, and that her old clothes are still warm and don't need to be replaced with new ones.
As the end of the year approaches, the frequency of rushing to the market increases. Every day, you have to buy some items and complete some tasks, so that your life can be fulfilled.
Grandma instructed the eldest and second uncles to do things, and we juniors played at home.
On Chinese New Year's Eve, we would greet my grandmother, and she would give us money. Although the money was all wrapped up by us in advance, and the ceremony was a formality, my grandmother was always happy and liked this kind of ceremony.
However, now that my grandmother has been gone for many years, the family has long lost its backbone. The second uncle also did not go home for the New Year, and the two children of the eldest uncle went to work until Chinese New Year's Eve this year, and they could not even buy tickets home.
I imagined how disappointed my uncle and aunt would be if I didn't go home for the New Year this year, and even the New Year's goods would not be bought so much, maybe just buy a chicken or a fish, and simply celebrate the New Year.
I can even imagine that on the first day of the Lunar New Year, other families are busy greeting the New Year, and the uncle can only greet acquaintances at the door of the house, and nothing else.
On the second day of the Lunar New Year, others take their families to visit relatives, and neighbors have already welcomed guests early in the morning.
These bustles have nothing to do with the uncle.
Therefore, I finally couldn't bear it and braved the snow to return home.
However, what I didn't expect was that in recent days, the cousins have been getting tickets home one after another, and it is estimated that they will be able to get home on Chinese New Year's Eve.
After the news came out, the uncle immediately patted his thigh and said, "Oh, I have bought too few things, I have to go to the market town to buy some more!" ”
The New Year is just around the corner, and going home is the only option.
Regardless of whether there are elders in the family or not, going home will give people a warm feeling.
Don't forget to go back to your hometown during the Chinese New Year, there will be someone waiting for you to come back!