Old things in the south

Chapter 40 Friendship

It seems that the life on the island with only two seasons in spring and summer has passed so quickly, and it has been three years in a blink of an eye.Today, during the day, I heard the sound of ponkans being sold in the alley. At night, the blind massager dragged his clogs and played the flute and passed by the window. He and the second sister who lived in Dongmen after landing on a boat in Keelung three years ago The scene is exactly the same.

The neighbor's poinsettia is in full bloom, accompanied by a tall rubber tree, fluttering in the wind on the top of the wall.In Beiping, this is a precious "bonsai", which is currently displayed in the living room with a foreign stove, juxtaposed with the cold and colorful wintersweet.

When I think of Beiping, I can’t forget a large area that was left there. My family has moved there for more than 20 years, but there are many things that I can’t miss. Clothes and utensils can be purchased as long as I have money, but books, especially photos, are lost if lost. There is no way to compensate.What I miss even more is that group of friends—the group of friends who are full of Beijing accents. They are almost reluctant to leave the ancient city where they live in and don’t want to leave.

Some of these friends are colleagues, some are classmates, some are fellow villagers, and some have two or three of the above qualifications.From going to school together with two pigtails, to doing things together to support the family, to jointly studying the methods of raising children, we have not left this city circle for decades, but now we seem to live in two separate worlds, and we don’t know when we will see each other again.With these friends, we know each other's family backgrounds, personalities, and like-mindedness, and it seems that there is no possibility of breaking the relationship forever.But after a long period of isolation from the world, we will see each other in the future, and I can't imagine what it will be like for them at that time.

When I first returned to Taiwan, fortunately, most of my family members were reunited, and there were even many relatives and elders.But what is lonely is that the friendship suddenly decreases, and occasionally there is spare time, and I feel that I have nothing to rely on. Although I know many people, there are very few friends who can walk around, and even fewer confidants who are worth drinking "thousand glasses of wine".That's why I often said to people: Returning to Taiwan is theoretically returning home, but in fact it is equivalent to going far away, because only when you go to a new place do you feel lonely without friends. "Going out to rely on friends" has no friends Then he was born in exile and felt helpless.

Fortunately, the first thing to fill this "emotional vacuum" is the nostalgia. I can feel two kinds of nostalgia. One is from Taiwan. Many relatives and friends came to welcome me when they heard that I "leaved home when I was young and the boss returned". Reminiscing about the old days, I am especially happy about my "unchanged accent".The other kind is from the mainland. For example, my friends from Shandong insisted on calling me a “folk” when they heard that I was “Jing Youzi”. In a broad sense, they all came from the mainland; I am qualified to participate in the North China Games, but he doesn't know that I have returned to the "local land"!Instead, when it came to Taiwanese people, the proprietress insisted that I didn't even look like "Mid-mountain".

The second is that the door of friendship suddenly opened, and many "uninvited guests" broke in. This was all because of accidental writing in newspapers and magazines.To make friends by writing, a letter expressing "long admiration" can establish friendship.

Many of these new friends live in various places, some in lively cities, some in quiet small towns, and some in scenic spots.Taiwan's transportation is convenient, and travel has become a very common thing, and no matter how far away it is, it is only a matter of time.No matter new friends or old friends, they always go to one place, stir up one place, one place has the taste of the place, and one place has the scenery of the other place. Although the bad wine in Taiwan is not enough for a paper, it may even scare Wen Si away, but a guest in a different place , Talking at night at the autumn window is enough to be a pleasure.I often feel that, even with old friends whom I have grown up with and see every day, it is not easy for some people to live together. Such fun.

Wooden house life is interesting. Many people can sit around on the tatami mats, with a low table in the middle, and smoke, tea and fruit, so you can be prepared.For example, on a winter night, add a brazier, burn raging acacia charcoal, boil water, roast potatoes, and make coffee on it, and it will be beneficial to all.For the rest of the war, I should be thankful for such a free life.

In the past two years, the new friends I made in Taiwan have filled a drawer with letters from me.There are too few telephones in Taipei, and friends in this city have to be contacted by people in green clothes, so writing letters has become a part of desk life.Writing letters is good. You have the "physical evidence" in your hand, you can use it for entertainment in your free time, and you can also write it back when necessary.

As I write this letter, the wind is rattling the doors and windows, and the rain is hitting the coconut trees to make a rustling sound.If there are footsteps coming to the window, knock on the glass and ask: "Is Haiyin at home?" I will throw a pen and answer happily: "At home, at home, please come in and sit down, the oolong tea is just brewed! "

(End of this chapter)