The Complete Works of Xu Zhimo's Classical Prose

Chapter 50 Laughing at Life's Hibiscus Bird (22)
The main significance of this movement is to help young people find a spiritual center of life in their lives. The motto of the [-] conference was "Salvation Lies in Self-Education" (Salvation Lies in Self-Education) - Education). "Let us be human again, let us escape the narrow and corrupt political organization. Let us abandon the materialistic paths of modern scientists, let us abandon the soulless pursuit of knowledge. Let us become living men and women again." They did not There is no plan to improve anything, they prohibit all activities with specific goals; they represent a newly discovered way of thinking, and their purpose is to restore the original spiritual value of life. "Our main purpose is to leave the fallen civilization, to return to the simplicity of nature, to leave all external desires, to return to inner freedom, to leave empty entertainment, to return to pure joy, to leave selfishness, To the spirit of fraternity, from all slackness, to solemn self-actualization. We seek the settlement of our souls, worthy of God, worthy of ourselves, worthy of man, worthy of nature. "Even if we To save the world, we also have to be human again. "

The most striking and astonishing result of this movement is the fact that there are genuine young people who are easily pointed out in the crowd, who display a joy of existence, a natural zeal, a love of nature and simplicity, and a love of field life.They do not drink alcohol (there are almost no Germans who do not drink alcohol), do not smoke, and do not engage in urban vices.Their entertainment is playing the pipa or singing with Fan and Ling, marching and dancing, or gathering to discuss religious and philosophical issues.Dancing is their specialty.There are often large groups of processions, traveling on foot across the province, singing and dancing everywhere, and sometimes inviting local people to join in the fun. They revive the spirit of the admirable Tyonysyn!
Such a great movement cannot but be said to be a radiance in this dark world, and it cannot but be said to be a solemn warning to the world-weary life of the modern world (you have never been to Berlin and Vienna, which is hard to imagine), and it cannot but be said It is a new life, a new sprout, bursting out from the rotten roots of the old society; it cannot but be said to be a consolation and an excitement for the ideal youth of all mankind, and it has opened up a fresh and happy path for them; it cannot but be said to be a The emergence of a new clean outlook on life.We need to know that there are hundreds of thousands of young men and women in Germany, who seemed destined to be lifelong slaves in a mechanical society, but now they are the darlings of nature, feeling the beating of fresh life in the vast world, and they are just crouching in the vast world. Under the shackles of a clumsy family and education, now they receive direct inspiration from nature and life itself, lively like a fawn, joyful like a wild horse, and the lessons of nature are cleanliness, simplicity and frankness, which is what modern civilization lacks most. They not only developed the individuality of each person, they also restored the ancient style of the German nation. In their songs, dances, games, stories and manners, in the spirit of the young people, the beauty of ancient Germany, the natural The spirit has again achieved pure interpretation and standards.So the depravity of city life, its excesses, its consumption, its extravagance, its pretense, its dangers and terrors, however contagious they may be, no longer touch the clean youth, and the teachings of moralists and religionists are only passive and forced. , their awareness was automatic, natural, and fundamental; the movement also produced a genuine friendship, a new feeling of unity between young men and women, not due to doctrine. Stimulation or the compulsion of party rules, but the cheese naturally revealed in a healthy life, cleanliness is the fiber of their lives, and happiness is nutrition.

I have finished writing this point of view. From my own wild travels to the youth movement in Germany, I don’t think it is necessary for me to add words. I just need to repeat the phrase that the hope of the nation lies in the self-conscious youth.

New year 24th
Originally published in the "Morning News Supplement" on March 1925, 3

let's talk about child care

Were you happy when you were a kid?I am not happy.At least I can't recall it in my memory.Are you satisfied with your current situation?Do you feel that there is a place where habits become natural, and you know that you are a slave to your own habits, but you can't get rid of this bondage, and you can't return to your original freedom?Not only in actual life, but also in thought, will, and temperament may be restricted by habit.Habits are all formed; we seldom think of the shackles we feel at this time, most of which are put on when we were young. Remember that the age from one to six is ​​the most important period for the formation of character and habits.When I was young, Mr. Yuan Huacha, Mr. Tongsun, my tutor, because when he was born, his parents were afraid that the child would be cold and did not bathe him, so he brought this habit of not bathing into the coffin and never washed it once for more than [-] years from birth to death. Body!He doesn't brush his teeth, doesn't wash his hair, and rarely wipes his face.It's so dirty that people get tired of hearing it, right?We seldom think that the uncleanness of our character, temperament, and even thought is mostly due to the appeasement and embarrassment of our parents when we were young.Chinese people often talk about frankness, but in fact we are so fake that we don't even realize it.Speaking of faith, can you live in society without telling one or two lies a day?Speaking of honesty and cleanliness, is there a nation that is more greedy and dirty than us?Speaking of integrity, this is even more indescribable!
This is the actual situation and cannot be concealed.We don't need to blame this or that. To put it simply, it's just an education issue; it's not about after school, but about education before school.Character education, not knowledge education.We dare not say that reasonable upbringing can eliminate all scum; but we are sure (with the light of modern scientific research) that environment and conscious training can change temperament and develop character at least eight or nine times out of ten.There is a solution to everything as long as the foundation is laid: leaks in the house are easy to repair, broken walls can be repaired, and foundations that are not solid can be troublesome.Take care of your child, help him drive the direction, and he will find his own way in the future.

But which parents do you say don't want to take care of their children?It is.But we have to ask carefully whether the "good boy" in the eyes of ordinary parents is really a good boy.Whether their management method is right or not, I said in the previous article. ([-]) For the interests of the children themselves; ([-]) For the sake of the whole society.My observation is that the old-school concept of parenting is totally wrong.Their meaning is love, their effect is harm.I bet most modern parents are guilty of their children.Growing flowers is such a simple thing, but some flowers can’t be exposed to the sun, some can’t be watered too much, and there is also a relationship between the nature of the soil. If you are not careful, the flowers will die, or they will bloom poorly and fail its caste.Taking care of children is at least more difficult than raising flowers.A lot of children are spoiled by too much sun and too much water.This is almost entirely a matter of science, the place of affection, if any, is limited, and love alone is not enough.It is not enough to have the law alone.To grow flowers, you need to know the nature of flowers, how to grow what kind of flowers; to care for children, you must understand the nature of children, how to manage what kind of children, you have to watch carefully every day and night, not a little bit.After laying the foundation, it will be easy to handle in the future.

This is too common to hear, who doesn't know, isn't it?Let's take a look at the actual situation.We don't talk about the parents of the uneducated class. In fact, the care of the children of the countrymen is much more reasonable. They are relatively "close to nature".The most painful thing is the parenting situation of the so-called educated class and even the "intellectual class".Don't make fun of mothers who are rewarded for dragging their milk out to feed their babies in front of people.When a rich family has a baby, they leave it to the nanny. Whoever holds the baby patiently will come over to tease and kiss him when he is happy, and call the nanny to take him when he is annoyed. What an annoyance!As a result, the children of our upper-middle class families are destined to be the playthings of mothers and even girls!There are many children who smell the smell of their mothers, and see their mothers' stupid faces on their faces!
Just looking at our children's clothing is ridiculous.The whole body was wrapped tightly, and the arms and legs were not exposed outside for fear of catching cold.It’s good to be afraid of catching cold; but the pants are open, so when the child squats down, the buttocks will be exposed, and the stomach will be ventilated, so it’s not afraid of catching a cold!Children can’t take a bath often, and it’s easy to catch cold when taking a bath. It’s not surprising that children in our hometown don’t take a bath all year round. I don’t know how many times I took a bath every year when I was a child. Needless to say, in winter, because the house doesn’t have a fire, of course I don’t take a bath. , Sometimes I have to wash in summer, but it is only a shallow bucket with a small foot, and the water is boiling, (if it is not boiling, it is easy to catch cold!) As a result, the children do not like to wash.I remember two things I was most afraid of when I was a child: one was to shave my head, and the other was to take a bath. "Today I've got to 'catch' him to shave his head" and "Today I've got to 'catch' him to take a bath", my mother always said; Make the washing method more comfortable.This has had such a profound effect that at this old age, although I don't feel disgusted every time I take a bath, I don't always feel enthusiastic; I regard it as a necessary nuisance, not a pleasant exercise.I haven't learned how to swim, and I guess it's because I didn't have feelings for body washing since I was a child.My kids are even more ridiculous.Like me, he wasn't keen on taking a bath.Once I was at home (he was brought up by his grandmother), and I managed to get him to wash it together, but he didn't have anything to do. I'll wash it tomorrow, and the results are very good. I hope it will arouse his interest after a few more visits.But he happened to have a fever the next day, and his family members said to him: Look, it’s your father’s fault. He dragged you to wash and caught a cold again. Don’t listen to him next time!Maybe half of what they say is for fun, but the child is serious, and he will never take a bath with his father next time!

The number of cases like this is too numerous to list; but purely bodily habits are easier to change.Worst of all is the average parent's notion of a "good kid."Nothing is more despotic than parents; they order, they force, they scold, they beat; but they never reason with their children as if they were less intelligent and unreasonable than themselves!They use various methods to teach children to be like adults. Simply put, the less childlike a child is, the better a child is to them.Children must be obedient and not be allowed to make trouble. Chinese parents are most proud that their children follow the adults' orders and call people in a polite manner, and they call people "uncle" and "mother" absolutely mechanically.Sometimes I feel really uncomfortable when I see children crying and behaving obediently!So calling people is the only criterion for a child to be smart and obedient.Because to force children to listen to adults (children don't want to listen to adults!), adults sometimes have to use all kinds of lies and intimidation.How many deceitful and cowardly characters after adulthood are cultivated by words such as "don't cry, the tiger is coming", "don't shout, the old lady is here", "don't eat, you will get sores if you eat it", Children must be timid and fearful. This is another proud article of Chinese parents. "Our Ada is really not good, he is very courageous", or "Your baby is so good, he dare not walk alone".I remember when I was young, my family used to scare me with ghosts, but I was very timid. I never dared to go into the house alone or sleep alone in the same bed. Sleeping in the same bed with mother!This fear of darkness and ghosts still has traces today.At that time, I was really timid, and I wanted to try everything when I had the opportunity. Later, they invented a special threat, deceiving me that I was not born by my mother, but that I was carried from a "net boat" (that is, a fishing boat). The fisherman who came into the courtyard with a blue cloth on her head every day and asked if she wanted shrimp was my own mother. Every time I got into a fight and I was "too brave", they said, "I'll call you again on the boat." My mother came and hugged her back, "That spirit was so good, I would collapse as soon as I said it, and I didn't dare to be strong anymore.This also has very bad effects.Because my child grew up in the old home, they still do the same thing. Every time I come home, I reward him for walking up the mountain, even climbing rocks. He likes it very much. Once I took him to live on the mountain and climbed the mountain every day. He was very happy. , He came home the next day, happened to have a little fever, and the family had another chance to destroy his father's prestige: "You see, it's your father who led you to run around on the mountain. You caught a cold and had a fever. Don't do it next time." Listen to him!" Of course he doesn't listen to Dad anymore!

But it is very easy for children to change their minds as soon as possible.As far as my child is concerned, because of growing up in an old-fashioned family, most of the habits that have been formed for the second time are what we think are wrong, and we don’t care about the habits that we think should be trained. This is because: ([-]) "Good ([-]) It is enforced into law. No one loves my grandson more than my parents. When he is sick, my mother hugs him all day and night. There are several times when he has a fever in summer and it is like a stove. My mother slept with him, and often held his cold feet all night in winter to warm the nest; but love is one thing, and failure to obtain the law is another.This time, his own mother (Ms. Zhang Youyi, who will come to Beijing soon and wants to specialize in nurturing education) is back after graduating from Germany to study nurturing education.Once the child came under her care, in less than two months, the whole thing changed, at least in terms of visible habits.He used to go to bed at night and get up in the morning without a fixed time, but now he must go to bed at ten o'clock and wake up at a certain time in the morning. I heard that every night at ten o'clock he felt that adults ignored him, so he looked at the clock, stood up and said , I will meet tomorrow, go to bed by myself.Originally, he didn't change his pajamas when he went to bed at night, and sometimes he even wore a padded jacket to sleep when it was cold. Now he changes his clothes every night, and he doesn't ask others to help him when he gets up in the morning.Originally, I was most reluctant to read and write, but now at a certain time, I will automatically write and read. Walking a little way would cause my stomachache or leg pain, but now long walks have become a habit.Taking a bath is of course taken for granted.The best thing is that he has now learned to brush his teeth seriously (his younger brother who died in Germany has been brushing his teeth since he was two years old), scoop up water to wash his face, and wipe it with a dry cloth after washing, it is not fuzzy at all!He has also made progress in knowledge. He used to read and write as a kind of distress because of its compulsive nature, but now he has received considerable temptation and guidance, and his automatic interest has gradually come.Although this kind of place is small, it has never been an inspiration for wanting to be a serious parent.Don’t blame your children for being strong-tempered or worrying about their poor health. In fact, as long as you are willing to put in a little effort, put in a little effort, recognize the child’s instinctive tendency, and patiently guide it like a flood, it turns out that it is not good. It is easy to change the place for the better, and the temperament and body can all be effective immediately. "Sex is similar, habits are far away", this is the truth; perhaps one day we can further believe that "at the beginning of human beings, nature is good"!No job is more enjoyable and great than the work of creation; parents have a chance to create, to raise your children into a healthy, lively, sensitive, and loving adult, to create a useful person for the society, and to complete the work for nature. Is there not enough opportunity for a conscious work that also adds to your own light and joy?Look at modern adults, why are they so lazy, so dirty (especially in terms of character and thought), so stupid, so ugly, and so tattered; look at modern youths, why are they so weak, so jealous, and so sad How sad, this kind of unhealthy is mostly because the parents did not fulfill their due responsibilities at the beginning, half of them are stupid, and the other half are lazy. In the end, they are sorry for the society, sorry for the children themselves, and they are not good for themselves. Why bother!
Now Mr. Russell has given us a very bright book on the issue of character development, which integrates the valuable research and conclusions obtained from modern theories and practices. Parents who understand can increase their interest in raising children after reading it. Parents will benefit greatly from reading it; believe me, this book is an everlasting light, and anyone who can make use of it will not suffer from the misery of darkness again!But I have been talking for a long time, but I still haven't covered this topic. It's getting late, so I have to wait for the next time.

Originally published on August 1926, 5, "Morning News Supplement"

(End of this chapter)