Preface
I have long wanted to write an autobiography of my father, and it is one of the things he mentions every year when I see him.
It turns out that I never put in my heart, my father is no more than an ordinary man, is China's millions of middle-aged about to step into the ranks of the elderly in the ordinary member, even more than they have to be more ordinary. I always thought what to write about it, from where to write ah are some intermittent life lock thing can be what is interesting? But the shame of the father's age is getting older and older, only to see each other once a year, every meeting feel that the father is a little older. And I have no ability to do something for him, let alone make his life easier and more affluent. Then I will write a biography of my dad. The good thing is that every time I see my dad, he always drinks more wine when he's happy, and the conversation takes him to his childhood, his youth, and then all the way to the present.
I hope that I can write as comprehensively and interestingly as possible about my father's life, based on the things he told me and from my memory. Writing an autobiography doesn't mean that it's a summary of his life, because he was only in his fifties, but at his age, coming from the red era, he would have had a richer life experience.
I hope that Dad will always be as healthy as he is now, and that he can live until his grandchildren have started their own families, and that he and Mom will live to be a hundred years old together, holding hands!
My Dad - A Biography of My Father (2)
Dad's hometown was in Nong'an County, Jilin Province, and he moved his family to Qiqihar City, Heilongjiang Province, not long after dad was born.
Before I talk about my dad, I'd like to mention my lovely grandfather, who died when I was in fourth grade. But in my memory the figure of this man is always in the mind never fade away. He was a very stubborn old man, an old man with serious patriarchal attitudes like many rural people, but this kind of grandfather was very fond of my granddaughter. Maybe it was because among his eight sons and daughters he was especially fond of my father, or maybe it was because my father was not only a very filial son, but also married a very filial daughter-in-law to my grandfather - my lovely mother. Grandpa loved his eldest son and daughter-in-law so much that he loved me, and I was so cute too.
Grandfather's ancestors were practicing medicine, in Jilin and just arrived in Heilongjiang is also considered a big family, the composition should be similar to the landlord. My grandmother was sold to my grandfather's family as a daughter-in-law by her mother's family in order to pay off her debts. My grandfather's looks in today's words that is quite handsome, grandma is not very good-looking, so grandpa heart of this marriage is very reluctant, but the arranged marriage which will allow grandpa to say no?
But Grandpa is also quite interesting, on the night of the wedding, he ran to the mountains and did not know where to hide, and then was caught back. The arm is not as strong as the leg ah, grandpa gave in. As far as I can remember, Grandpa was never very nice to Grandma, always cursing her a few times. Only a few months before his death, he felt that his grandmother had been with him all his life and also raised him eight children is not easy to be much better to his grandmother, good times do not last long, a few months after the grandfather is gone.
Mentioned some of the things that happened when he was young because grandparents are often mentioned when telling the story of Dad, so it's important to warm up a little bit first.
Continuing with Dad. Shortly after he was born grandpa moved with him and the whole family to Heilongjiang, and an interesting thing happened at the train station in Qiqihar, fortunately there was a scare, or else I wouldn't be able to argue that I'm here today writing an autobiography of my dad.
"My Dad" - a biography of my father (3)
The family left the train station in Qiqihar in a big bag, looking ahead with blank eyes. The unpolluted sky was blue, and the cold wind of December blew on the rough black faces. Qiqihar's winds are very distinctive, in the words of the locals: we only have winds twice a year, for six months at a time.
The father at the time was still in swaddling clothes, and the grandmother was holding him, but upside down. After leaving the station everyone walked forward, walking, my great-grandfather suddenly said where is my eldest grandson, let me see. Thank goodness that comment saved Dad. Grandpa walked over to Grandma and said, "Where's my oldest grandson, let me see." Grandma said, "Here he is." With that, she handed over the quilt that was wrapped around Dad. Great-grandpa said, "It's not hugged down." At first glance, he was horrified: "Oh, my God, why is my grandson gone?" Grandma was also confused, and froze there, unable to say a word. Grandpa came over and slapped the grandmother stumbled, grandmother covered her face and did not dare to speak, grandpa hit a little bit of anger and want to hit again. Grandpa said: "Boss, don't be so fucking ridiculous, don't be afraid of other people laughing at you. What's the use of hitting her now, hurry up and find it."
Grandpa and his wife walked in the direction of the train station, looking for her, and asking people along the way, but no one saw her. As they walked, he chanted, "Where is my eldest son? Where is my eldest son?"
The train station at that time was still left behind by the Japanese, dark red, plus Grandpa and they arrived at the station in the middle of the night, so they could not see anything clearly when they were far away. When they got to the entrance of the station, there was a row of benches for travelers to rest their feet. Just as they were about to enter the station to look for Dad, Grandpa kicked something when he lifted his leg and stepped into the door, and it felt soft.
The grandfather accidentally looked down: "Oh my God, this is not my eldest grandson. How can this be said, the whole here." The bench on a rest of the people did not, Dad is lying on the side of the bench legs, wide-eyed in that concentrate on playing their own little fat hand it, see that meaning a little bit did not cry.
Grandpa took Dad into his arms and didn't say a word, just held him very, very tight.
A false alarm was finally over. Grandpa walked back with dad and grandpa in his arms, and when he came to grandma's side, grandpa even gave my grandma a blow with his free hand, saying, "Loser bitch, you almost lost your son's mom, what else can you do?" Grandma's heart must also be very difficult, the son is his own flesh, but she did not dare to return the favor, in that lowered his head, stifled is to shed tears. Grandpa said: "Okay, boss, are you done, do not go? In this freezing death ah" Grandpa has always been very afraid of Grandpa, so do not dare to squeak.
My Dad - a biography of my father (4)
Dad was born in 1954, and came to Qiqihar in the winter of that year. In the 1950s China's countryside, including the outskirts of cities, was practicing a system of rural cooperatives under Chairman Mao's leadership. People who were born after 80 years may have heard their parents or elders talk about it may still know something, 90 years after the children basically do not know how it is.
Simply put, it is within the scope of the natural countryside, the voluntary association of peasants, all of their respective means of production (land, larger farm equipment, farm animals) into collective ownership, by the collective organization of agricultural production and management, agricultural xxx line of collective labor, each to the best of his ability, according to the distribution of agricultural socialist economic organizations.
Tai Grandpa led his grandfather and a large family to Yongguang Village, then Yongguang Brigade. I don't remember exactly why they came here to settle down, but I think they had a relative they could rely on. Sometimes I wonder what happens to a person's destiny, maybe it's just because of a small decision once made, and from then on it will be like the butterfly effect that affects the next link until the final destiny is formed. My father has been a farmer all his life, or rather a vegetable farmer, probably because of his grandfather's decision. I don't mean to say that farmers are bad, I will always be proud to be a farmer's daughter, but I just think that fate is a wonderful thing.
Shortly after my grandfather led the family to live in Yongguang Village, a man came from the city who was a good friend of my grandfather's, and I'm not sure of the specifics of his friendship.
After living in the village for a while, I heard that the farmers in the village were paid according to the labor points. At that time, the village was divided into several teams, such as those specializing in raising livestock, planting vegetables, driving a large car, etc., and the work of each job is different, according to the amount of work done in a day, the captain will be given a different work, this work will determine how much money you can get. If you were young and strong, you could earn a few dozen dollars a month. At that time, the family's personnel situation is too grandpa and grandpa can work, but too grandpa is already more than fifty years old, grandpa belongs to the strong labor force, grandpa has a younger brother and two younger sisters are still very young, the father is less than a year old, and there are too grandma and grandma, grandma can also go to the team to work to earn work points.
The grandpa thought that if he went to work for the railroad, he and grandpa could only earn less than forty dollars, which would be difficult to feed the family, but if he worked for the team, he and grandpa could, and grandma could too, and each person was to earn money according to the work points than the railroad would be quite a bit more, and the life would be relatively better. This kind of decision at that time does not matter right or wrong, as the head of the family with a big family can only be the best efforts to let the family live on, may affect the future of the children's future, but at that time and who can think of these?
From then on, the family lived here, and Grandpa and Grandpa will spend their lives here in the future.
The family has lived here ever since.