A beautiful prose about autumn by a famous writer: "August Day in Northern Shaanxi" by Shi Xiaoxi
In August, the golden harvest season in northern Shaanxi has arrived.
Friends, do you know that if the most beautiful and brightest season in northern Shaanxi is when farmers’ mountain dandelions bloom in April, then let me tell you, northern Shaanxi is the most beautiful and richest. The season is August on the farm.
When the solar term enters the August season, the broad and kind Loess Plateau will sway, sway, and noisy, revealing the plump and charming autumn colors to you.
Only in this season, the plateau temporarily hides her desolate and barren character, and generously and selflessly offers fruits and harvests to people.
Now, facing the plateau in August, the rice valley is bright yellow, the sorghum is red, the buckwheat is pink, the cotton is white, the mung bean pods are black, and the cabbage is green. , the corn shines with its golden color, and the flue-cured tobacco exposes its green breasts? The colorful autumn colors are scattered and filled with ravines, mountains and rivers. The gentle breeze blows, exuding sweet smells among the crops in the mountains and ravines, and the Kawano Valley burns like a girl's yellow skirt.
The last few late-blooming sunflowers on the field are also yellow, attracting a few dancing yellow butterflies, full of yellow fragrance. Along the quiet and warm path, the children pushed their own wheelbarrows made of folded pumpkins pierced with sorghum straw. They were all small carts like this. The big yellow pumpkins rotated, rotated, and stretched slowly. Oh, it’s been a long time. Seeing such a scene, it reminds me of the wind wheel written by the French Symbolist poet Ver Halen?
The sweet wind in August stirs up the sea of ????mi, waves of valleys, and red mountains in the fields and mountains. Sorghum. Those bean sprouts and millet grass are rippling, their conical tube-shaped, broom-shaped, spindle-shaped Hamlet-like ears are swaying, and their broad, narrow, narrow, needle-shaped linear leaves collide and rustle continuously. ring. If you don't go to northern Shaanxi, you won't be able to appreciate the momentum and scene of this abundant harvest of grains and grains. Oh, at this time, you should review the family proverbs in northern Shaanxi that describe a bumper harvest: "Buckwheat, three wheat, four beans, and eight beans." It's hard to pick up the knife when it's ready. ?Yes, when you caress the plump buckwheat with three grains in one paw, when you peel the round beans in a pod, and when you wield the sickle to cut the thick and strong golden su, which is as smooth as a knife handle, you Do you think of the hard work that farmers have put in for this bumper harvest? It is better to dig out chickens during the three-day period than to hoe at the beginning of autumn? ?Seven times for cotton, eight times for flowers, and nine times for old pockmarks. Shi Yi Zhao is the dialect of northern Shaanxi that is full of fruits, and these fruits require farmers to cultivate and hoe nine times! So, on the ocher yellow land of the plateau, under the fierce and rough sun of the plateau, a group of descendants of the plateau , dipped in hard work and sweat, blending the first colors of autumn?
As the saying goes: The autumn wind brings millet seeds to the cold dew valley, and the sweet potatoes are peeled before the frost. Entering these August farm festivals, the intense harvest begins.
At this time, the sky is far away and the sky is bright and blue. In the golden mountains and green fields under the blue sky, barefooted and bare-armed farmers can be seen everywhere. They wield sickles and cut, letting the August sun bathe their dark backs? Xintianyou floated along the mountain valley:
The flowers on the cliff are red,
The suffering people look forward to a better life.
Flowers bloom on the spot,
I will turn your white face away.
? The folk song that echoes in the mountains in August, rich and long!
People sing on their animals, women spin threads and collect shoe soles at home to sing, farmers use it to relieve fatigue, and masons use it to drive away loneliness. It is a song for farmers to vent their emotions and express their beautiful feelings.
Perhaps, across the river, you will hear this answer:
Brother, you are poor but your ambitions are endless.
My little sister loves this guy the most. .
Twelve knots of hay,
Who betrays his conscience and vomits black blood.
?The confession is innocent, sweet, bold, and hot.
But most of the time, you will hear people from northern Shaanxi, straightforward and frank! When the passionate essence of life is beating in their hearts, they will even sing more rude and sweet songs. Song.
Since ancient times, there has been a saying in northern Shaanxi that a man is judged by his clothes, his horse is judged by his saddle, and a good mother-in-law is judged by his manhood. Therefore, a man boldly pursuing a woman, or a woman loving a man passionately, will not be regarded as something embarrassing.
Just hold your breath and listen. Sure enough, the sour, melancholy, envious and jealous singing voice of the old sheep-stopper came from the distant mountain:
The young man sees the young man is good,
The old man with the white beard is burned to ashes burn.
Hey, let’s sing! In the face of ripe harvests and fatigue, how can we not sing a few songs leisurely and contentedly!? So tired! Since the silver-gray dawn, they have not continued to work tirelessly. . The dewdrops fell off their high-waisted trouser legs, and they often let out deep gasps. At noon, when they were hungry, the family squatted in the field, gathered around the rice can, ate grass, and then started cutting again. There was a noise and commotion throughout the fields, as crops were rushed back to be harvested.
Gradually, the crops were cut down, clusters of red sorghum burning like torches appeared, rows of golden and shining rice grains crowded up, and the outlines of rose-colored buckwheat appeared. Comrades who are good at photography, if you point your lens at the mountains and down the mountains at this time, what kind of scene will it be: Pingchuan Road, tractors speeding, busy transporting corn cobs and sunflower plates back. Farmers may hitch up their bullock carts, with the wheels rolling and the cows mooing, slowly pulling the grain. And in the valleys and ravines, in the vast and blurry dusk, farmers are staggering on the road carrying heavy sheaves of crops several times larger than themselves?
How rich the earth must be in August Emotions, colors and poetry?
The harvest in autumn also brings a gorgeous scene to the orchard. The red bananas are bright red, the yellow marshals are bright and clear, and the big duck pears are ripe and carefree, shining with green light on the curved branches. The grapes are crystal clear, green, purple, and hanging down, and the leaves have turned an intoxicating deep red.
But what is more eye-catching is the endless jujube forest covering the mountains and plains.
The jujube groves in northern Shaanxi are long-standing and majestic. They are by the kilns, cliffs, village entrances, roadsides, and courtyards. Each village is densely surrounded by a jujube grove, and each household has its own A jujube forest. In August and mid-autumn, the dates are fully ripe and red. Among the yellow-green leaves, round, long, and bright red dates like pearl agate shine. The golden wind is free and easy, and the red dates are trembling and swaying in the air, and from time to time, a few will fall down. Here you have to wait until the dates are ripe and runny before you start making dates. In those days, the village was full of joy. When someone was picking dates, neighbors would come with baskets to help pick them. Men, women, young and old can come and eat. The date picker shakes the jujube tree, or taps the jujube branch with a long pole. The dates suddenly fall down like a red rain, and lightly hit the date picker's head, face and back, making them mottled. The mottled ground immediately dyed the ground into a floral blanket. And the generous and heartwarming sounds of people who are eating and picking jujubes are being tossed around in laughter and joy?
With the busy autumn, the sound of the flails on the field is getting louder and louder day by day. On the threshing floor, the elderly man led the cattle and the big hoe, shouting, and slowly rolled them around in circles; the strong laborers lined up in two rows of people and horses, took turns raising the shackles, and walked from the east Fighting with their heads to the west, the fast flaming shackles roared, playing the unique music of mid-autumn on the plateau! At this time, a bright and joyful chant came out of their mouths unknowingly:
Oh ?
O God of Wind, blow it quickly!
Lord God of Wind, blow it quickly!
? Oh, ho, ho, hey!
< p> And the most interesting thing is to eat the "dedicated cake". On the day of threshing, when the clean conical heaps of grain were finally piled up in the slanting light of the setting sun, the host came on stage with several large plates of oil cakes and cake corners. This is the custom of farmers offering sacrifices to the God of Grain. When entering the venue, one has to first squeeze a fried dough into a golden toad and stuff it into the grain pile, then break the oil cake into small pieces and offer it to the heaven and the earth. Finally, after the offering cake is distributed to the children watching the fun, all the people on the field are One day, friends and relatives who helped with the threshing went home to eat and drink.?Golden toad! Golden toad wins laurels and brings abundant harvests. What is the connection between the two, and what yearning and pursuit do they place on it? Could it mean that heaven, earth and people will enjoy a good harvest?! The heart of a farmer will always be an unpredictable and fantastic mystery!
Leap month It's late August, and the brilliant harvest season is coming to an end. Farmers can take a breather.
Now, in the evening in the countryside in August, there is a faint smoke from the kitchen. A group of geese flying south are flying freely in the pure and high sky. On the distant hillside, bees are buzzing among the blue chow mein flowers. The copper bell on Mugui Niu's neck jingled slowly. The farmyard looks particularly peaceful and beautiful at this time. I might as well take you to the villages and kiln courtyards on the Loess Plateau. My friend, maybe you have been to many places, but have you experienced the unique flavor of these remote mountain villages in the thousands of mountains and valleys of the Loess Plateau in August?
Yes, how many people have described and praised the cave dwellings in northern Shaanxi? , kiln courtyards, but I would like to say that only we northern Shaanxi people can truly appreciate and understand the cave dwellings in northern Shaanxi. A young friend of mine who is a poet in northern Shaanxi once sang enthusiastically: "Now I have walked out from under the bright moonbow window, and I have walked a long way but have not yet walked out of your deep love; I think the mountains and rivers are the smiles spreading on the wrinkled faces of the plateau." , are you the mother's eyes looking at my back? Ah, the cave dwellings in northern Shaanxi! The cave dwellings in northern Shaanxi that attract world attention, the great cradle! Here, generations of women as graceful and beautiful as that Shandandan were born, Generation after generation, offspring as strong and robust as yellow calves were born, and the ancient and melodious songs of Xintianyou were also born, as well as the devastating people's revolutionary movement in the new century and the most brilliant and brilliant wisdom!
Northern Shaanxi In the courtyard of the village house, I live there. Every household is a cave dwelling made of earthen kilns or stones or bricks. The eaves of the kiln are all pressed up with bluestone slabs. The cowsheds, pig pens, and chicken coops are built beside the kilns or outside the courtyard walls. At this time, stacks of golden haystacks with arched outlines have begun to rise on the slopes along the kiln bank, like the "landscape paintings" written by Constable. On both sides of the cave, strings of red peppers and yellow tobacco leaves hang. On the door post, bunches of grain ears and millet ears selected as seeds are dried in the cross wind, giving people a novel and unique charm. The bright and delicate windows are pasted with bright red paper-cut window grilles, which look harmonious and natural.
The host will entertain you warmly and kindly. People from northern Shaanxi attach great importance to "family style". If a family is indifferent or indifferent to guests, they will immediately be ridiculed and reprimanded by the whole village: the family tradition is not good. You should also be more easy-going and follow the local customs. As soon as you get on the kang, they will bring out a sieve of red dates, a dustpan of pumpkin seeds or fragrant popcorn, and you will eat it with a big mouthful. The food will be thick and thick, otherwise they will also say that you are too raw. Just like the people in the city. ?
People in northern Shaanxi drink soju in a lively and unique atmosphere. They have to sing when drinking, and they sing while drinking, called "drinking songs".
When the banquet begins, the host must first sing the "Drinking Song": "A wine song is sung," the Eight Immortals table is placed in the middle, the ivory chopsticks are spread out, the silver pot and the gold cup are turned around, "Hey, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah" Oh hello. ?After the song was finished, the pot was passed around and drinks were passed around, and the guests were toasted for three rounds, but then the humming, shouting, and singing began.
Firstly, I am young,
Secondly, I am just starting out,
Thirdly, I cannot recognize anyone in my life,
It is like the lonely goose falling on the phoenix group.
I can’t spread my wings,
I can’t let myself go,
I call on my relatives and friends to bear it,
Bear the responsibility of our young people. Go out.
Tsk, look how beautiful it is! Romantic and funny, teasing and humorous. You not only compliment others, but also express yourself. It really kills two birds with one stone.
You don’t know how to sing wine songs, and you don’t drink much, so you must be a little scared. Don’t be scared, someone will drink for you, and everyone will bear your responsibility when you come from afar. Then, take advantage of the pleasure and listen to the drinking songs they sing freely and unrestrainedly, one after another that have been handed down from ancient times: "The Hero Qin Qiong", "Zhao Zilong", "Li Zicheng", "The Unparalleled Hero"? Sing them in the wine shop What do these majestic and intense stories of the ages really mean to people! Oh, these are wine songs that were formed in unknown months and years and are only spread in the loess area of ??northern Shaanxi?
Northern Shaanxi Known as the "Hometown of Waist Drum", old men and younger generations will play this thing, and even five- or six-year-old monkey boys will play it twice. So, with the feet under the ground, the open space in the backcourt immediately became a waist drum field. Four or eight young men immediately waved their drumsticks and started twisting and fighting.
They will not forget their distinguished guests. The first waist drum posture must be "three worships". Next: "Phoenix nods three times", "Golden Rooster is independent", and "Green Dragon wiggles its tail". Each of their unique dances is dazzling.
It is a completely rough, vigorous and unrestrained style! No wonder foreigners keep sighing that they only see authentic Chinese art when they go to northern Shaanxi! And perhaps the most exciting thing is the parting of the wild horse's mane? , "Da Guo Tang" moves, they are simply amazing! Accompanied by the strong rhythm of "Bah Ba Dong Ba Dong Ba", that tiger's strength, that fierceness, that fierceness, that madness, that wildness The momentum and charm are fully vented! The drums beat urgently, the mallets fly, the young men leap into the air, and the moment they beat the drums, they suddenly look so mighty and majestic!