Footprints of my hometown

Caowangzhuang is just a very ordinary village on the north Lu Plain. Not to mention that the high dike wall, the circular layout of the Taiji, reed flying moat river, charming village houses, curling smoke, alone that willow rows, the lotus fragrance of the Northwest Bay is enough to make people forget.

The center of the Northwest Bay has a well-known sweet water well, well water is clear and fresh, a winding water embankment from the well to the shore, the middle of the water embankment is paved with green stone narrow path, the village people from generation to generation, back and forth, water, green stone has been slipped slippery batter, I do not know how many records and hide the village people's hard work, secrets and stories. Willow rows on both sides of the water embankment, the arrival of spring, willow silk ten thousand, diagonally fluttering embankment, graceful, made in heaven of a water village scenery. From the grass Wangzhuang S-shaped street to the west, through the wide soil enclosure, out of the west gate, a turn to the north, around the reed-lined moat of the river, across a small stone bridge, to the Northwest Bay. The west side of the northwest bay is the production team's vegetable garden, leaning against the edge of the bay also has a water well, there are a few sparse date palms by the water well, the water well is the main source of water for the vegetable garden, when my grandpa and a few old men from the production team were always here for the production team to plant vegetables and water the garden. After school I often followed my grandfather to play in the vegetable garden. When people were thirsty, they would climb on the water skip on the well platform and drink a few mouthfuls of water, which looked and felt much better than the mineral water nowadays. There was no fun in the spring by the bay. Tall green poplars kept shedding "Yang yell yell dog", and white willow flakes danced on the flowing weeping willows. Especially the bank of the willow tree diagonally probing the water, the willow flakes scattered all over the water, a few tender lotus leaves curled up the tentacles out of the water skin, in the willow flakes in the arch of the leisurely. Naughty children do a few willow flute, around the bay toot blowing, there is no tune; sometimes pick a tile to play a water drift, frightened of the willow flotsam fluttering around; sometimes also counted quietly exposed to the surface of the tip of the lotus leaves, to see who counted the most.

Summer is here, the water out of the lotus leaves lined with white lotus flowers, in the turquoise water pavilion, the lotus leaves Tian Tian, staggered, dense turns, layers and layers. Around the bay willow shade like umbrellas, even if the hot weather to the bay also feel cool, not to mention that you can also pick a large lotus leaves, not only on the head of the sun, but also can smell the refreshing fragrance of the elegant lotus. By midday you can also enjoy soaking in the refreshing water, zapping, stealing lotus roots, playing hide-and-seek, and playing games. If a jerk into the three or four meters of water, a handful of cool bottom of the mud up, but also attracted the applause of the bay. Hide-and-seek in the water is also very interesting, if the water is good, do not have to jump up and tie jerk, you can slowly sit underwater, and then swim along the bottom of the water to the far shore, so that the nostrils quietly overflowed the surface of the water, quietly waiting. The little ones simply can't view your trail, they all have to one by one tie jerk to the bottom of the water to find someone. If you are bold enough, you can also climb on the thick and tall willow tree that probes into the water in the bay to dive, directly into the water with a jerk, splashing layers of waves, leading to the bay side of the tree under the smoking old man yells, "Look, this kid, like the year I look". Diving not only need to be bold, but also have to pay attention to the skills, if you lie down flat, it will fall on the water belly "snap" a mountain sound, belly to hurt for days.

When the children soaked enough in the water, they will climb ashore one by one, bare buttocks, with two feet of mud, running around the water bay, jumping, shouting, "running tiptoe, sun dry dry", and especially love to the south side of the Bay, the big girl small daughter-in-law of the people in the empty line. The big girl will be shy red face, small daughter-in-law will hit you on the buttocks, then the children will laugh and run away, behind a string of silver bells like laughter ...... three volts in the Northwest Bay, is a good place for people to cool off, the south side of the bay slope gently, green poplar in the sky, slate paved shore, is the world of women, big girls small daughter-in-law in the shade of the laundry cool! The women's world, big girls and small daughters-in-law in the shade of the laundry, cool, whispering, smiling and laughing, a burst of joyful laughter constantly. North slope steep water depth, willow water, is the men and children's paradise, they are doing a variety of games in the water, hide-and-seek, Za Mangzi, climb the willow tree diving, hooting and hollering mountain sound. The old men were sitting on the shore under the shade of the trees smiling and smoking dry cigarettes, boasting that they were good at water. When it rains, the Northwest Bay is a unique scene. Sometimes, it was a light rain, but here it seems particularly large, rain hit the lotus leaves rustling, rainwater down to the lotus leaves into a crystal water droplets rolling back and forth on it, to the point of untenable, it will be to the side of a crooked, to the next lotus leaves, a pass a pass, and all the way to the water surface. The most enduring is the rain is over, the lotus leaves on the water droplets crystal clear, in the wind blowing under the flip rolling, turquoise lotus leaves swaying, jade tree, like a fairy dance. As "the pond is full of vegetative red blue, wind up jade beads fall".

The night of the Northwest Bay is absolutely not allowed to go, according to Grandpa said, the depths of the Northwest Bay lived a three-legged animal named Toad, specializing in confusing children. At night out, waiting for the arrival of children, if the children close to the bay, the toad will change into a kind of thing you like to float in the water, tempting you to go into the water, as long as the water, the toad will immediately catch you, to take away your soul, and then you drowned. This seems to be some legend, to say, most people have not seen with their own eyes, but the bay in the center of the deep water there is indeed a very deep cave, when the village bold, the best water two men called well cloud and water long went down to visit, but did not see what the toad, the old people said that they certainly did not explore to the end. Although the toad in the old people's story constantly in the Northwest Bay to do the temptation of the children's hook, but never seen or heard of which family's children were killed, however, when a drunken man, the night from the bay side of the road did fall into the bay. Grandpa said he must have encountered a three-legged toad. I can't help but think that even the happiest of places need to be careful.

In the fall, the lotus leaves are slowly fading. The white lotus flowers are slowly fading, the flower bones will slowly reveal the green lotus, when the full bay of the lotus flowers withered empty, one by one, the lotus is also slowly bulging up. Although the lotus flower is not as white and beautiful as the lotus flower, but the temptation to the children is very great, because the lotus seed is the children's favorite delicacy. When you open the green lotus seed, the lotus grain is milky white and fragrant, and you can throw one into the mouth to make it crispy and sweet. If you wait for the green lotus seed ripe cool dry, lotus seed flavor will be more rich and long ...... With the deepening of reform and opening up, people are busy earning money to go, the lively Northwest Bay will slowly fall silent. However, when people went back to aim at the Northwest Bay, the Northwest Bay of doom came, driven by the desire for profit, the Northwest Bay became a home base. People folded off the dike wall, digging to fill the bay, the other side of the long, large and small houses anywhere and up. Grass Wangzhuang's Northwest Bay, Sweetwater Well, was transformed into a completely different, scenic Northwest Bay finally died. Last spring, back to the old home, to look for the poor few old traces, the soulful Northwest Bay traces are gone. Only the well is still stubbornly in place, such as the abandoned old man, hidden under the tall, hard concrete wall, hidden in the feces and garbage, emitting a hidden stench. The Northwest Bay, which nurtured the ancestors of Cao Wangzhuang, disappeared just like that. In the face of this scene, the bottom of the heart can not help but give birth to a slight coolness, the feeling of pathos.

Past years, we moved the willow, depending on Hannan. The first time I saw it, it was a very good one, and I think it was a very good one. The first time I saw it, it was a very good one, and the second time I saw it, it was a very good one.

Perhaps this sadness, not only belongs to me alone, this sadness should belong to the same grass Wangzhuang, belong to the grass Wangzhuang Zhuangxiang masters, belongs to the grass Wangzhuang's children and grandchildren, belongs to the times of this desire! Farewell, the soulful Northwest Bay! Farewell, that long lotus pond. Let the "hometown love" song once again, let the song still bring me back to the dream of the hometown, chat to comfort that a pathos of the heart ......

hometown love hometown love hometown has my youthful song a few degrees of grass green a few degrees of frost and leaves red ......

Author: Li Yude, Shandong Yangxin, secondary school teacher. Yangxin Hanlin Academy director, director of the Chinese Calligraphy Association Yangxin Calligraphy Examination Center, honorary chairman of the Yangxin County Writers' Association.