To this day, I still can’t pronounce the old man’s name. All I know is that the old man is from the north, joined the army in the south, participated in the war, became an officer, and then retired.
His hair has turned gray.
He has two children, his daughter is in Shenzhen and his son is in Qingdao . However, most of the time, he was the only one living in the villa. He has few friends and does not socialize with his neighbors.
People call him Lao Zhao.
A long time ago, there was an old woman who followed her. Now there is no one except him, the lonely old man.
Where did the old woman go? This kind of thing cannot be asked without being told.
The old man got up before dawn and started to plant flowers in the yard. On the fence are honeysuckle , in the corner are roses of various colors, and on the right side of the yard are a clump of bamboo and an osmanthus tree. On the left side of the yard is a peach blossom and some camellias.
Since the beginning of spring, flowers have begun to bloom around his villa. From peach blossoms in spring, to roses blooming in all seasons, to camellias in winter, Lao Zhao's villa is a villa full of flowers. .
When I walk my dog, I always have a conversation with Lao Zhao without saying a word.
Only then did he know that Lao Zhao's woman was gone. He said, "She has been gone for several years. These flowers are what she left behind. Some camellias were brought from their hometown in the north. Each time they bloom, there are about five hundred. Flowers."
To be honest, I passed by his villa almost every day, and I had no impression of seeing the camellias in bloom. Lao Zhao's camellias must have bloomed, but I didn't pay attention. It can be seen that this person does not care about other people's lives, and others will not care about your life.
Old Zhao added, "Honeysuckle was also brought here from my hometown in the north for more than 20 years."
Old Zhao does not tell lies, and there is no need to tell lies. The roots of honeysuckle have grown into thick vines. . When you walk past Lao Zhao's door, the wind will bring you the scent of osmanthus, honeysuckle, and roses.
In such a large villa, it seems that the flowers are its owners, but Lao Zhao can be omitted.
Whenever I pass by, Lao Zhao talks to me more and more often.
When I walked by with my dog, Lao Zhao would always put down the flowers and plants he was taking care of and chat with me.
After this person reaches a certain age, he doesn't like to talk, or he doesn't like to say boring things. The world has gone through vicissitudes, and after passing the age of talking nonsense, we live more self-consciously. There is no need or thought to please others, just to please yourself.
But when you are alone for a long time, it is not okay to not talk. I talk to dogs a lot. Lao Zhao communicated with his flowers and plants.
In fact, Lao Zhao does not like flowers, they are just left behind by his lover. Talking with flowers is also a heart-to-heart talk with the old friend who has gone far away. As for this person
, no matter how busy the world is, there is only one person left alive.
Lao Zhao said in his non-standard Mandarin , "If you don't do flowers, what are you doing?"
Just like me, what are you doing if you don't walk the dog? No matter how noisy life is, it will eventually calm down like the roaring sea water.
The villas and flowers and plants are always there, the roads and cities are always there, but the people watching gradually disappear one by one.
This is how you look at others, and this is how others look at you.
