Lu Shutao's family lives in Maoping, Jiatui, West Manyang. Her home is in an independent courtyard surrounded by green trees in Gantangyuan. There are no neighbors within a mile or two, but no one knows about Maoping for miles around. The old man has lived there for nearly eighty years. She got married as a child bride at the age of sixteen, and her husband's family originally lived in Zangjia'ao. The year after the marriage, the eldest son was born. Later, when her husband and three brothers separated, they moved with Luo Guoping and their son to Maopingli, where they dug fields and started a family and started a business. They stayed there for the rest of their lives. A person's world can be very big or very small.
Lu Shutao was born in Yaowan, Wumeishan, Changsha County in May 1927, into a large family with mountains and fields, and eight brothers and sisters. Although her family was well off, her father favored sons over daughters and only sent her to private school for four years, leaving her to take care of her sisters at home, learn housework, and betrothed to her aunt's son early as a child bride. He and his cousin were childhood sweethearts, and it was only natural to follow their parents' orders. In that era, marriage between close relatives was as reasonable as free love today. Since he got married to his cousin, his life and destiny have been tied to him, and they depend on each other for life and death through thick and thin. From the time they got married in 1943 to 1966, they gave birth to children to her husband. She was both a good wife and a good mother. In twenty-three years, she gave birth to three boys and four girls. Life feels really overwhelming. I heard that sterilization surgery was available in Langli Town, Changsha County, so I walked dozens of miles there. After the operation, the eldest son and two aunts and nephews took turns carrying the sedan, walking and resting, and finally reached home after traveling for dozens of miles. . She said that people at that time were really humble and could endure hardship. If the family planning policy had been implemented ten years earlier, there would not have been so many births, which would have been a hardship for both ourselves and our children. Her actions and concepts were ahead of the society and policies of the time.
My natal family has fields, soil and mountains, which was a good supporter 49 years ago. Once liberation came, my natal family became landlords. This also implicated the married Lu Shutao. The door for their children to go to school, join the army or recruit workers is blocked. However, she did not complain about others and worked hard to bring up the children one by one and cultivate them into useful talents in society. In the 1950s and 1960s, when we were so poor and miserable, we had to rely solely on our husband and wife to raise seven children. The hardships are beyond description in words. The more people experience suffering, the easier it is for their hearts to become kind. The Chinese people have a fine tradition of extending their support to others. Having experienced suffering themselves, they will look down upon the suffering of others and are always willing to help the suffering people within their own capabilities. Lu Shutao inherited the fine tradition left by his ancestors to help the poor and help his neighbors. She often said: Don't look down on the poor, even stones can be turned over. From the 1960s to the early 1970s, when there were famines and floods in other places, when people came to beg for food, she would rather save a little herself, but also give them a mouthful of rice, or a handful of rice. Even less so when the neighborhood is in trouble. There was a Mrs. De in a family with many and small children, and her husband was weak and sick. He could not earn work points by working in a collective, and was often short of rice and oil. Even though he was not well-off, he had to lend some to her family or give her some side dishes or something. Her own eldest brother and sister-in-law both died due to hard times, leaving behind five nieces and nephews. Shutao would rather live frugally with food, clothing, food and clothing, and often support them, treating them like her own children until they get married.
Although he has a poor background, he has won the trust of his neighbors and the collective with his hard work and down-to-earth life. When the Great Leap Forward established collective canteens, she was elected as the Secretary-General, responsible for collective meals. The private school she had attended for four years also came in handy. Those who gathered grain together had to count and weigh the grains, and there were no mistakes. Everyone on the team gave her thumbs up for her work.
Not only the team, but also the people working in the fields within a few miles around all praised her bodhisattva heart. The Luo family in Maoping has a single house standing among the fields. The surrounding fields belong to several nearby production teams, including those from the Ximan Brigade and the Huashan Brigade. When farming is busy, many people are working in the surrounding fields. At first, people came to the door sporadically to take a breather and ask for a drink of water. The attentive Shu Tao thought that with so many people doing things near his house, there must be more people in need of water. Some people may not come to the door because they are afraid of trouble.So, she simply used the large pot on the wood stove to boil several large pots of water in advance every day, put the tea leaves, and waited for everyone to come in and take a sip of refreshing herbal tea. The story spread to ten and hundreds, and Shutao's home became a resting point and gas station for people working in the surrounding areas. Seeing everyone drinking water to quench their thirst, the kind-hearted Shu Tao was happier than anything else. Burning herbal tea to do good deeds and quench the thirst of the surrounding farmers would last for many years. The farmers working nearby all knew that Lu Ao was a good man with a kind heart like Buddha.
Eighty-year-old family portrait
"The benevolent love others" and "the benevolent live long" are true, and they are also confirmed by Lu Shutao's body. Just in July this year, the 95-year-old man went to Liuyang Hospital for a physical examination with his third daughter Qinglan. By chance, he met his daughter Dr. Lu Gui. Her hometown is Huashanli. Before going to college, she also worked in the fields around Maopingli. During his life, he went to Shu Tao's house many times to rest and drink water. Dr. Lu vividly remembers this situation and has always been concerned about the health of the elderly. When her daughter relayed the situation to her mother, Shu Tao'ao was very pleased: She didn't expect that someone would still remember what happened so many years ago.
Being in harmony with the younger generations.
When I was young, I was forced by life and worked day and night. I just hoped that my children would grow up. There was only hard work and no enjoyment. I only paid for it without thinking about the reward. In his later years, he finally began to have the time and opportunity to enjoy the rewards of his children and the happiness of a family. In 1996, when she was nearly 70 years old, she took a plane trip for the first time and went to her youngest daughter's home in Xinjiang, where she stayed for half a year. In half a year, my daughter took her mother to travel across most of Xinjiang. The old man was so happy that he didn't expect China to be so big and Xinjiang so beautiful; he still wanted to live longer and see a bigger world. Since then, I have paid more attention to my health and become more peaceful and happy. In 2005, when I was nearly eighty years old, I took a train to Zibo, Shandong Province for the first time with my two younger brothers to see my sister who had married away. The four brothers and sisters gathered together in a remote place, and their eyes filled with tears and emotions. I saw the sea for the first time in Qingdao . The sea is so wide, so blue, and boundless, just like life starts from a very small point and can reach the openness and distance that were unimaginable before. She never dreamed that she could travel so far and see such a vast world in such a small place in Gantang Maoping. If I could start my life over again, I would also like to venture out into the world and create a different life of my own. After returning from Shandong, the old man took the initiative to learn to use a mobile phone, and his children and grandchildren from all over the world can see him anytime they want.
Brothers and sisters gather in Shandong.
Shu Tao'ao celebrates her 90th birthday, and her children all come back to celebrate their mother's birthday. My mother said that it was okay to make a birthday party, but there was one requirement: no outsiders were invited except for the chef, and you and your brothers and sisters had to work together to get things done. What Aao wanted to see was the ability and cooperative spirit of the younger generation, and she wanted to show the four members of the Luo family. The spirit of modern people, and the heart she had when she boiled water to serve others. The ninety-year-old man took personal command and received and entertained dozens of tables of guests perfectly and smoothly without any help from outsiders. Received unanimous praise from all relatives and fellow villagers. It’s really amazing and enviable that I still have such thoughts and energy at the age of ninety.
Grandparents and grandchildren enjoy each other's lives happily.
Now ninety-five years old, Shu Tao'ao is still hearing and seeing well, in high spirits, and has a normal diet and daily life. Sometimes I can play and entertain with my great-grandson and teach the younger generation how to play chess. She said that playing chess requires using your brain, the horse moves against the sun, the cannon hits the mountain, the oak flies into the field... The peak showdown with an age gap of ninety years is staged every day.
Mother and Daughter Love
Looking back and summarizing her life, Shu Tao'ao felt that being diligent and thrifty is the foundation, being kind to others is the most important, marrying close relatives is unscientific, and she should learn to keep pace with the times. When it comes to keeping in good health, she said she should eat lightly, with a bowl of rice soup mixed with eggs every morning; she insists on walking a hundred steps after meals, doing what she can do herself, and never troubling future generations. She said that society is really good now. Not only do they have food and clothing, but the government also provides an old-age allowance of more than 400 yuan a month. To live a hundred years of health and happiness. In Gantangyuan, West Manchuria, such an old man who is old, transparent, kind and healthy, Lu Shutao is a model that everyone admires.
