One hundred and forty-two, old house • old tree • old man
The neighbor of the father-in-law's house is a small courtyard with several low huts. The courtyard is clean and tidy, with a tall hibiscus tree in the middle. When the hibiscus flowers bloom, they are pink. Looking from a distance, it looks like a beautiful red cloud.
Under the hibiscus tree, there was an old lady sitting, thin and small, with a hunched body, sitting on a horse.
My wife told me: The old man is over ninety years old, his teeth are neat and white, none of them have fallen out, his ears are not deaf, and he is in very good health. She lives alone in an old house, and her children take turns bringing her food.
My wife and I went back to my parents' home. My wife often gave the old man some fruits, milk, etc. The old man stood up with a smile, very happy, and always held my wife's hand and refused to let him go.
After some time, the old man slowly walked into his father-in-law’s house, holding a maza in his left hand and a small plastic bag in his right hand.
The old man said: I’ll give you something good.
I took it and took a look. It was a small handful of hibiscus flowers .
The old man said: Soak it in white wine. If you are bitten by mosquitoes in summer, just apply it on it and it will be fine.
I am skeptical. The old lady carried the maza and walked back to her small courtyard tremblingly.
My wife said to me: Do you know why she sits under the tree in the yard every day?
I shook my head.
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The wife smiled and said: She was taking care of the hibiscus tree, for fear that someone would steal her hibiscus flowers. One year, someone came to buy hibiscus flowers, and the old lady sold them for more than one hundred yuan.
I laughed too. The hibiscus tree is the money tree for the old man; the hibiscus flower is the most precious thing in the eyes of the old man.
Sometimes I walked past the small, dilapidated wooden door in front of the nursing home and saw an old man who was nearly a hundred years old squatting under a tree and carefully pulling grass one by one.
I think this tree may be the old man’s spiritual sustenance and his most loyal companion. It is tall, strong and leafy. In the hot summer, it brings endless shade to the elderly; in the harsh winter, it stands loyally in the yard to look after the elderly's home.
I often see the old man standing under the tree, holding on to the trunk and looking up at the hibiscus tree. Her arms were connected to the tree trunk, and her rough bark-like skin made people feel like she had become one with the tree. She remained motionless, staring quietly, perhaps recalling the infinite beauty in her life.
This year, the old man passed away. I heard that I was tired from watering the hibiscus tree, so I lay down for two days and then passed away quietly.
A few days ago, I went to my father-in-law’s house and told my mother-in-law: Hibiscus flower soaked in wine is really good. The child was bitten by a mosquito and itched terribly. I put some wine soaked in hibiscus flowers and the itching went away immediately. Let's go next door and get some hibiscus flowers.
The mother-in-law shook her head in disappointment and pointed to the next door: The tree is dead.
I was stunned, walked quickly to the yard, and looked at the neighbor's sky. The tree crown that should have been covered with red clouds and leafy branches is now bare, and the black branches point to the sky one by one.
The hot summer air can't stop my spine from getting cold.
The old man is gone, the old trees are dead, and the clean courtyard in front of the old house is gradually overgrown with weeds...
(A documentary card has been added here, please go to the Toutiao client to view)
Summary of dealing with AS Principles:
First, have a confident and optimistic attitude. This is your first step to defeat AS. Smile happily to yourself every day and say, it’s okay, the sun will rise as usual. Don't blame God, don't blame others.
Second, maintain a healthy and regular schedule. Don’t stay up late, don’t drink alcohol, don’t smoke, don’t indulge yourself.
Third, exercise unremittingly.AS is there every day. If you are lazy, it will become complacent. It is like sailing against the current. If you don't make progress, you will regress. If you don't toss AS every day, it will torture you severely.
Fourth, diagnosis and treatment in a tertiary hospital, follow the doctor's advice. Don't believe in "miraculous doctors" or "secret recipes". Do not go to so-called specialized hospitals run by private individuals.
Fifth, be numb. Be numb to life and your own body, and you will live a better life.
