My little rickshaw

When I was a child, matches were called matches, cigarettes were called cigarettes, bicycles were called rickshaws, and foreign oil nails were also available. It was really a deafening time. As the most important means of travel, foreign cars are "big things" for every household? Object. According to my parents, it will be a great honor for their generation to get married with a rickshaw as a dowry, which is a symbol of a couple winning the favor of their parents or a rich family.

I had a foreign car when I was a child. Dad assembled it from old car parts. I used to call it a rickshaw because I was young, nine or ten years old. Children's things can be labeled as "small".

Compulsory education was eight years at that time. The conditions of village-run schools are too poor, and most of the children in the village study in township-run primary schools two kilometers away. I need to go home for breakfast and lunch, and I have to go back and forth in a hurry. You must ride a bike. There is no condition for one person to drive. Generally, two people drive one car, and occasionally three people, the big one carries the small one. There is only one semi-used car at home, which was distributed to my sister and brother. My mother went to see my cousin and discussed driving me to and from school. My cousin is five years older than me and has a car for his own use. I'm in grade four and he's in grade five-he stayed for several grades.

Disembarking, going to school in my cousin's car turned out to be my childhood nightmare.

My uncle and I are in the front backyard, and my home is in front of his house. Every time I come home from school, my cousin puts me down first and then goes back to eat. But often, as soon as I start eating, my cousin comes and swings around on his bike. He stopped at the door of the kitchen, one foot on the ground, and the other foot kept turning in circles, as if he were moving at any time. I cried and became nervous. I grabbed a few mouthfuls in a hurry and didn't have time to swallow them. My cheeks swelled, I chewed a few times, then took a big sip of soup and hurried out. Eating too slowly on the road will inevitably be scolded.

Sometimes, after I go to the bathroom at home, he comes in just before I go to the kitchen to wash my hands. His mother asked him several times if he pulled out his head and poured the rice into his stomach so quickly. Cousin always smiles and says it doesn't matter. Let me eat slowly. However, I never dare to dawdle. His seemingly unintentional and meaningful glance was like a big mouth grinning at me. I quickly asked my mother to put a steamed bun (put the food in the steamed bun) for me to eat on the way, while pretending to calmly explain that I had too much homework today and had to go back to school early. Like a tamed monkey, I deeply understand that if he comes to my house for two minutes and we haven't gone out, then I will have good fruit to eat along the way.

Cousin has always been docile and polite in front of adults. When adults speak, they always smile and appear respectful and obedient. Treating younger brothers and sisters is also tolerant and friendly. However, in places that adults can't see, cousins who are good at face-saving work will not do less things that are not so face-saving.

I remember that there were two ways for riders to get on the bus at that time: riding on the station is good, and the rider is called "dead sitting"; The cyclist rides a few steps first, the cyclist trotts after him, and then jumps and sits down. This is called "active sitting". It's safe to sit still, but cyclists are uncomfortable to ride; Live mounts are easy to move, but if they sit unsteadily, they will lose their balance and people will roll over, which is considered to be a safety hazard. Living sitting requires the cooperation of both sides, and it also requires the rider to master the skills.

Of course, cyclists like to sit still. However, my cousin and I tried many times and all ended in failure or accident. No matter how my cousin curses and threatens, I can't learn to sit still. Sometimes he rode away angrily, leaving me alone to chase him with tears in silence and despair ... I can't be wronged or cry, crying will make him more irritable and get more intense abuse. But tears are beyond my control. After all, I am too stupid to go to school with my cousin. I am too scared to think whether I am too stupid to learn or too afraid to learn.

Sometimes my cousin doesn't want to ride a bike, so he tries to let me drive him and experience the feeling of occasional exchange like other brothers and sisters. Those brothers and sisters who have successfully changed cars, sitting in their younger brothers and sisters' cars, always show off proudly, even if it is only for a short time, and show a very comfortable look.

I really want to do it. If I can carry my cousin, I will ride him every time I go to school. He can relax, be happy, shake his legs in the car and chat proudly with others. Maybe he won't bother me so much, maybe my life will be easier. But when I was nine years old, no matter how hard I tried, I never succeeded once! If you sit still, the car will not move. Even if my cousin sits cross-legged and touches the ground for a while, as long as he lifts his foot, the car will lose its balance instantly. If you try to sit alive, you will both fall to the ground without exception. I really lost my cousin's last one, and I lost all my patience. He is furious and hysterical, ignore it, and it is a slap in the face.

Another time, because I didn't hold the valve core properly when the car was inflated (at that time, a person needed to hold the valve core when the car was inflated, and the valve core could not be inflated smoothly when it was tilted), after several attempts, my cousin growled and kicked me on the forehead and kicked me to the ground. Such a heavy kick on me made my head numb for an instant, but I didn't feel anything. After a moment of ignorance, I quickly judged that I was not obviously traumatized by my cousin's unfocused scolding. Since there is no injury, it shows that my cousin's foot is not enough to make up for my fault and calm his anger. I was so scared that I forgot to cry. I quickly got up and helped again. ...

When I grow up, every time I think of that foot, I wonder what invisible force makes me safe and sound. A 14, 15-year-old boy's reckless foot, facing his head, is simply devastating!

After what happened, I kept my mouth shut and dared not tell my parents anything. Probably at that time, I also decided in my mind that it was my own stupidity that led to all this!

Fear goes deep into the bone marrow. Not only on the way to and from school, but also at home, as long as my cousin appears, I dare not speak loudly, even at all. In front of him, I am more and more like a piece of dry wood, lifeless and soulless; Like a flying insect trapped in a spider's web, it can't move and dare not struggle.

Once, he asked me to get wheat straw to burn the stove for him. His wheat straw piles are stored in three large abandoned houses at the southernmost tip of the village.

That house used to be the wedding room of his eldest brother and sister-in-law. Eldest brother and sister-in-law are distant relatives arranged by their parents. My eldest brother, who has gone out to see the world, is dissatisfied with his marriage and doesn't like his eldest sister-in-law. He often comes home late and looks cold. Sister-in-law is introverted and tries to show her love actively. After being rejected, she feels ashamed and angry. After a quarrel, she pushed her eldest brother out of the door and locked the door, threatening to set fire to the house. The eldest brother outside saw the smoke coming from the crack of the door and guessed what it was after hearing the violent cough of the eldest sister-in-law. He struggled to break into the house and put out the fire in a hurry. Sister-in-law was just trying to put on airs, but eldest brother was completely chilling. In addition, the aunt's side was on fire, and eldest brother didn't go home almost overnight. It happened that when Sister-in-law was pregnant for five or six months, she fell by bike and had a miscarriage. Aunt is swearing, and eldest brother is divorced.

After their divorce, the house was empty. The door is closed all day. I have always had a deep fear of arson. Every time I pass by the school, I turn my head in fear and have a look. I don't know what kind of sad and horrible ghosts are hidden on the gray walls and rafters in the closed door.

My cousin actually assigned me to go there. I am reluctant and scared. I tried to escape, but I dared not. I almost cried, but I still took the basket. Walk slowly, stop on the road next to the house, and summon up courage to open the door.

There was no light in the room, and a huge pile of dark yellow straw stood in front of me. The left, right and back sides of the pile are empty and black. I looked around timidly, afraid to look again. There is only one lamp at the door of the whole house. I dare not go in. I always feel that something terrible will happen in the dark at any time, or suddenly I will be dragged in-the feeling of fear accumulates in my heart like a huge wave, ready to swallow me up at any time. The more afraid I am, the more afraid I am of crying, for fear of disturbing people entrenched in the dark. I squatted as close to the door as possible, trembling and reaching out to shovel straw as fast as I could.

The straw pile is very strong, and the layers of straw are tightly sucked together from top to bottom, only one at a time, and soon my hand hurts. My arms are stiff, my brain is almost frozen and I have difficulty breathing. I couldn't stay any longer, so I quickly picked up a baggy basket and hurried out. Standing outside the door for a long time, I feel cold all over, as if I had just climbed out of the grave! There is no one without a fence around the yard. The courtyard is half dark and half bright, and is divided into two parts by the sunset glow. I want to run away quickly, and I don't want to stay for a second!

With a sad face, I turned and quickly closed the two opposite doors, and then a terrible pain hit me-my right index finger was caught in the seam at the door frame! Push the door back and I'll pull my finger out. The index finger, which is already purple and black, obliquely cuts all nails from the nail bed to the fingertip, and the root is inclined, leaving a deep hole in the nail bed, and the dark red blood is shocking. I cried quietly, locked the door painfully, picked up the basket and went back to my life. ...

I am stupid, I am timid, I didn't say a word, and I endured it silently. I finally realized it and cried and told my parents.

My mother knew for a long time, but I didn't expect my cousin to go so far. She scolded angrily. Dad is silent and thoughtful, unknown so. Dad has always attached great importance to the uncle's children, obviously heavier than the four of us. My uncle works outside, and at home, like a local tyrant, he is held and waited on by my mother and our brothers and sisters, but he can't wait to take care of all their work, whether it's planting crops in the farmland or repairing and cleaning household items ..... not only doing the work, but also giving their father's support. When I was a teenager, the lobby sister even asked her father to tie her belt rope. Later, whenever something happened, even if it was just stationery, my extremely shrewd aunt would say to them, "Go to your little father (brother-in-law) ..."

Dad tried his best to protect his nephew more than his own flesh and blood. I wonder how he feels about treating his little daughter like this. Most likely, he will ignore the fact that my cousin is five years older than me and think that it is just a harmless stumbling block between children, which he doesn't agree with.

Although my father had unexpected intentions, he made some efforts to help me find a way. He squatted under the eaves for a long time, his eyes scanning back and forth in the yard.

As if he had an idea, he got up and walked to an abandoned foreign car in the yard. Pick up the tools on the table at hand and remove a wheel and handlebar. Then I dug out a car seat and pedal from the debris pile next to me and borrowed the old car bracket and the rest of the accessories from my neighbor's house. Encouraged by my father, the scattered part overcame all kinds of rejection and gained a new life. A metal main body bracket, the front end of which is provided with a handle and a front wheel, and the rear end of which is provided with a seat and a rear wheel; There are pedals on one side, exposed steel bars on the other side and exposed chains, so the whole structure is streamlined to the end.

I worked hard for a long time and finally finished it. Dad holds the handle in his left hand and the bottom of the car seat in his right hand. He shrugged his shoulders, stopped the car and put it down hard. The car landed as expected, and the rebound was twice as strong as expected. Dad clapped his hands and smiled, "It's strong and can be used." . Since then, after half a year's experience, I finally have my own rickshaw! That car, in the open courtyard at dusk, looks like a fledgling but imposing cockfighting. It is dark, naked and independent.

It belongs to me. It is the beginning of my independent little life.

I still remember riding it for the first time. Because all the accessories are adult size, I am as short as walking in adult clothes and standing on a skirt. Dad helped me to the car, pushed me to slide a few steps and then let go. I was careful, excited and nervous, and staggered to keep my balance. Fortunately, I also used an adult car when I was learning to drive. Even if I can't reach the pedal at all, I still slowly stabilize. One foot goes down, the other foot hangs in the air and waits until the pedal on the same side turns up and presses down hard, and so on. After walking a few feet on both sides, I coordinated, I counted the left and right intervals, and I meditated over and over again; I rode away slowly and turned around in the yard ... I was so excited that I was about to run to the moon, and my dream was unreal. ...

I have never dared to expect anything during the depressed time of more than half a year. A car with me appeared out of thin air! Falling from the sky! It's really in my hand, at the foot of my left and right rotation point, under my twisted ass! It is soft and solid, it is mottled and worn, but it shines in my eyes! My heart, at this moment, I have swept away the haze for half a year, as rich, practical and carefree as a bumper farmer. The thought of driving by yourself the next day can get rid of my cousin's shame of being angry and late for school, and even control his own speed, and he can also choose another friendly partner to team up for school. Feeling that I have gained a new life, I am full of joy and excitement, and silently hold the handle harder. ...

Fortunately, there are few vehicles on the road, and people are small and bold. Even if the driving skills are bad, I will resolutely go on the road. I quickly finished running in with it and mastered it.

With a car, I really look like a bird with wings. As almost the only lone ranger, I wander between my friends' motorcades, fast or slow, enjoying the freedom and relaxation of my new life. We lined up, galloped and talked loudly. Rows of retreating houses and trees, crops on the roadside, weeds in the field and wild flowers on the roadside; Birds and singing insects, together with the wind and the morning glow, should hear my voice and realize my happiness ... This is a fantastic picture!

This car has no back seat, so it can't carry people. In addition, it doesn't have all kinds of shoes, brakes, bells, rubber sleeves on handlebars, or even an extra screw and nut. Very light. ? Don't ask me what to do when I need to brake. Are my Melaleuca shoes just decorations? In case of emergency, hold the handle firmly, stretch out your feet, and the sole rubs against the front tire to slow down! Melaleuca will be light and thin until the soles of toes or small eyes are exposed. Friends with the same wit can freely compare whose shoes have bigger holes and whose holes are smaller …

Rainy or snowy weather can only be carried out on the road. The dirt road is muddy and the wheels are often blocked by mud. Each of us has a branch or stick in his hand, so we stopped for two steps and pounded the mud before we left. My car has no wheel tiles and chain tiles, which is much more convenient than a tile car. There are not so many cracks, branches and sticks are difficult to reach, and there is relatively little mud hanging. There is a little unexpected joy in rainy and snowy days.

The long road is as tolerant as the four seasons, bearing our hard study time. Tree-lined road, field dirt road, country road, three or four miles road, I can't remember how many times I went back and forth. I go to school five and a half days a week. After junior high school, it is 5: 30 in the morning and 8: 30 in the evening. Whether it's the winter dawn hanging high in Leng Yue, or the night when autumn insects will sleep, in the golden rape flowers, in the summer dusk when wheat waves come and smell fragrant, a long row of immature teenagers pass by at a fixed time, like a steam train singing its songs, approaching and leaving on time ... The wind is gurgling, our hair is flying, our faces are simple and sincere, and we ride from green to greener. (From adolescence to adolescence, OK? ^_^)

The most impressive time, when I came home from school at night, I made the end of the queue. Along the way, it was dark and thick, and we got used to the black eyes like light and shadow in front of us, so we galloped away without hindrance. Passing through a slightly steep and rugged path with a width of less than one meter, my free car disintegrated inexplicably-the front wheel roared behind the team, and the rest of me and I were suddenly pressed the pause button and fell into a deep ditch on the side of the road with a hoarse voice.

The ditch is about half a meter wide, not much longer than my arm, but about two meters deep, and it is dark when passing by during the day. One side of the deep ditch is adjacent to a vast field, and the other side of the path is a dirt road with many small earth bags piled on it, which always makes people shudder. After that, you'd better shut up, or the sound will fall apart, like a radio with the wrong band, broken and broken. Several big trees blocked the road. This is the dangerous part that we have emphasized. Especially me, I deeply know that the thin car has poor foundation and weak bones and muscles. Every time you slow down in advance, you float by inertia. With such preventive measures, accidents are inevitable. It seems that the car has long been aging and bumpy, as if falling apart is its doomed fate.

I remember that I kept a valuable calm even when I fell, and I didn't cry or be scared to lose face. This scene seems to have been rehearsed many times in my mind. Fortunately, the leaves in the ditch have fallen for several years, and no one has cleaned them. There are many thick layers, which makes me feel neither pain nor itch. I'm just a little worried about getting up quickly-how can I pick up this badly damaged wreck that may disintegrate at any time, and then find the front wheel and drag it home together?

After all, children are sensitive, and soon the team headed by my brother in the same village will turn back to me. They slowly pulled me up among too many chefs, and two or three boys bravely jumped into the ditch to save the headless body so as not to fall. In the dark, I found the route and the front wheel to escape. A fast riding team turned into a slow walking transport team, floating up and down in the dark. The child pushes his car, and the older children take turns to help me hold the front wheel, rolling for a while and rubbing their hands on their arms for a while. When you are tired, put it down and roll, and so on. I held the handlebar in my hand, and the handlebar dragged the body, and someone behind me prevented it from falling apart completely. It's really hard. All the children are struggling to move home bit by bit. ...

The thickness of the empty night was scattered by us into thin smoke, and several dim lights hung in the distant village. No one showed frustration or annoyance, but everyone still talked, joked and laughed ... for me, this was a childhood joke for many years. Dad has long forgotten the car he pieced together by himself, and mom is helpless every time. I sincerely explained to her that I was grateful for the car.

It saved me and gave me shelter with my worn-out body and the most tenacious posture until it was useless. At the beginning of my life, I encountered a malicious ordeal, and it was because of its appearance that I passed it safely. Since then, that life has been hard to get out of the dark and cold quagmire. Less than ten years old, I am isolated and helpless, and finally I am a real child again, regaining childlike innocence, stretching my eyebrows again, laughing and speaking freely in front of people.

Therefore, even if everyone forgets it, it still lives firmly and warmly in my heart. It has participated in my past and will certainly participate in my life. I will, as always, miss deeply, just like I miss an elder who sheltered me from death.

When my brother was in the third grade and the first grade, we went to school by car. He basically drove me, too. It was a reassuring time. No matter how noisy and bluffing my brother is on the road, I never worry about falling or getting hurt. I have a natural trust in him. But after the evening self-study, I always insisted on staying and continuing my studies. My brother often walks three or four kilometers home after school at 8: 30 in the evening.

However, our bicycle fleet is getting shorter and shorter. Or because of poor family conditions, or because there is too much work at home to help, or because they don't want to insist, friends have dropped out of school. The bamboo and horse are scattered. It's just another girl and me. I changed my car and went to the county town more than 20 kilometers away to attend high school.

We ride a car with a bag tied to the back seat, or side by side, or front and back, and we need to ride patiently for two or three hours.