Chongjiu Recalls Two or Three Things

The Double Ninth Festival has not been well passed down to me. Since I was a child, few people around me have told me about the Double Ninth Festival and what to do on the Double Ninth Festival. The first memory comes from Wang Wei's "Remembering Shandong Brothers on September 9th" in the middle school textbook. In class, the teacher mentioned that the Double Ninth Festival is a festival suitable for climbing high to admire chrysanthemums. He also said that it has now evolved into a Respect for the Elderly Festival. After class, I didn’t see anyone specifically climbing on the Double Ninth Festival, or specifically treating the elderly. means something. Therefore, the Double Ninth Festival left me no other memories except Wang Wei who climbed high and looked far away to remember his brothers in Shandong.

Sure enough, education should start from children and teenagers. I don’t have many memories of the Double Ninth Festival, but I remember the other solar terms or festivals that are close to it clearly because there are people around me who lead them. For example, on the Ghost Festival on July 15th, my grandfather would prepare paper money in advance, and also prepare horse-shaped biscuits; because of the food, I will firmly remember this "Ghost Festival" to honor ancestors and the deceased. Another example is the Mid-Autumn Festival. Needless to say, this is a big festival. It has a full moon, moon cakes and more abundant dishes than usual, and it also carries a unified pace across the country, making it very easy to remember. There is also the Winter Solstice. In our country, the Winter Solstice Festival is equivalent to the Qingming Festival. We not only make Winter Solstice rice crackers, but also visit the graves to worship our ancestors.

Let’s talk about the Double Ninth Festival. Today is it. Because in my mind, it has no special meaning, and the elders in my family and fellow villagers do not have any special rituals or actions to commemorate it. Therefore, if I rashly mention to others that the Double Ninth Festival is coming, I am afraid that I will be disappointed. You have to risk being laughed at by those around you.

However, nowadays everyone respects the elderly during the Double Ninth Festival. If I don’t take action in reality, I can still take action in my writing. What action is good? Write down your feelings about missing your relatives and elders, and treat it as a Double Ninth Festival.

Let me first talk about my grandfather who has passed away for more than ten years. I had previously written a commemorative article specifically for my grandfather. In fact, how is it possible to write all the stories about the people closest to you in one short article? The seven years that my grandfather took me were the seven years that I went from a ten-year-old boy to a seventeen-year-old youth. The influence was huge and silent.

There is no memory of Grandpa during the Double Ninth Festival. The reason mentioned above is that no one among us has ever admired the Double Ninth Festival. But I remember festivals like the Hungry Ghost Festival very clearly. In our market town, the fair day is held every fifth and tenth day of the lunar calendar. On the day before the Ghost Festival, my grandfather would look at the calendar and take me to the market with him. At the same time, he would say: Spend money during the festival. Sorry, country people have no other way to get money except getting some supplies from the land and domestic chickens, ducks and geese and bringing them to the market town to exchange for money.

Horse-shaped cakes are eaten during the Hungry Ghost Festival. I know this from the experience of my grandfather taking me to the market to buy cakes before the Hungry Ghost Festival year after year. Usually, on his way home after visiting the market, grandpa would come to a familiar vendor whom he met often and weigh one or two catties of horse-shaped cakes, as well as incense, candles, yellow paper and other sacrificial supplies. This biscuit is made in the shape of a horse, with its head, tail, and four legs visible. Apart from the shape, it is actually an ordinary biscuit.

On the day of the Ghost Festival, after taking a nap - usually this time of year is still summer, the weather is hot and the days are long - he will set up a bench in the yard with a round porcelain stone in the middle. The basin holds two stacks of horse-shaped pancakes and a full bowl of rice. Then grandpa held a stack of yellow paper in his hand and stood respectfully about two steps away from the bench, hunched over, eyes closed, and mumbling something.

I had never heard clearly what my grandfather was saying, and I asked him. Grandpa replied, thank you ancestors for blessing us with food and drink. At this time, we must also honor them and invite them back. Eat something and drink something...I don't care about these, I care about the horse-shaped cakes on the bench. After the sacrificial ceremony was over, when grandpa asked me to pack my things and go back to the house, all the horse-shaped cakes in the round porcelain basin belonged to me. This was the key point that I cared about.

Let’s talk about my old father. My father never took me to perform activities like ancestor worship, because he is a Christian, and the place he took me to most was the church.

I think my mother's happy old life has arrived.

During the festive season, I miss my loved ones even more. Grandpa is gone, dad is old, and mom is still young. My parents are both in good health, which is probably the only thing I'm thankful for. On the occasion of the Double Ninth Festival, in my heart, I thought about my relatives one by one.