One (a)

At lunch, Mr. Yichen, Mr. Shen, Katya, Liang Xin, and me, the five of us sat among a field of pale cyan flowers, eating our own baked slices of light salty bread with milk salt, and listening to old records on the portable gramophone. This portable phonograph, which is hand-cranked, is a treasure collected by Mr. Shen, and is regarded as the treasure of the camp.

Today's vinyl record plays a lyrical song sung by a Ukrainian singer from the 50s.

Mr. Shen listened to him sing and translated it word by word for us.

Every word of the singer is soaked in love, full of the honey of leaf celery, and exuding the sweet fragrance of cloves.

I remember some of the words in it that were written very classically.

For example: "True happiness does not come by striving for it", "What people need is care, not money", and so on.

We listened to the sound of the phonograph record melody as the wind blew high in the treetops.

Spring Breeze is really a diligent family.

It wandered around, and even in the densest places of foliage, there was not a single leaf that it was not familiar with.

I don't know where the water drops fall on the stones, making a tinkling and tinkling sound.

The stone is so big and hard that it may lie here for a thousand years, but the drops of water only live for a moment.

Water droplets may feel weak, helpless, and useless to the world.

However, the principle of water drops and stones is unchanged through the ages, and the many water droplets have converged for thousands of years, and the power is so strong that it can not only drip through the stones, but even form a huge flood, rolling rapids, and actually wash away the stones.

The so-called weak and strong, where is there a certainty?

Self-esteem and arrogance are caused by a lack of understanding of the subtleties and profundity of nature.

When the bread basket was about to be empty, Liang Xin said to Katya: "Time flies so fast." Before you know it, spring is coming to an end. Our spring break is coming to an end. We're going to be out of here soon. It's really reluctant. ”

These two young people of the same age have become good friends who talk about everything in this time. Katya's eyes were also full of parting feelings.

Mr. Yichen looked at them and said to me: "If every young and old man, when he greets spring, can think that perhaps this is the last spring of his life, and that he will never return to this spring, then the joy of his picnic in the spring forest will increase ten thousand times." ”

I said, "yes." The people who have a picnic with us will not sit next to us forever. Perhaps, this will be the last time we will sit together for a picnic. ”

As it turned out, it really was the last time the five of us sat down for a picnic.

Later, Katya followed one of his cousins to the capital to earn a living, where he found a girl and made a family, never returning to the town of Winter Lake. Mr. Shen also left Winter Lake Camp a few years later to work on a new investment project in Africa. Mr. Yichen went to Dzongtong Monastery in Thailand to become a monk, and then went to the forest meditation in Myanmar, where he died soon after. Liang Xin signed with Columbia Pictures and became their chief cinematographer. And I, too, finally paid off the debt from the acquisition and redeemed my freedom from SPE.

We really never got together in the woods again to enjoy such a nice lunch.

Liang Xin later visited Katya and his wife in the capital of that country, and they already had two lovely children, who were as cute as little angels. Katya often told them stories about China and Japan, which Liang Xin told him back then. When Liang Xin goes to his house, the children will sing "A Beautiful Jasmine" in Chinese, as well as the Japanese song "Sakura", knowing Monkey King and Momotaro.

Liang Xin later said to me, "I didn't teach Katya to sing a beautiful jasmine flower. I don't know where he learned it. ”

I said, "I taught it." ”

Katya told me at the time that she wanted to hear me sing a traditional Chinese song. I sang "Yangguan Three Stacks" to him, but he said it was too profound to appreciate. And then I sang this jasmine. He liked this one very much. He said that in his impression, Chinese women should be as tender as this tune.

Liang Xin said: "Otherwise, let's go see Katya together." He also remembered you, as well as the King of Lanling and the shotgun. ”

I smiled. I said, "Let's talk about fate." ”

Many youthful memories are like flowing water, which has passed and passed.

I don't like to deal with things and people. It is better to cherish the memories of the past in their original form.

(b)

Later, after Mr. Yichen became a monk, I went to this camp alone for a vacation.

When he came for the last time, Mr. Shen had already received a new appointment, was packing his bags, and was waiting to go to his new post.

It's just that his successor was delayed a little because of the unexpected situation at home and didn't come to hand over as scheduled, so he was able to stay for a while, just in time for me to come on vacation.

We met again in Donghu Town, talking about the past and the current personnel changes, all of which were quite full of the vicissitudes of the world and the white clouds and dogs.

Mr. Shen said: "We still have a lot of good times in this town. When are you going to write them down? ”

I said, "Why don't you write it yourself?" You've been a writer, too. ”

Mr. Shen said: "Writing is such a thing, it can't be interrupted, like me, after so many years of mundane affairs, even if I want to write, I can't sit down, the pen is dry, and my thinking is rigid." ”

He said: "But it's a pity that those pearl-like days are gone." You write it, and it can last a little longer. At the very least, I'm definitely going to buy your book. ”

I told him that the book I wanted to write the most in my life was to start writing it in the small town of Winter Lake. I had already planned to write a "Notes on the Winter Lake" by the time I finished this book to commemorate the time I spent here.

I gave him a copy of the Sapporo Diary, the last one I had saved.

I said that when "Notes on the Winter Lake" is written, it will be roughly like this diary, and it will also be an essay that talks casually.

Mr. Shen said, "The essay is very good. Naturally, words are the voice of the heart. When I was young, I liked to read the well-structured ones, but now that I am a little older, I feel that essays are the easiest way to read, which can be seen by the eyes, by the heart, and by the brain. ”

He said, "Write it." The last time Yichen was here, he took a large panoramic photo of the Winter Lake, and if his son has no opinion, he will give it to you to make the cover. ”

He didn't know that Liang Xin and I were now very close partners in the business, and the friendship was like that of a brother and sister.

Liang Xin agreed, of course. He looked curiously at his father's photographs from that year. "He must have taken it before he picked me up at camp," he said. You see, it's still a harsh winter season. Since I came to the camp, I have been following him all the time, and I don't remember when he went to take such pictures. ”

Perhaps, at that time, Mr. Yichen knew what was on my mind.

He probably guessed that one day I would be writing an essay about the town of Winter Lake.

He never used this photo himself, but left it as a parting gift to Mr. Shen.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to add pictures to the text here.

Therefore, I can't show you this precious photo.