Chapter 8 chapter eight

one The following year saw a marked change in Tom's voice.Around the same time, he became interested in girls.To him, the world seems to have grown a lot bigger, and it has also become more beautiful, more complicated, and more interesting than before.Subconsciously, he felt that he needed something and that he was missing something.He has put aside his fish eyes and ant nests, and he has become melancholy and sensitive. He seems to be looking at the world for the first time, and feels that the world is full of mystery and indescribable beauty.He also knew that in the minds of Americans, God is the source of the mystery and power of the universe.

Flora was in the family as if the gods were real.In conversational English, even for things that have nothing to do with faith, they say: For God's sake. (This is often for anyone's sake, not God's.) Flora goes to the Italian Church in Chinatown every Sunday, and sometimes her eldest brother goes with her.When she had special ceremonies and had to take communion, she went alone.Everyone in the Feng family knows that Americans are Christians, and Christians believe in God.That's nothing to argue about, and it would be strange if Americans didn't believe in God!Flora did not convince them that God existed, that she prayed to God, and that she had a picture of the Virgin in her bedroom did not surprise them.They let her keep her faith.Women in China believe in Bodhisattva more than men.Men are generally less influenced by religion, women are different, and this is very similar in the United States and China.

When special religious days come around, which is a big deal for Flora, she prays more and goes to church more than usual.In the week before Easter, she went to church every day to light white candles in front of the Virgin.Flora seemed to be a different person during the week, wearing a new hat decorated with pink flowers when she went out.The school is on holiday, and Tom and Eva have nothing to do to observe Flora's abnormal behavior all day long.She was better than usual, more forgiving and kinder to others.Flora rose at five o'clock in the morning on Easter Sunday, put on her new hat, and went to morning services.Big Brother and Tom and Eva walked down Fifth Avenue with her.Eva is wearing the Chinese red jacket her mother made for her. She is still very thin, but her body has gradually developed.Eva and Tom followed Flora in front, and Roy walked behind with her parents.

You must believe in God.Flora said, don't you believe in the existence of God? Of course I do. Flora couldn't go any further.The family accepts the idea of ​​a God, just as they accept the existence of their parents, the Third Avenue Al Railroad. If you become a Christian, you will not cheat, gamble, drink. All good people don't cheat, gamble, or drink. If you are Catholic, you believe that marriage is sacred.Protestants are in favor of divorce, Catholics are not. This was the first time Tom learned about the difference between Catholicism and Protestantism. do you know?It is always good to have faith.

Flora looked very happy and pretty in her new hat. Sister-in-law, you are a good woman.Tom suddenly said this after a while. Flora smiled and said: Really? You are not like an American woman, you are a good sister-in-law, and you love your husband. How do you think American women don't love their husbands? Is not it?Often seen in movies.In the movie I saw last week, there was a woman hitting her husband with something and they were arguing loudly.Then he went out, slammed the door and went to find another woman.Are there many couples like that? Probably!Flora replied hesitantly. Do Americans beat their wives?

Flora was taken aback.No, gentlemen don't beat their wives.The law does not allow this, and American women will not tolerate such things.Do Chinese beat their wives? of course not.The Chinese just scold and let it go.You are very happy with big brother, aren't you? Yes!Flora replied. You are also a good daughter-in-law!When my mother got on the boat, she was worried that she would have an American daughter-in-law! Flora was moved.She thought of many things, and she only tried her best to keep herself calm.So she didn't say a word. Sister-in-law, you look like a Chinese woman.

oh!What do you mean by that? You work hard all day without fighting with in-laws or husband. That's because I'm Italian.When we were in Italy, my father told me that children should obey their parents. Do you speak Italian? A little bit.My father and mother talked in Italian at home, but also mixed with English. Italy must be a beautiful country.I have read books about Rome, Florence and Venice. My dad always said that Italy is a beautiful country and it is very happy to live there.He was from Milan, and whenever he and his mother had a drink, they would talk non-stop about Italy.Italy is full of olive trees, delicious food and singing, as well as churches and monasteries. All the people believe in God. Living there is really enjoyable. I really want to go back to Italy someday.

Have you never seen your own country? No.I was born here, I'm American, and I feel like I'm American.But some of the things my father said also made me feel Italian, and the two feelings were often mixed together. Is your father happy here? He's fine, Flora said, he's content with his mother. two The night of the Mid-Autumn Festival this year is a particularly memorable day.Uncle Cheng gave them a box of mooncakes, and Feng Lao Er specially invited him to his home for the holiday.My uncle saw crabs for sale in a store in Chinatown, so he bought a few and brought them along.Although the crabs are not big, the meat is very sweet, which adds a lot to the festive atmosphere.The moon cakes were specially ordered by my uncle, and they were going to use them as prizes for their dice games.

Mom cooked a table of delicious dishes, besides crabs, there were also fish boiled in chicken soup, turtle meat and duck feet cooked in casserole (although the second brother said it was not nutritious, he ate it more happily than anyone else), etc.Everyone was immersed in a happy atmosphere. Uncle rarely comes to their house.Feng Laoer closed the door of the store, and took away the ironing board and laundry basket upstairs.Here they ate their supper, and as they ate they looked out of the kitchen window at the moon high above the trees. Sister, you have raised a good brood of chicks!Uncle Cheng said.

Tom and Eva speak English as well as American kids.Mom said proudly. When did you become a grandma (grandmother)?He intentionally inserted the English word grandma in Cantonese, and Flora blushed instantly. I have no idea.Mom replied coldly. come on!Lowe.Uncle said, it's almost time for you to have a son. We can't afford it yet!Big Brother said.Mom was watching him. You are all wrong.You all have an American concept.You should have a son to be a father, what do you think life is for?It is for the inheritance of the family. Uncle stood up and grabbed another pair of turtle palms, then sat down again.His rubbery neck stretched and retracted, looking funny.

After dinner they played dice, and the first prize was a large mooncake with a diameter of about eight inches placed in the middle of the cake box.There are also medium and small moon cakes, all named after the ingredients they are wrapped in.On the lower layer are a large number of small moon cakes.They take turns throwing six dice, as long as one of the dice is red and four points up, they can get a prize. As for what they get, it depends on the points of the six dice.But there is only one first prize, and no one dares to say that they will get it.They came to the last round and decided that among the six dice, the person who rolled four of the same points won the lottery.Most of these small mooncakes are sweet bean paste, and the biggest mooncake is filled with lotus seed paste. It is beautiful and thicker than other mooncakes, like a small drum.Everyone wants to win the first prize, and the whole atmosphere is very high.Eva won the lottery, everyone cheered, and the biggest moon cake belonged to Eva. While everyone was eating moon cakes, my uncle sat down and talked about business with my parents.How are you talking about opening a restaurant?Uncle asked, if you also move to Chinatown, we can be together often. This is not a simple matter!said father. But your business is not very good! is good.Mom said confidently that our new customers have been increasing.But it may take a few years for the restaurant to open. There was a look of surprise in Dad's eyes, and he was surprised by Mom's affirmative tone.Do you sound confident when you speak? why not?Mom said, I've been waiting. We have such a big family, it is not easy to open a restaurant.Eva and Tom are developing again.We can only save a small amount of money, we still have a long way to go!Luckily no one got sick, except for Eva who had a tooth pulled, which cost us about five dollars.She's been wanting to get her teeth straightened and I told her we can't afford it. I thought of that too.Mom said, Cheng, I have a tooth that has been shaken for a long time, can you pull it out for me? Uncle Cheng was very happy to have this rare opportunity to pull someone else's tooth. He stood up, walked over and said: Let me see.He shook the tooth with his finger and said: It shakes badly.He said: "It's not difficult. He bent down in front of his mother and said, "Close your eyes!"He put his finger in mother's mouth.Mom groaned a bit, but uncle ignored her and continued to fiddle with it.Mom moaned again, and the uncle pulled out more resolutely, and finally when the mother moaned for the third time, the uncle took out his fingers. Pulled out. He brought the small saucer of soy sauce to his mother's mouth, pushed his other hand on her shoulder, and said, "Cough hard."She coughed, and a tooth fell out on the saucer. They are simply extortion!My uncle proudly said that American doctors charge five yuan for pulling a tooth. How is it different from extortion? Uncle staggered back to his seat and fell back into his chair. Mother stroked her cheek with her hand, and sat there blankly, probably the pain hadn't disappeared yet. I said, that's blackmail.You go to rinse your mouth and everything will be fine in a few minutes. You really don't have to beat me so hard.Mom got up and went into her room. If you feel pain in your shoulder, you won't feel pain in your tooth; if you feel pain in your tooth, you won't feel pain in your shoulder. When my mother came out of the room, the second brother said: You should install a denture to fill the empty space.Otherwise, even the upper molars are useless. Don't make me laugh!Uncle said: If you lose a molar, you lose a molar.What is the effect? I don't need a denture.Mom declares. What if you lose another molar?said the second brother. I don't need any dentures.You don't mind my teeth.I could bite my way for another twenty years. Your mother is right.Have you never seen a dentist?When they see your teeth, they will pull out at least six of them for you, and you have to obediently pay that much.If you have a small hole in your tooth, the first thing they will do is to help you make that hole bigger.Then they get you a frame for your dentures, and that frame holds on to the good teeth until the good teeth are pressed out and the dentist pulls them out.Don't worry about your teeth, sister. I'm so sorry for you, Uncle!The second brother said, you have been in this country for so long, and you still say that.The United States is very scientific, and dentists are all scientists. the scientist!Uncle poohed several times in a row. They are scientists.The second brother insisted.Uncle poohed louder.Even insurance, the second brother went on, is a science.Dad, if you want to save money to open a restaurant, you can get a fund insurance policy and let it earn interest instead of hiding the money in a drawer. Are you trying to sell insurance to your father? Yes, but you never listen to me. If you want to sell insurance to me, you are not my son. But this is for your own good, and it is also for the good of our family. The son wants to take over his father's life!What world has this become? Not me, but Corninius Insurance Company, the biggest and best company in New York City. If you still respect and obey your father, don't worry about my life, okay?if i die Uncle, mother, and elder brother booed a few times quickly, not letting father continue talking, because it was an unlucky word.The second brother looked embarrassed. I mean, a fund insurance saves money, I don't mean that he doesn't know how to say it, and the topic is thrown aside. three Tom and Eva wanted to go to the balcony, but seeing that their father was angry, Tom asked Eva to ask her father.Because she is the only girl in the family, her father always loves her more. Eva went over to discuss with her mother in a low voice, if she could ask her father.Mom told her to tell Dad directly. dad!Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, isn't it good for us to go to the balcony to enjoy the moon? We should be thankful that our family is here today.We should enjoy it too.Mom supported Eva's suggestion. Dad didn't say bad.The two children suddenly became excited and hurriedly took the blanket, pillow and moon cakes to the balcony, and the family followed.Since there are taller buildings on both sides of their house, both sides of the balcony are blocked by fences.The branches of the neighbor's house stretched out to the balcony, reflecting the moonlight, like a big white umbrella cover.The bright and cold moonlight just shone from the corner of the neighbor's house, illuminating most of their balcony.It was a cool, peaceful and beautiful night indeed. Except for the mother, everyone was lying comfortably on the blanket, and they talked about things in their hometown and relatives and friends who stayed in their hometown. Tom almost forgot where he was, he kept telling himself that he was in New York with his family, that he had attended an American school, but he still felt like he was back home, back on the farm in Xinghui Village.The trails in the countryside, the lychee garden behind the house, the playmates in the hometown and the games they played, the windows in the school classrooms, and the bells in the clock tower are all so clearly in front of my eyes.He often recalled these details after he came to America, in fact, when he was sailing at sea, he could not help writing these remembrances, which were almost as important as life and death.If his father said that the immigration offices had ten windows, he would immediately correct that there were twelve; Being mistaken, he would think of sailing across the Pacific to return to his hometown. Now, he sees paths leading to five lychee trees behind the house and bird nests in the trees.He told Flora lying beside him: Sister-in-law, we have a big house in our hometown. At that time, my father sent us money. There was a pond with ducks near the lychee garden. Every night, my mother would go to the pond to drive the ducks up, and then we would drive the ducks home together. .Eva, do you remember how many windows our house has? ten leaves.Eva replied. In what direction is the main street in the village? The street runs east-west, and the west end of the street is the school. The school building has fifteen windows and a clock in the middle.The playground is just behind the school building.Eva finished it in one breath. You are missing one thing. I know.There is also a church in the village. The church does not have a bell tower, it just surrounds the bell with a wall. passed. Flora did not understand what they were saying.What are you doing?play games? Eva explained for her. How many windows are there in our house?Tom asked Flora. How do I know, let me think about it. They started counting, but they kept arguing over whether the sunroof should count. If you want to go to China, you'd better find out first, otherwise we won't let you go ashore. If I want to go, I will not be afraid if I am with my eldest brother. Tom laughed.No, I was just joking with you. Tom and Eva want to hear stories.When they were in China, their mother often told them stories on summer nights. Mother!Tell us the story of Chang'e flying to the moon. You have heard the story. Say it again!Mother. Mother told the story of Hou Yi and Chang'e again: Hou Yi fell in love with Chang'e and began to chase her.But Chang'e ran away because of fear, and Hou Yi chased after her.Later, Chang'e fled to the moon and sat down under a laurel tree.After Chang'e flew there, she couldn't come back. She could only sit under the osmanthus tree and miss her lover. This is why the moon often casts its magic power of love on boys and girls. Tom lay there looking at the infinite sky, with its bright stars and the silent movement of the moon, and could not help feeling a sense of admiration in his heart. what are you thinking tom Think of the sky!He points up with his hand.Isn't it great? do you know?There really is a God!Flora said.She spoke such a simple sentence calmly and naturally. Do you believe?she asked Tom. I believe.said Tom hesitantly. Do you believe?She turned to Eva. I believe. What are you talking about?Mom asked. My sister-in-law asked us if we believed in God. Don't be silly.Of course there are gods. If you are a good person, you will go to heaven after death. If you do bad things, you will go to hell after death. If we pray to God, He will take care of us. Of course, how is he a god if he doesn't bless us?Mom said. Flora fell silent. Flora, I like your religion.Mama said it makes you a good woman. Flora couldn't say what she wanted to say in Cantonese.Tell mom that she told her husband that Catholicism is the real religion. As long as any religion can make people better, it is a true religion.Mom replied that Catholicism is a good religion if it makes you good. Tom wasn't thinking about man's good and bad, he was thinking about man's life, in which the world made him small, insignificant, and the beauty, power, and mystery of this vast universe. His hometown, like many villages, rejected the Christian faith.Most of these are social rather than religious.The American missionary and his wife, in their village, are neither better nor worse than any Chinese of their own faith.They live in isolation from the Chinese, and the only contact they have is their Chinese assistants.The missionary's wife was a kind woman who played the organ in the school and taught the children to sing.The missionary, in shorts and a helmet-shaped cap, strode fast through the village, desperately trying to save the heretics, though he looked dignified as he dashed along in his shorts.He could preach in Cantonese if he wanted to, but often he just presided over the ceremony and let the Chinese missionaries do the preaching.His job is to manage the use of funds, and he often argues about the salary of local teachers like a businessman, and occasionally mixes a few expletives.At home, according to his servants, he once yelled at his wife in a fit of rage.Non-Christians hate Christians because they isolate themselves from others in society.They did not attend village worship, formed a closed society of their own, and felt themselves dependent on foreign protection.Although Christianity has a history of one hundred years in Guangdong, the situation has remained unchanged without any improvement. But when Flora pointed to the sky and said softly: You know, there really is a god there.It sounded different, and Tom was a little confused.