Text/Zhu
My home is at the southernmost tip of the village, with three tile houses and a small courtyard with earth walls. There are willows, locust trees and neem trees outside the courtyard, and there are several jujube trees in the courtyard. There are several tall poplars behind the house. The breeze blew, the poplar leaves rustled, occasionally magpies stopped chirping among the branches, and flying sparrows chirped in front of and behind the house. There is a pond in front of the house. In summer, frogs croak in the pond, catching a glimpse of water. After the rain, cicadas flew over the willows.
In spring, trees sprout, flowers bloom, insects and birds sing, and swallows fly into the farmhouse in pairs. They are looking for a suitable place to nest and breed. It is said that the family that swallows choose to nest must be kind, kind and rich. People always think that swallows go home to nest, which indicates that the family will turn the corner and prosper.
A pair of swallows circled back and forth in front of my house. My father told me to move slowly so as not to scare the swallows away. I held my breath and watched them fly around. The swallow circled several times and then flew away. Father looked at the flying swallows and said to himself, "Maybe they can fly back!" " "
Another spring came, and a pair of swallows finally made a nest on my purlin. One by one, they hold mud nests. Father's face lit up and he was quiet when he came out and went in. He doesn't allow me to speak loudly.
The swallow's new nest was built. Two swallows took turns lying in the nest day and night and began to hatch the little swallow.
After more than ten days, I heard the cry of "Haw Haw" and looked up to find a few small swallows in the nest, looking for food with their mouths open. The old swallow flew back with a bug in her mouth and landed next to the nest. Xiaoyan opened her mouth to lean out and almost fell down. After feeding one, the old swallow turned and flew away, then another old swallow came back and flew away soon after feeding. A few babies are really busy for two old Yan. During the day, two old swallows go out for food, and at night, they guard the nest around. Swallows are really spiritual animals.
Under the careful care of Lao Yan, Xiaoyan grew up, her feathers became rich, the bird's nest became crowded, and Lao Yan stopped vigil at night.
I'm used to Xiaoyan's chirp, and I have to pay attention to it for a long time every day. One night I heard a noise on the ceiling, but nothing happened during the day. A few days later, in the middle of the night, I was awakened by the sound of poop-poop. I turned on the light and found a white thing eating a swallow near the bird's nest. The swallow's wings flapped and struggled desperately, and the others screamed and fluttered. "Get up, the mouse ate the swallow!" When my sister looked at it after getting up, she was also shocked and quickly called Wu Dong's father to see it.
Father came in and took a look. Without saying anything, he took a shovel from the yard and measured it. It's too short. I moved to the chair and my father stood on it so that he could reach it. My father told us to get out of the way With a shovel and a shout, a big snake fell. The snake turned over and climbed up. My father jumped up from his chair and trampled the snake to death with his foot. My dad stamped his slippers several times, but it didn't work. The snake still wants to crawl away. My sister quickly handed the bench to my father. Father took it and killed the snake in a few strokes. My heart is pounding. The snake has been smashed and now it is dead. How disgusting!
Xiaoyan, bitten by a snake, fell down, her head was wet, her wings fluttered, her eyes were frightened, her body trembled and she cried miserably. I asked my father, "Why don't you put it back in the nest?" Father saw it and shook his head: "I'm afraid it's hard to live!" " "
The next day, the injured Xiaoyan died. I said to my father, "People say killing snakes is not good!" Father took a puff at his cigarette, paused for a moment and said, "If you don't kill him, I'm afraid you will be afraid."
Suddenly a little swallow disappeared, and two old swallows seemed to know what had happened. Since the second day of the danger, two old swallows have been guarding their nests for several nights.
Soon, the little swallow was covered with feathers and left the nest one by one and flew away. The bird's nest is empty.
Maybe Xiaoyan doesn't want to experience any more danger. They didn't come to my house in the second spring, and they didn't come in the third spring, leaving only a bird's nest hanging on the purlin.
In a foreign land, every spring, when I see swallows flying into people's homes in pairs, looking for a treasure trove of feng shui to settle down, I think of my father's happy expression when swallows came to my house to nest. I neglected how lonely my father's heart should be when swallows no longer visit my house! A farmer's life can be seen at a glance, and his hopes have long been exhausted by years. How do a pair of swallows bring good news to life? Just a spiritual sustenance!
About the author: Zhu Shandong, a native of Shanxian County, likes writing for many years. His series of essays, such as Memories of Hometown, Traces of Years, Country Stories, and Medium-length Migrant Workers, are mainly realistic in style, recording the past, leaving tiny characters with little marks in the years and preserving them as text images.