上大学时年纪尚小，家人不放心，土里土气的东西给装了一大包。也是，我们那个穷地方的孩子出门的机会本来就少，上大学那可是天大的喜事一桩。大事吗就得大伙一起来装包，一时间村子里像赶集一样，亲戚朋友，邻居乡党，你来我往，大包小包的送哪塞啊，我的包都快爆炸了。 大学么当然在城里，很远的路程，带来的东西后来让我在同学面前很丢面子。我当然知道送东西的人全是好意，再说了哪个乡下孩子进城不经点磨难？这就跟蛇蜕皮一样，在所难免。一个乡下孩子能上大学，父老乡亲有啥错？他们为我高兴得很哪。 包里最土气的东西可能要算那包香椿菜了，当然是腌过的晒干了的，谢天谢地，还用旧报纸包得有棱有角的。香椿菜可是当地腌菜的首选，那名字在咱乡里可是响当当的。有了香椿菜，玉米糊糊那吃了几千年的早饭才有了特有的香味。乡里人日子过得紧巴巴的，吃的本来就缺，根本就没有油腥。乡亲们只能在梦里吃大肉，醒来咂嘴巴。人饿了一闻到邻家炒菜的油香就流口水。大块的肉这辈子肯定是吃不着了，从而香椿芽里那丁点儿植物油还能给咱一点点安慰不是，就这样青黄不接，一年又一年过下来了。感谢这个词表达不尽咱们对香椿菜的情感，父老乡亲对香椿菜打心眼里热爱，真心诚意。 那香椿芽和村里很多其他物事一样有各种用途。别看我包里那袋切碎了的腌香椿菜呈暗青色，那东西可是高原上祖祖辈辈认可的预防水土不服的灵丹妙药呢。 香椿芽子要在早春刚冒出不久就掐下来，要不就硬了，木头化了。这一掐呀，就把春天的柔嫩给留下了，装入罐子里那清香可以留一整年，甚至到来年。如此这般，我们家乡水土的根子就保留在这些曾经鲜嫩过如今盐腌了的嫩芽里。老年人对香椿芽帮助生在黄土高原角落的孩子走四方服水土赞叹不已，拍案叫绝。娃呀，外边的世界大任你走哇，咱这香椿菜你看它灰青灰青不起眼，有人还看不起呢，可谁知道这里边有世上最好的安心丸呢，咱这里水土好，那精华都聚在香椿里，保证你在外头不受水土不服的熬煎。是啊，离家的孩子可不能忘了带香椿菜呐。 虽然大学食堂不再供应玉米糊糊我还是想方设法将香椿拌入其它饭菜以保证我这乡下童子身尽快适应城市生活。但那情形说轻了让人有些尴尬哪，我每次从包里倒些黑乎乎，道说不清的粉末入大米粥或小米粥里，那东西我的大学同学，这些城里人从来没见过。他们当然不知道这物事曾经柔嫩过，清香过，他们对散发着一股说不明白的土气味的干粉末有一种自然的反感。自然有人捏鼻子，拧眉头，表示不屑。讽刺打击，风凉话难听话没少听，可我一点香椿也没有浪费。我知道香椿多好吃，也知道香椿菜在家乡食物里至高的地位。可惜那些年我没有说服一位大学同学试一下咱那土特产。 香椿一直是我生活的一部分，最重要的是香椿让我明白一个百年不变的道理：一个人不论走到哪里都必须与当地的水土和谐生存。 可不是吗，大学期间，我从来没 得 过什么过敏或其它类似的问题。虽然说不准到底是香椿的功能还是我年轻气盛的缘故，我毫不含糊地将那段如鱼得水的日子归功于香椿。 我们乡下人愿意守着我们自己的信念，甚至迷信，受过多少教育也难改呢。 *** English original *** When I was departing the village for college as a youngster, folks at home insisted on packing quite a few things earthy for me to take.Kids from our corner of the world didn’t have too much a chance to travel thus going to college was a big, big event.Big event required a big packing party and it was like a sizeable country fair as many neighbors, friends and relatives showed up with all kinds of things to add to the pile that was to be jam-packed into my sacks. College was of course in a city far away.Some of the stuff they made me bring along would later cause me quite a bit of embarrassment in front of my new acquaintances in college.Still I always remembered that everything was packed with good intentions.It was just that every country cousin migrating to the city must go through a transformation process, not unlike snakes shedding skins.It was not at all my folks’ fault that I was a country boy going to college in the city.They were mighty proud of me. The earthiest portion in my sack probably was a package of tender toon shoots, salted and sundry thank goodness, wrapped up in used newspaper of course.It was the pickle of choice of our region.Fragrant Toon Shoots was a name revered by villagers in our part of the world.The preserved toon shoots definitely added some zany zest to the otherwise bland crashed corn cereal that was our staple for breakfast for centuries.Our existence was rather meager and our food was pathetic with barely any gravy on top.We craved for fat pork because we weren’t getting any.Our perpetual hunger dictated that the smell of cooking oil induced watery mouths in our village.Since we weren’t getting any fat of the spectacular proportion, the little vegetable oil deposits in the toon shoots were preserved to offer some slight comfort for our wretched existence through the years.Thankful may not be sufficient a word to describe how we felt about toon shoots.Some of us were genuine in worshipping the great value of toon shoots. Like basically everything else in the village, the preserved tender shoots of the local toon trees had multiple functions at home.The chopped up dark blue sundry tender shoots that found its way in my bulky but pitiable baggage was actually the best allergy remedy tested by generations of high plateau dwellers. The tender shoots were picked in early spring before they grew tough and wooden; this way, the soft and tender season of the spring was potted for the whole year or even years to come.Consequently, the best part of our earth and water was conserved in those tender but salted fresh shoots of a tree.Our elderly never stopped marveling at how toon shoots helped the native children of yellow earth in the hinder lands of China adjust to the world outside.Anywhere in the world you go, kiddo, the toon shoots, especially its dark color, may look humble or even disgusting to those who had no idea but the portion sure contained the great agents of soothing harmony, the essence of our earth and water that acted to cushion us from sudden invasion or ambush of foreignness.One simply couldn’t leave home without those toon shoots. Our college cafeteria didn’t serve up any crushed corn cereal; still, I figured out ways to mix the preserved toon shoots into whatever I was eating to ensure a smooth transition of my teenage body from the countryside to the city.It looked a little awkward, to say the least, to decant out dark and mysterious powdery stuff and mix them into my rice porridge and millet cereal in front of my college friends as almost everyone of my college mates grew up in the city and had never heard of, let alone seeing, toon shoots before they met me.Without knowing how refreshing it was as tender shoots, all of my college mates resented the dried powder that emitted a strong earthy smell to the environment.So it was natural that some noses were pinched and eyebrows twisted.Amidst sarcastic remarks and outright mockery I managed not to discard any of the fragrant toon shoots, for I knew how yummy the toon shoots tasted or how high it ranked in our food pyramid.For all those years, I never succeeded in talking any of my college friends into trying some of the goofy stuff. Tender toon shoots were part of my life.Most importantly those toon shoots reminded me the age-old wisdom: wherever one travels in this world, one must learn to harness harmony with the local water and earth.Sure enough, I encountered no allergy or any other form of discomfort throughout my college days.Although it was hard to tell whether it was the fragrant toon shoots or my budding youth that harmonized everything in life for me during that period of time, I whole-heartedly attributed the smooth transition to the great toon shoots.We countryside folks were entitled to our beliefs and superstitions no matter how much education we received. http://vod.szzwch.com/zhudi/38-%E5%BC%AF%E5%BC%AF%E7%9A%84%E6%9C%88%E4%BA%AE%28%E7%AC%9B%E5%AD%90%29.mp3
标签: 童年
