The sky is high and the setting sun is far away. The summer heat is unbearable. Even if it rained all night last night, it was nothing more than transferring the heat in the air to the ground, and then the heat from the ground rebounded on humans.
The summer in Chongqing seems to be coming but not arriving. The sunlight is not too fierce, but the evaporating heat never dissipates, lingering around me. It's not until after 5:30 in the afternoon that the heat slightly subsides and I dare to go out.
Whenever the lotus pond is abundant, I always think of the ancient lotus pond in Baoding. This place, which I heard of on the first day I entered school, I have never seen the lotus flowers in the ancient lotus pond bloom. It's either busy reviewing for final exams, busy going home, or busy planning the next trip. The June of my school days always passed by in the blink of an eye.
In addition to the white porcelain plum soup I had in Jiangnan, the lotus pond fragrance is also closely related to summer. But before seeing the first lotus of this summer, the sight of the rice fields hanging with ears of grain was the first thing that moved me. As the car drove out of the city and onto G348, the road gradually widened and the scenery became more gentle. Opening the window, I could smell the fragrance of the rice fields, and the irritability before work gradually smoothed out. The breeze blew, the seedlings were lush green, and the ambiguous sunset and clouds created specks of rosy light. In the rice fields, you can faintly see snails. It turns out that the "snails" and "noodles" in the snail noodles we often eat are two innocent childhood friends.
As the car entered the village, the navigation said "Rongchang Bajiao Jing Village Rural Revitalization Building". Although it was a rural road, the road conditions were very good. I couldn't wait to park the car, and the little dog next to me was already barking at me eagerly. I didn't have time to pay attention to it, I just kept looking at the lotus pond in front of me.
The lotus flowers should have passed their peak, but the lotus pods have reached their peak. They hang heavily with their heads down. There is a young man from the rivers and lakes beside me who is a ten-level enthusiast of lotus pods. Naturally, he will not miss these ripe fruits waiting to be picked.
The plump lotus seeds reveal a little bit on the lotus pods, declaring their maturity just right, and avoiding the scrutiny of birds and insects. When picking lotus pods, be careful not to pull out the lotus stems, otherwise the lotus roots won't grow. Of course, unless you want to eat lotus stems.
I want to praise the lotus for being precious from head to toe and throughout its life. It seems to have no shortcomings. Compared to ourselves as humans, we really have no special talents and most of the time we appear so mediocre. But think about it, we should give more respect to busyness rather than talent, but we must also be prepared for our ordinary and ordinary labor to be in vain.
Passing by a house, grandpa and grandma are sitting in the yard. The locust flowers have fallen, and the leaves of the locust tree cover the old couple densely. The roosters are fighting, and the little ducks are quacking. Grandma is preparing to feed the pigs with pumpkin, and grandpa is just watching her. The setting sun shines brightly, but the cosmic romance is nothing more than this.
Going deeper along the lotus pond, there are shallow and gentle lotus ponds, like terraced fields. There is no wind in the bay, but the lotus flowers are blooming brightly. In the lotus field, there is an octagonal pavilion. I regret not bringing my qin. I can feel the cosmic romance of literati—playing the qin, appreciating the lotus, reciting poetry, and painting.
When you touch the lotus flower, it is generous and not shy. When you stroke its petals, it responds with a subtle tenderness. When you touch the lotus leaf, it seems to forget that it is just a leaf and considers itself an independent scenery apart from the flower. When you touch the stem, the prickly sensation reminds you not to play with it, but if you are a little more forceful, the protrusions on the stem will give you a ticklish feeling.
The orange tree is at the highest point of the terraced fields. There are strong tea trees and dense pine and cypress plants by the field. One or two small houses are hidden among them, so quiet that you can only hear the birds and breathing. The weeds under the orange tree have grown deep. It seems that they haven't been taken care of since this spring. The countryside always attracts people but is abandoned by most people.
It's almost seven o'clock, and there is no smoke rising, as if it is a neglected territory, quietly existing.
On the side of the road, I saw the flowers of passion fruit for the first time, as well as passion fruit growing on the vine trellis. The vine also has its own home for bottle gourds, cucumbers, green beans, flat beans, and yardlong beans. In the rural twilight, I suddenly felt the insignificance of life and the futility of achievements.
The weather is getting hotter, and I cherish every opportunity for hiking. The next time I'm in Chongqing, maybe I'll go for stream tracing and drifting. If you want to know more interesting pastimes, please follow us.