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Use words to gain insight into the ordinary life, and use words to understand the depth of literature.

01

I remember that the first time I read Li Juan’s writing, it gave me a light and peaceful impression. That sentence is written like this: Before the sun rises, the whole world is like a dream, and only the moon is real; after the sun rises, the whole world is real, and only the moon is like a dream.

What kind of world is that?

I finally finished reading the book "Winter Pasture" and had the opportunity to step into this world that I didn't understand and couldn't imagine.

The spotless blue sky is covered with white snow, which protects the endless wilderness.

The extremely small shepherds live in this home, in this wilderness called Winter Pasture. Li Juan used her simple style to record a winter migration with the family of Kazakh nomad Juma.

The days of migration are very difficult. They trudge day and night in temperatures that cannot be measured by thermometers, using natural and primitive materials - sheep dung to build their homes - winter nests, the only source of food - winter slaughter and the only source of water - Snow water and grazing without any danger, in my opinion, these are simply the ultimate challenge to the human body and will.

But perhaps the most challenging thing in this vast wilderness is not survival skills, but how to face the loneliness that surrounds you all the time. Loneliness is revealed everywhere in the book, because such a life is accompanied by loneliness most of the time.

02

She wrote about the evening when the sheep came home late, climbing up the sand dunes again and again to look eastward. In the dim and misty vision, when the sheep finally appeared in front——" Roaring in the dark night, each of them was covered with heavy snow. I don’t know what they have experienced before, so silent."

She wrote that while waiting for the sheep, she was with the 19-year-old Gama. Sitting in the unlit nest, in the darkness where no one spoke, Gama sang a song. The melody she sang was melodious and melancholy. The fire next to her was flickering, reflecting on her face. "Youth is so beautiful, there is no more beauty." "People see it."

She wrote that she was driving the sheep alone in the wilderness, "A single person, driving the sheep under the solitary moonlight, over the last sand dune. , Ahead is a lonely sunset. ”

In this place that seems to be forgotten by the world, the sheep are lonely, the horses are lonely, the shepherd is lonely, everything is lonely. It is this loneliness that has tempered the Kazakh nation's firm will and super endurance, as if this loneliness is an innate part of them.

In this wilderness, you can best feel the insignificance and greatness of human beings.

Small because in the vast sky, people are as humble as smoke and dust. They will never have any delusions of conquering the world. The only thing they can do is to let nature take its course; great because there is less greenhouse and more wind and frost. , everyone uses all their strength to live, even if life is so difficult, they can make the monotonous world colorful.

03

But this silent world is not only about loneliness, and Li Juan did not use all her pen and ink to describe the endless loneliness. Her descriptions are happy, naughty, There is so much more to humor than loneliness. Perhaps life in Winter Ranch is monotonous, so we need to be more intentional about experiencing fun.

Li Juan expressed this kind of fun in a controlled and naughty way. For example, she wrote that the conditions in the winter pasture are poor and poor. “The vehicles used to solicit passengers on the pasture are all black vehicles. The poor condition of the vehicles can shock all the city people... But even such vehicles are rare. If they can be used in the pasture, If you encounter one when you need it most, it will make you want...want...want to set off firecrackers!

——Yes, only firecrackers, only this thing of us Han people, only That kind of indiscriminate 'crackling' noise can accurately express this kind of excitement!" A few exclamation points, a few comparisons, and an almost spoken expression, I can feel her ecstasy.

Things are rare and valuable, and it is in this environment of extreme material scarcity that one can be full of gratitude for any gift and cherish favors and things. This kind of little humor not only makes people feel interesting in such a silent world, but also makes people feel extremely precious.

I think what makes people there not go crazy but strive to live proudly and stubbornly, apart from their hungry stomachs, is this little humor that brings warmth and happiness to people.

▽

This book not only contains the pervasive loneliness and heartfelt love for life, but also a heavy thinking, that is, the future of the nomadic people. The legendary pasture is one where the wind blows the grass and makes the cows and sheep invisible. It is full of harmony and richness, but the reality is more desolate, lonely and helpless. The lives of the shepherds are full of "keep going, keep going." Farewell", youth, wealth, love and dreams, all silent.

But this kind of life will not exist for long. Due to the government's control of overgrazing and the life improvement policy of ethnic minorities, the nomads are moving towards a comfortable settled life. But just like the vague words of the shepherd in the book, "Setting down is of course a good thing, but Kazakhstan is over." Perhaps this is the process of sinicization of the nomads. They yearn for a stable life, but are also worried that this is a migration on horseback. In this way, the nation slowly loses its own attributes.

Where should the increasingly meager fate of ranches and herdsmen go?

This is the silent world presented in "Winter Pasture", where there is loneliness, joy, and heavy thinking.