Reflections on spring outing to Yefu Mountain

My spring outing to Yefu Mountain happened after I returned from my job change and settled in the small town of Lujiang on the south bank of Chaohu Lake.

Before joining the army, I had only been to Lucheng once. My hometown is in the Luohe Mining Area, a major mining town in Lunan. When I was a child, I only went to Luohe during the market. Huangnihe was the district government at that time. Most of the folks in my hometown liked to go to the Huangnihe market on Wednesday, Saturday, and September.

My mother and I went to Huangnihe to go to the market to buy production materials or daily necessities. I also accompanied my mother and went to Dabaigeng Temple to burn incense during temple fairs. Every February 19th is the birthday of Guanyin Bodhisattva. If there is no extra hot water at home the night before, after taking a bath, she will always light a handful of straw and let me walk on it the next morning. I said to myself: "You are still a child, Bodhisattva does not remember your demerits." It was still dark, and when I went out, my mother always put some tea leaves and grain rice in my pocket. She asked me to walk in front and use the flashlight. According to Jane, my spring outing has begun.

Yesterday, my wife said that we haven’t been to Yefu Mountain in a few years. I didn't understand what she said. Before I could react, my mother interrupted and asked how high the mountain was. My mother is eighty-three years old and she also wants to climb the mountain. I was stunned. My lover smiled and said, tomorrow is the Guanyin meeting. My mother counts the days and has been living in the Lunar New Year. I think she must also remember this day that will accompany her throughout her life. When I was a kid, she always remembered to boil an egg for me every time I celebrated my birthday. When my father was still alive, if anyone among us brothers and sisters would celebrate the birthday of an elderly person at home, my mother would also celebrate her birthday. When she was three years old, my grandmother died. My mother herself never knew her birthday.

In the morning, my lover and my baby girl woke up earlier than me. We brought the food and drinks we bought at Jinrunwanjia last night. As soon as the three of us arrived at the gate of Yefushan Park, private cars were already parked in the square.

My lover said they were earlier than us! On the road, there were many tourists and pilgrims, some of whom had already come down from the mountain. When we passed each other, we all heard: I got up at three o'clock. After entering the gate, a bus from Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province had stopped on the road early. I took a photo of my lover and daughter in Xiaojiuhua, Jiangbei.

From my career change in 1999 to this year, my wife and I have been to Yefu Mountain several times. Some went with friends, some went with colleagues, and some went with brothers. The only thing, this time is a family of three. The smiles of happiness and joy show on the faces of my lover and my daughter, and I smile in my heart.

The peach blossoms in spring are blooming. The buds are about to bloom, giving people unlimited leisure to think about. The peach blossoms in full bloom give people infinite charm.

Halfway up the mountain, there is a small bridge with clear water. My baby girl blurted out: "Peach Blossom Bridge!", I smiled and said to her, "Xiao Qiao Bridge!". My daughter said she saw peach blossoms. I said that in Lujiang in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a celebrity named Zhou Yu who married a wife named Xiao Qiao. One year, Xiao Qiao wanted to go up to Yefu Mountain to worship Guanyin Bodhisattva and burn incense. Zhou Yu went to the mountains to open roads and built bridges when encountering water. The six-year-old daughter doesn’t understand history, but she still refuses to admit defeat. She asks why the bridge was new in ancient times? I said that a new bridge was built at the original site where Duke Zhou built the bridge. When we were arguing endlessly, my lover said: "Xiao Qiao Peach Blossom Bridge!" It has cultural connotation and also incorporates modern romance. My daughter and I also settled a "war!"

The mountain road became more and more rugged, and my daughter encouraged herself, “Persistence is victory!”, but my wife and I were still worried, fearing that she was too young and would either fall or suffer muscle damage, so we still held her for a few times. . When we arrived at Wangjiang Pavilion, a red sun rose. The spring mist in Yefu Mountain floats from the green forest to the blue sky and white clouds.

On the top of the mountain, the sword-making pool from the Warring States Period is still a pool of clear holy water, where tourists keep taking pictures. Ou Yezi and Gan Jiang, Tianbao Big Dipper Sword, have already written a chapter of deification together with history.

When we walked into the actual Zen temple, the main hall was already crowded with tourists who came to visit and burn incense. I took my daughter and continued climbing to the Moon Body Hall. Yueshen Hall is dedicated to the father of a former colleague. His lover came forward to offer incense and kneel down. When they arrived at Fuhu Cave, my lover told his daughter a touching story about 849 AD. Zhaozong of the Tang Dynasty gave him the title of Zen Master Xiaoci Fuhu, and he was the founder of Yefu Temple.

When we were going down the mountain, my daughter and I were enjoying the stream at the "Peach Blossom Xiaoqiao Bridge" when my wife took out a home sign. Signed four lines of poetry, to the effect of peace in ordinary years. There are Buddhist believers all over the world. I think this is a philosophy that is inseparable from Buddhist culture, warnings to the world and urging people to be kind, and modern psychotherapy.

When I got home, my mother asked my daughter, were there many people today? The daughter said that there were many people, and the mother also said that she heard an aunt in the community say that she listened to her mother-in-law's words and went to burn incense today, and the pain in her hand bowl stopped.

The daughter didn’t understand the meaning of her grandma’s words. She only knew that her grandma meant that she didn’t take him with her to climb the mountain. She threw herself into her arms and said that the mountain was so high!