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262 Paper Donkey Clears the Way

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    From small bowls and plates to large freezers, these must be wrapped in red envelopes when they are returned to others.  Of course, the mother is in charge of the red envelopes.  For the sake of saving money, under normal circumstances, the money that the mother packs is quite small.  For example, many of the white coats worn by relatives and friends are borrowed from other people's homes.  Therefore, when returning after washing, my mother just stuffed a red envelope with a one-yuan coin in the pocket of each piece of clothing.

    Of course, returning things is not something that can be done in one day. After today's busy day is over, we will continue to pay off the borrowed things one by one.  After paying off the urgent tasks, we are going to prepare for another important thing that needs to be done this morning.

    As I mentioned to you before, when a group of relatives and friends came to pay homage, we specially invited the "family hall" for my father.  Of course, the "family hall" here does not refer to the main room at home, nor does it refer to the house where the ancestors' gods are placed or the ancestors' gods, but a prop that we must use in the process of doing funeral affairs here.  .  The "family hall" here is essentially a two-story western-style building made of bamboo poles and colored paper.  Inside the small western-style building, there are servants, tables and chairs, bedding, tableware, home appliances and so on.  It can be said that the necessary daily necessities of life in human life are almost complete.  This is an alternative reproduction of the luxury residences in people's real life.  Therefore, the people here call it "family hall", which means the main house where people can live in another world.

    Such a "family house" is meaningless in our world.  How can we make it play its due role?  In fact, the method is very simple, that is "burning".  It is said that after burning, such a "family hall" will be transported to another world and transformed into the real residence of the ancestors of the other world.  Therefore, "burning (burning) family halls with fire" has become a very important link in our funeral affairs here.

    "Huajiatang" is the highlight of our funeral here, just like "entering the coffin" depends on the time.  The time for "Huajiatang" for my father was set at around ten o'clock in the morning.

    After the preparations were made, a group of relatives and friends were summoned.  Of course, the people in the military band must also go with them.  Because, this "Huajiatang" is like holding a wedding event, what it wants is excitement.  Therefore, along the way, the music of the military band must not stop.

    Leading the way before the team is a "paper donkey" (a donkey made of bamboo poles and colored paper).  Of course, the "paper donkey" can't walk by itself, so someone has to find someone to hold it.  The person holding the "paper donkey" must be a child, and the child must have a close blood relationship with the deceased.  Under normal circumstances, the grandson or great-grandson of the deceased walks with the "paper donkey".  However, the father only had one granddaughter.  Thus, the problem arises from this.  Some people think that if there is only one granddaughter, then it is difficult for the granddaughter to take it.  However, the vast majority of people are against it.  They believe that only boys can hold "paper donkeys".  Therefore, in the end, let the father's grandson pick up the "paper donkey".  From this, it is not difficult to see how serious the feudal thought of "preferring boys to girls" is in the countryside.

    Immediately following the "paper donkey" is the colored paper "family hall".  From the appearance, this "family hall" is very similar to the sedan chair used for marriage in ancient times, but the internal structure is quite different.  On both sides of the "family hall", there is a bamboo pole extending out. These two bamboo poles are set up for the convenience of lifting the "family hall".  Therefore, the next thing to do is to determine who will carry the "family hall".  One person is needed at each end of each bamboo pole, so a total of four people are needed.  These four people are the same as the "paper donkey", all must be men.  Those who carry the "paper donkey" are children, while those who carry the "family hall" must be adults.  In the past, when there was no family planning, children were usually in groups. At that time, the four oldest sons were selected according to the ranking.  However, the father is only my son, so the question of who to choose is a bit troublesome.  There is no doubt that I am the best candidate for it.  The other three, after a quarrel, decided to determine their relationship with their father.  As the saying goes, the son-in-law is half the son-in-law, so the brother-in-law is the first to be determined.  The next two are the two of my father's three nephews.

    When carrying the "family hall", this position is also particular.  Those closest to each other must stand in the best position.  As for the left and right, the situation will be different in different occasions. Generally, the left is the most important in festive activities, while the right is the most respected in mourning.  So from front to back, from right to left are me, my brother-in-law and my father's two nephews.

    The other group of people followed the "family hall" in order.  Everything was ready, and amidst the sound of drums and music, the mighty team moved forward slowly.

    The first thing we are going to is not the destination of incineration, but the earth temple.  I've been wondering,??Why do you have to go to the Earth Temple before transforming the "family hall"?  Could it be that this side of the land can still manage things in the underworld?  Of course, it may also be that the local people hope to be blessed by the land so that the incinerated "family hall" can pass through time and space smoothly and be used by the ancestors.

    On the way, my daughter saw my nephew walking ahead with a "paper donkey". She thought it was fun, so envious, she also wanted to go up and play with the "paper donkey".  In the eyes of the two children, such an activity is nothing but fun.  Because neither of them was old enough to hold on to grief.  Perhaps, only when they learned of the death of their grandfather or grandfather, the young hearts of the two children were slightly touched.  At first, the wife refused to let her daughter come forward.  But inadvertently, the little guy ran to his nephew.  With my permission, my nephew and my daughter hopped and hopped ahead to lead the way.  Fortunately, such a situation has not been opposed and stopped by a group of old and stubborn people.

    Originally, turning the "family hall" into a "family hall" was done as a happy event.  This is also related to our customs here.  Under normal circumstances, after the age of fifty, a "happy funeral" can be done.  The so-called "happy burial" refers to treating the funeral as a happy event.  For example, the amusing show in the military band that disgusts me actually coincides with the custom of "happy burial".  Otherwise, marching band performances would not be popular here.  It's just that, now that living conditions and medical conditions are better, people's average life expectancy has greatly increased, and someone like my father who passed away in his early sixties is already considered young.  Therefore, the "joy" reflected in my father's funeral always makes me feel very uncomfortable.  (Remember the site URL: www.hlnovel.com
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