A Bonquet of Lilies

At that time, our site was in Liangshan, Sichuan, building reservoirs and power stations. Old Wang was transferred from another site, he, an old railroad worker, was a Sichuanese from Ankang, Shaanxi. Ankang nationality because of the construction of the railroad in Shaanxi settled, but his origin is still Sichuan.

Uncle 50 years old. This is his second time on Liangshan, although it is the construction of reservoirs, but also for the people of Liangshan to build a bright road to happiness. The first time he went to Liangshan was to build the Chengkun Railway, known as the "Geological Museum", when he was young, like a speeding train. For decades, this once youthful train in its tracks constantly doing acceleration, and now, already two temples soaked in frost, and ran back to the starting station.

Old Uncle Wang is a "rare" character in our work class. Not only because he is our uncle generation, the main thing is that like the uncle like the old workers, at that time is already as few as the morning star. Uncle this train is not yet retired, may be his physical condition is good, may also be the unit "pass, help, lead" and other coordination factors it.

From the appearance, uncle and his peers are similar, dress is very plain, always gray pile, if he has to walk alone, far away in the site of the dirt road, that is a pile of dirt stood up, in the earth running.

Uncle's height is not too tall, but the strength is quite large. The geological structure of Daliang Mountain is very complex, in the construction site of the diversion cave, once the palm surface blasting, then have to support, almost a step a protection; the use of steel arch support. The crescent-shaped arch is divided into two pieces, and each piece is carried by two people towards the palm surface. Uncle is not, a person carrying the steel frame against the smoke and stepping on the ballast stone on the "flush", like walking on the ground.

Uncle's track record is glorious, is our spiritual conversion. He and his generation of road builders, in our hearts symbolize the new Chinese railroad, their lives are closely linked to the history of railroad construction in new China.

Uncle has been a railroad worker for decades, and the construction site is his home. In casual conversation, we know that although he has a wife, children, the old family also has old friends, but his family has never come to his site, his workplace. For decades, in addition to a month a year to visit relatives back home, there is no other opportunity and time to reunite with the family.

Sometimes I wonder, since the uncles symbolize the new Chinese railroad, so the rails are hard and cold, is it that the uncles' emotional life is also cold, hard or numb?

Although the uncle is one of us, but he participated in the construction of such as Chengkun, Yangan, Xiyan, Ankang hydropower station and so on national as well as provincial and ministerial key projects. Every key project they have built is a huge maze. To us, the authentic "Made in China" train in front of us is really mysterious and unpredictable.

Before that, most of the road construction workers lived in the same shed with dozens or tens of people. In Liangshan, because of the construction of the reservoir, mobility is smaller, and living conditions are relatively stable and spacious, with relative personal space. Although Uncle and I were on the same shift, we did not live together.

Once, I turned around in the dormitory area, a foot into the dormitory where old Uncle Wang lived. Soon, I was frozen at the door.

Inside the house, the space owned by the uncle was very different from the old days. Facing the window of that furniture we all have, that is, the dining table coffee table and multi-purpose cabinet of the wooden compartment, this furniture is usually supported by broken cement blocks on the floor of the Oh Oh Tata. Usually, the top is full of bowls, cups, and other miscellaneous items. Now, a bunch of flowers in full bloom but just like a "table".

This flower is something I have not seen before. It is very bright, because the light is so bright, it feels like it is taking over the whole room. The flowers are very white, in a trance, there is a faint green dotted in between, may be the flower support it; the light green reflect the flowers more white.

Obviously, the flowers are just picked back.

The white petals are graceful and wide, and there are drops of crystal droplets on the top in the lingering, in the ticking. The flowers were very full, and the whole room was dark and fragrant.

I immediately realized that the dormitory, which had been rendered in front of me, was secretly flowing with the words of Uncle's heart.

The team of the road construction army is called the "pure yang land", the gentle, feminine side can only be promoted in a very small corner. The work of the road construction workers are very busy. The closest relationship with us, is always the schedule, progress, safety; day shift, night shift; night shift, day shift ...... dormitory, life, can appear such "blooming" flowers, is rare.

I was told that the bouquet of graceful, full, white, beautiful life is the lily of the valley.

After this, I recognized the other side behind the rough and unpretentious old Uncle Wang. A bouquet of white lilies accidentally knocked open the heart of the uncle was shielded from the tender feelings, the original uncle the "national" train of feelings of the world is also exquisite, delicate and full.

Later one day, with a light rain overhead, I walked alone on the construction dirt road, occasionally looked up, I saw the hillside bushes, quietly blooming with a beautiful white lily. The lilies in the bushes are not as graceful as the lilies that used to "bloom" in Uncle's dormitory, and it looks slender. It is like a roaming dancer, in the mountains and fields, graceful, floating.

The encounter with this white, this pure, is like listening to a song of heavenly music.

This encounter with lilies made me think once again of the "blooming" lilies in Uncle Wang's dormitory. At that time, the construction project has been implemented team contracting, independent accounting, the work schedule also broke the three shift system, the use of the work system is called shift, that is to say, whether day or night, we are in the "critical" work state at all times, very busy. Uncle's age is so old, the mountain peaks stretching, the village is sparse, and how he will be over the mountains, "a thousand miles to find him" to pick the bunch of warm!

I left the road construction site due to illness, a wink, it has been nearly twenty years. Whenever I think of my workmate, Uncle Wang, I think of lilies; I think, the beautiful blooming lilies, is not the "China-made train" Uncle Wang pure road construction heart?