daily quirks

Chapter 73 Misunderstood "Extremely Poor Students"

How much does poverty affect a person?

Take the example of the poor.Yan Hui is Confucius' favorite disciple. Yan Hui's living conditions are very difficult and poor, but Confucius once praised him: "One sack of food, one ladle of drink, in the back alleys, people can't bear their worries, and they can't change their joys when they return. .” This is what Confucius praised as “being peaceful and happy in poverty”.

But what about real life?What kind of impact does poverty have on a person?How much difference is there between a person who has been poor all his life and who was once poor?

I told the story of the extremely poor student before, now let's talk about the other people in the story.

In my class, there is such a classmate named Xiaofeng.

Xiaofeng is an applicant for a subsidy for extremely poor students.

My classmates and I used to think that Xiaofeng should be the kind of child whose family is too poor to support the tuition and living expenses of a college student for a whole year.We have always taken care of Xiaofeng as long as we can. If we can prevent her from paying a lot of expenses, then we will not let her pay.

But later, I discovered that Xiaofeng's family was not as poor as we imagined.

Xiaofeng is a child born in the countryside. Like most children born in the countryside, there are many children in the family and not much money in the family.Xiaofeng is the youngest child in the family. It can be said that when Xiaofeng goes to school, basically, the savings in the family are only enough to pay Xiaofeng's tuition, and other expenses can no longer be paid.Because that's what Xiaofeng wrote in her application.

But after we got acquainted with Xiaofeng, we learned that this fact was not what was written in the application.

Xiaofeng was indeed not born in a city, but she was not born in a rural area either, but a small county town along the coast.Although there are many children in the family, they are not to the point where they can only afford tuition fees after spending all they have.Not to mention receiving the subsidy for this extremely poor student, there is no need for it at all. Xiaofeng's family pays for the tuition and other expenses, and can give Xiaofeng as much pocket money as a girl from a normal family.

So we think that Xiaofeng is a greedy person.

It wasn't until one time, when I accidentally went to Xiaofeng's house, that I realized that Xiaofeng's life was indeed full of helplessness.

The first time I went to Xiaofeng's house, I didn't think about eating at Xiaofeng's house or anything, I just went to deliver things, and left after delivery.But when Xiaofeng's parents saw me coming, they surrounded me and started asking about my family situation, my parents' jobs, their real estate and savings.

When Xiaofeng's parents learned that I was just a child from an ordinary family, they began to ignore me, and told Xiaofeng loudly that they were poor, so don't bring poor friends here if you have nothing to do.

I was instantly surprised by this, because in my opinion, although Xiaofeng has applied for the subsidy for extremely poor students, in daily life, Xiaofeng is not a snobbish person who dislikes the poor and loves the rich. In their family, they are not considered poor friends.Besides, I didn't think about eating and getting things at Xiaofeng's house, so I don't need to say that, right?
Xiaofeng didn't respond to her parents' words, but quickly picked up my things, put them away, and dragged me out.We found a coffee house and chatted about Xiaofeng's life for so many years.

With a look of shock on my face, I heard Xiaofeng's statement: "When I was born, my parents told me that my family was very poor, so we couldn't afford many things, such as other friends' toys, snacks, We can't afford drinks."

"When I wanted new clothes for the first time, my mother would say, Feng, our family is very poor and we have no money to buy new clothes. Look, this is the coat your cousin wore last year. It's still very new. Here it is Wear it, it looks good. I just realized that all the old clothes I wore before were not worn by others or not needed. I thought our family was really poor."

"When I went to kindergarten, I saw other children had new clothes, snacks, drinks, and small toys. I was very envious of them, but I remembered what my mother said. Our family is poor and cannot buy these. .”

"When I was brought to my cousin's house by my mother for the first time, I saw that my cousin's house ate meat every day, a lot of meat, and there were many dishes on the table. Unlike our house, there were only two dishes for a meal. There are still leftovers. There are a lot of leftovers. They are reheated until they are too salty, and they are eaten as pickles. Mom will throw them away only when they are spoiled. I asked my mother why my cousin’s family can eat meat every day. My mother said, Because our family is poor and cannot afford meat."

"I saw with my own eyes that my mother asked my aunt for old clothes that my cousin didn't wear, and she was very happy to put them on me. I didn't want to wear them, but my mother still said me. At this time, my aunt said, your mother won't even buy you new clothes Is it? I have to come here every time to ask for it."

"I said, my mother said that our family is poor and cannot afford new clothes."

"Auntie said, your family is not poor, but your mother is poor at heart."

"I don't understand, but my mother didn't let me ask any more. She took me and a pile of old clothes, and rushed home. I didn't know until that night that my mother had asked for leftovers from my aunt's house. The first thing we did at night Back to the meat. The meat is delicious."

"When I was in elementary school, although it was compulsory education and there was no tuition fee, I had to pay for textbooks and practice fees. I asked my mother for it, and my mother said, let me tell the teacher that we are poor and have no money to pay."

"I thought I would get the book after I said this, so I rushed to tell the teacher the next day. As a result, not only did I get the book, but I also got a lot of blank stares."

"Since then, in the six years of elementary school, I have not paid for books or practice, and I have never received normal attention from the teacher."

"I'm a little kid, wearing clothes my cousin doesn't wear, my mother doesn't wear clothes, my aunt doesn't wear clothes, I look like a little grown-up."

"Every time I buy shoes, I have to buy two sizes up. From the time when the shoes are kicked out in physical education class, to the red and swollen toes when I walk every day, I can only buy new ones. However, the new shoes are only ten yuan on the street. It’s nothing more than a 20 yuan white shoe. And because of this shoe, I’ve been called “flying with shoes” for more than ten years.”

"When I arrived at school, I realized that everyone takes a bath every day, not once a week like our family. It turns out that everyone's underwear is changed every day, not once a week. It turns out that everyone's underwear They are all made of cotton, which is very comfortable to wear, unlike mine, which are made of chemical fiber, and the skin turns red when rubbed."

"But when I want to take a bath once a day like everyone else, my mother starts to scold me, saying that I don't know how to save money. Our family is poor, so how can I take a bath every day?"

"I don't understand. Could it be that if you are poor, you can not pay attention to hygiene and take a bath once every seven days?"

"When I was in junior high school, all the girls started to develop. I was the only girl in the class, and I was wearing an adult's bra, because it was my mother's. My mother thought that girls' penis developed very quickly, and they would soon be unable to wear a vest. Now, it’s easier to just start wearing bras.”

"That's why I didn't dare to walk with my head up and chest out all through junior high school. I could only lower my head and keep my chest in my mouth when doing anything, just like an old man."

"When my aunt came, I panicked. I asked my mother what to do? Why did I bleed? My mother said it didn't matter, just put paper on it. She also gave me a roll of toilet paper and asked me to put it in my pants. But the paper absorbs The strength is not good, and it soaks quickly, so I often go to the toilet to change it in the middle of the class, otherwise the pants will be full of blood. At that time, I wondered why no one else went to class to change the paper What? Later, when I went to the toilet, I realized that everyone used sanitary napkins."

"When I was in high school, my mother knew that I had passed the compulsory education and needed to pay tuition. At this time, I started to apply for the subsidy for extremely poor students. At that time, although the list of subsidy was not announced, it was in the teaching When I was the only one who didn’t have a small ticket, everyone knew that I was the extremely poor student.”

"At that time, everyone was old and had self-esteem. I asked my mother why I had to apply for a subsidy for extremely poor students. My mother said that because our family was poor and couldn't afford the tuition fees."

"At that time, everyone's minds were between mature and immature, and everyone was quite concerned about my status as an extremely poor student. Usually, everyone would stay away from me. Sometimes, my books were dropped, and I didn't care about them. People dare to pick it up for me. I am very surprised, I don’t have the plague, why do you hide from me like this?”

"Later I found out that everyone knew that I was a very poor student. They were afraid of joking with me and broke my things. I had no money to buy them. Knowing that I had no money, I couldn't make jokes. Because of this, the teacher asked the class committee to Take good care of me, so everyone is even more afraid to communicate with me, for fear of hurting me with words."

"At that time, in order to encourage everyone to participate in the sports meeting, the school gave a bonus to students who broke records and had special events. My mother knew about it and forced me to apply for the events. After knowing that there were many people in other events, she forced me I applied for a 1500-meter long-distance race, because no one applied for this event.”

"I couldn't beat my mother, so I applied for this event. When I applied, I realized that the 1500-meter race is a special event. As long as you win the award, you can get a bonus. When everyone saw that I applied, they all showed a sense of reason and The expression I expected."

"But on the day of the competition, something went wrong. I had my period the day before the competition. I asked my mother if I could not participate. My mother said, run, there are not many people, and you will get money when you reach the finish line. Pay more A few pieces of paper and you'll be fine."

"So on that day, it was just me with a bulging crotch. When I was running, the inferior paper rubbed against my body. It was as uncomfortable as it was. The more uncomfortable thing was still to come. Because of the strenuous exercise and the increased flow, the paper gradually Soaked, blood started to appear on the back of my ass, I heard the screams from the stands and I thought it was weird I wasn't running fast."

"Later, I ran and ran, and my stomach hurt more and more, and I passed out directly. When I woke up, I saw the school doctor's contemptuous eyes, and asked me disdainfully, can the extremely poor students even afford sanitary napkins? ?”

"I didn't know what to do, so I got up and said goodbye. Because my back was soaked, I had to take off my coat and tie it around my waist to cover the blood on my pants."

"But I never imagined that this matter made me famous in school. Everyone knows that I am the extremely poor student who has no money to buy sanitary napkins. For a little prize money in the competition, I ignored my period and forced myself to participate. As a result, he fainted."

"Because of this, the school women's federation specially bought me a lot of free sanitary napkins left over from the school's hygiene knowledge popularization."

"At that time, I used sanitary napkins for the first time. When I looked at the packaging and laid the sanitary napkins, I found that this is really a good thing, and I no longer have to go to the toilet all the time."

"When I went to college, my mother didn't bring me a lot of money or other things, but asked me to take all the ones I used at home so that I didn't need to buy new ones. So wait When I got on the train, I was the only long-distance traveler with buckets, washbasins, toothbrush cups, towels and bedding. Bigger than these was the box of old clothes, including my mother’s and my aunt’s. Yes, my sister’s, and even my cousin’s. Besides these, my mother only gave me 500 yuan, and told me that if I went to the school to apply for the extremely poor students, the tuition fee could be reduced.”

"I didn't know until I arrived at the school that the school's extremely poor students were not exempted from tuition fees, but more than 1000 yuan a year in living allowances."

"My mother was very angry when she knew about this, but she still helped me to pay for the remaining tuition fees. It was just living expenses, and my mother didn't give it to me."

"So I can only start working in various places to make a living."

"I said that the money from part-time jobs was pocket money from my parents. I just wanted everyone not to look down on me like they did in high school."

I listened to Xiaofeng's words and saw Xiaofeng's expressionless face recalling such a sad thing, but my heart was full of doubts.According to Xiaofeng, Xiaofeng's family should be quite poor, but the house where Xiaofeng lives does not match the decoration of the house and the situation Xiaofeng said, so I asked Xiaofeng: "But I think Your family is not so..."

"It's not that poor, right? In fact, our family is not poor at all. It can be said that our family still has a little money." Xiaofeng said to me nonchalantly when he heard this: "My mother used our family's money to pay the price. When it was low, I bought a lot of gold and kept it.”

"That……"

"My aunt is right. Our family is not poor at all, but poor in heart." Xiaofeng looked at the lamp above her head and asked me, "Xiao Da, do you turn on the lights at night?"

"Of course the lights are turned on at night... How can there be people who don't turn on the lights at night?"

"Our house doesn't open. As far as I can remember, our house is pitch black at night. The whole family gathers to watch TV, and then I do my homework by the faint light of the TV." Xiaofeng sneered, Completely ignoring my surprised face, I continued: "My mother is so poor that she doesn't want to spend anything. She only knows how to save money. If she can't spend it, she won't spend it. Don't say it's to me, even she is to herself. , it’s all like this.”

Xiaofeng looked into my eyes and continued: "So sometimes my mother would tell me, Feng, poor friends should not teach me how to make friends. Our family is poor, so don't let others come to take advantage of you. I said, Mom, no one wants to take advantage."

After Xiaofeng finished speaking, she bid farewell to me, saying that she was going home, otherwise she would have to watch the materials I sent by the light of the TV.I didn't even have time to say goodbye to Xiaofeng.

With a wry smile, I called the waiter to pay the bill, turned around and left the coffee shop.

It seems that psychological poverty is really much more terrifying than physical poverty.

(End of this chapter)