After the death of her spouse and with children working outside, an old woman felt lonely at home. On Laba Festival, she sent a text message to herself to get through the day. Luckily, her daughter returned in time for the Spring Festival's Eve. This year's Spring Festival was the first one that retired teacher Cao Houqing spent alone after the death of her spouse. On Laba Festival, after much thought, tears streamed down her face. In loneliness, she sent a text message to herself to ease her sorrowful mood and got through Laba Festival. Luckily, on the Spring Festival's Eve, her daughter and her family drove 17 hours from Shenzhen to Wuhan and kept her company for a reunion dinner.
Cao, who is 63 years old and lives in Xinzhou, has a son and a daughter. Her son settled in Canada while her daughter lived in Shenzhen. After retirement, Cao lived with her husband. Three years ago, her husband died unexpectedly. In the past two years, seeing their mother living alone, her children invited her to live abroad and in Shenzhen for two years. This year, Cao decided to spend the Spring Festival at home in Xinzhou. However, her children said they were too busy to return home.
This year, she politely declined her children's invitation and went home for the Spring Festival. Cao is outgoing and leads a fulfilling life. She practices Tai Chi in the morning, participates in choir activities in the afternoon, and dances in the evening. Unexpectedly, on the night of Laba Festival, she suddenly became overwhelmed with sadness while alone at home. Thinking about the once lively family now reduced to just her, tears involuntarily flowed...
While crying, Cao suddenly woke up and decided to find a way out of her bad mood. She took out her mobile phone, wrote a long text message, and sent it to another mobile phone of hers. In the text message, she consoled herself thoroughly. "Dingdong", when the other mobile phone received the text message she sent, Cao cheered up and her mood improved immediately.
The text message Cao sent to herself read: "Thinking this way will drive me to hit the wall, turn back quickly! Tell myself to cheer up! Wipe away my tears and don't be sad, think back quickly!... Think about my children, daughters-in-law, grandchildren, granddaughters, and great-grandchildren, they all live in the same global village, isn't it equivalent to celebrating the New Year with me? I am not lonely! Relatives and friends will come on the first, second, and third days of the New Year... Old people must use the spirit of victory like Ah Q to dispel pain and烦恼, right? Please remember: even if it's the last day of life, live well, that's the most important!!!"
Cao later said she wanted to introduce this method to other empty-nest elders through the evening paper, trying to improve their mindset.
Her daughter returned to celebrate the New Year
On the night of Laba Festival, her son made a transoceanic call, hearing that his mother sent a text message to herself, he sobbed for a long time. He apologized to his mother and reminded her to take care of her body.
And on the Spring Festival's Eve, her daughter and her family got up at 2 a.m., started driving from Shenzhen, and drove non-stop for 17 hours, finally returning home in Xinzhou on the night of the Spring Festival's Eve. Ms. Xu, Cao's daughter, said yesterday to the reporter that her child was still young, and there were too many things at home. In fact, she had always wanted to go home to celebrate the New Year with her mother, but she didn't dare to promise because she didn't want to disappoint her if they couldn't make it. The day before the Spring Festival, they rushed to finish their work and set off at midnight, finally making it back.
Ms. Xu said that she really didn't know her mother sent text messages to herself. Now hearing this, she felt a lump in her throat. In the future, no matter how far or busy, she would insist on accompanying her mother every Spring Festival.
Reporter Li Hongying