Author: Wang Wenqin 王文芹
My grandma is fifty-nine years old this year. Although her life has not been long, it has been filled with hardship and resilience. She was born into a large family with more than ten siblings. It was a time of material scarcity and difficult living conditions, and the family’s financial pressure made every child feel like a burden. In order to ease the family’s load, my grandma was sold to a wealthy household when she was still very young. At first, it was thought that this would allow her to live a better life, but reality was far from what was imagined. She did not become a cherished adopted daughter. Instead, she became a domestic servant, responsible for cleaning, cooking, and taking care of other children in the household.
Despite the hardship, my grandma never complained about the unfairness of fate. She often said, “As long as I could eat my fill, it was enough. At least I learned many things back then.” Perhaps it was those difficult years that forged her diligence and endurance, and nurtured the resilience she later showed when facing life’s adversities.
As time passed, I grew up and gradually came to understand my grandma’s past. What surprised me was that although she had been sold away at a young age, she did not cut ties with her biological family. On the contrary, she continued to keep in contact with her birth mother and siblings. She often took me to visit her aunts and uncles and would speak of her biological mother. It is said that when I was two years old, my grandma’s mother was already in a wheelchair, physically weak and almost bedridden. For more than twenty years, she relied on the care of her family, until the year I entered university, when she passed away peacefully.
Most of my grandma’s siblings live stable lives now, especially several of her aunts, whose families are quite well-off and who take very good care of my grandma. At every family gathering, everyone greets her warmly and shares updates about their lives. Through them, I see the deep bonds between family members, and I feel that although my grandma was once forced to leave her birth family, she has always remained tightly connected to them through affection.
However, fate did not seem to show her any special favour despite her efforts. When she was young, my grandma met and fell in love with my grandpa. The two started from nothing and worked hard together to build their lives. Those days were difficult, but they supported each other and still had their own small moments of happiness. I remember that when I was young, I often stayed at my grandma’s house. The home was always filled with laughter, the kitchen scented with the food my grandma cooked, while my grandpa was busy working or playing with me. I always thought those days would last forever.
But life’s turning points often come suddenly. One year, my grandpa suffered a stroke, an accident that completely changed the fate of the family. He could no longer work, the business stalled, and income gradually declined. The burden of life fell entirely on my grandma’s shoulders. From that moment on, she not only had to care for her bedridden husband, but also support the entire family. The financial pressure and emotional exhaustion once left her looking worn down, yet she never gave up. My grandma often says, “Life’s hardships are meant to temper the heart. No matter how hard the days are, you still have to endure.”
After the stroke, my grandpa’s temper became irritable, and quarrels between the couple gradually increased. I was still young then and often felt afraid when I saw them argue. Looking back now, I understand that it was not hatred, but a struggle born of helplessness. Although my grandma endured many grievances, she never chose to leave. Even now, with my grandpa having been bedridden for many years, my grandma still takes meticulous care of him every day; turning him over, feeding him, and wiping his body.
Even with such a difficult life, my grandma continues to worry about us, the younger generation. She often reminds me to study hard and not be constrained by circumstances the way she was when she was young. For the sake of my education, she was even willing to take out her savings to support me during times of financial difficulty. Every time I think of this, I feel deeply moved.
Now that I have gradually grown up, I have gained a deeper understanding of my grandma’s life. Her life is like a tree that continues to stand tall in wind and rain—though it has weathered countless storms, it remains strong and upright.
I hope that during my grandma’s remaining years, I can help her live a little more easily, so that she no longer has to struggle for daily survival or worry about others, but can simply enjoy the peaceful later years that belong to her.
我的阿嬤今年五十九歲，她的一生雖不算漫長，卻充滿了艱辛與堅毅。她出生在一個人口眾多
的大家庭，兄弟姐妹多達十幾個。那是一個物資匱乏、生活困苦的年代，家裡的經濟壓力讓每
一個孩子都成為負擔。為了減輕家庭的重擔，阿嬤在年幼的時候被賣到一戶大戶人家。原本以
為那會是一個能讓她過上好生活的地方，但現實卻不如想像。她並沒有成為被疼愛的養女，而
是成為了家中的女傭，負責打掃、煮飯、照顧其他孩子。
儘管生活艱苦，阿嬤從未抱怨過命運的不公。她總是說：「能吃飽就好，至少那時我學會了很多
事情。」也許正是那段艱難的歲月，讓她練就了一身勤奮耐勞的本領，也培養了她後來面對生
活困境時的韌性。
隨著時間流逝，我長大了，也漸漸懂得阿嬤過去的故事。讓我感到意外的是，阿嬤雖然年幼時
被賣走，但她並沒有與原生家庭斷絕聯繫。相反地，她依然與親生母親及兄弟姐妹們保持著來
往。她常常帶我去探望那些姨婆、舅公，也會提起她的生母。據說在我兩歲的時候，阿嬤的母
親已經坐在輪椅上，身體虛弱，幾乎臥病在床。二十多年來，她都靠著家人的照顧度日，直到
我上大學那年，她安詳地離開人世。
阿嬤的兄弟姐妹們大多生活穩定，特別是幾位姨婆，她們的家境都相當殷實，也非常照顧阿
嬤。每次家庭聚會，大家總是親切地問候她，分享生活點滴。從她們身上，我看見了家人之間
深厚的情感，也感受到阿嬤雖然曾被迫離開原生家庭，卻仍被親情緊緊牽繫著。
然而，命運似乎並沒有因她的努力而特別眷顧她。年輕時，阿嬤和阿公相識、相戀，兩人白手
起家，一起創業打拼。那段日子雖然辛苦，但他們相互扶持，也曾擁有屬於自己的小幸福。記
得我小時候，常常待在阿嬤家。那時的家總是充滿歡笑，廚房裡飄著阿嬤煮菜的香氣，阿公則
忙著工作或與我玩耍。我一直以為這樣的日子會永遠持續下去。
但人生的轉折總來得突然，某一年，阿公中風了，意外改變了整個家庭的命運。阿公無法再工
作，事業因此停滯不前，收入也日漸減少。生活的重擔全落在阿嬤肩上。從那時起，她不僅要
照顧臥病的丈夫，還要撐起整個家。經濟壓力與精神疲憊讓她一度憔悴，但她始終沒有放棄。
阿嬤常說：「人生的苦是練心的，日子再難，也得撐下去。」
中風後的阿公脾氣變得暴躁，夫妻之間的爭吵漸漸多了起來。那時我還小，常常害怕看到他們
吵架。如今回想起來，我明白那不是怨恨，而是無力的掙扎。阿嬤雖然受了許多委屈，卻從未
選擇離開。直到現在，阿公已臥病在床多年，阿嬤仍然每日悉心照料，為他翻身、餵飯、擦身。
即使生活如此艱難，阿嬤仍然掛念著我們這些晚輩。她時常叮嚀我要努力念書，不要像她年輕
時那樣被環境限制。為了我的學業，她甚至在生活拮据時還願意拿出積蓄資助我，每當想到這
裡，我總覺得很感動。
如今我已慢慢長大，對阿嬤的生命有了更深的理解。她的人生就像一棵在風雨中依然挺立的
樹，雖然經歷無數風霜，卻始終堅強地活著。
我希望在阿嬤的有生之年，我能讓她過得輕鬆一點，讓她不再為生活奔波，不再為誰操心，只
需享受屬於她的晚年時光。