Minshin - A mind that is difficult to control

Painting at dawn

A delightful incident.

I don't know why... To this day, there's not a single specific memory left in my mind. I've replayed that incident over and over again, countless times. Every now and then, the details that I'd almost forgotten would come to light.

It was a clear morning. The long mountains in the east were dark blue, and the light was beginning to come out behind them. The mountain peaks seemed to be edged with a faint red. The light on the eastern peaks grew fainter and fainter as they rose into the sky, then gradually became darker and darker... darker and darker, until, as they reached the western horizon, they were enveloped in the darkness of absolute night.

It was not too cold, but it was a little chilly, so he walked with his hands in his coat pockets and his back slightly bent. The soil in the large field he was walking on was a light brown in the early morning light.

As he walked, he saw a small hut, just a cowshed, right in front of him.

On the side of the hut, a small orange flame rose from the fireplace... and from that flame, small brown smoke billowed upward, and when it reached a fairly high point in the sky... it disappeared into the mist.

He saw a woman sitting cross-legged by the fireplace. The woman was actually a child, and in this cold early morning, she was wearing only a turban.

As he slowly walked forward, he saw the baby curled up in the arms of the old woman, nursing the baby to relieve the cold. The old woman was constantly feeding the fire with twigs and twigs, so as not to reduce the heat, and was staring intently at the small pot on the stove. The baby was also constantly sucking milk. However, he was curled up quietly, without disturbing his mother in the slightest.

The mother's movements were light and graceful, indicating that she was becoming accustomed to the new surroundings. The orange flames in the fireplace flickered and danced on the small tent beside her.

As he got closer, he could smell the warm, delicious smell of rice. At that moment, the light in the east began to shine with rapid speed. He approached the woman and stopped near the stove.

At that moment, a young man came out of the small hut, followed by an old man in front and behind him. Both of them were shirtless, wearing only short loincloths. Their faces were somewhat similar. Both of them stood quietly at the entrance to the hut, looking at the faint rays of sunlight in the east, and then they yawned. Then they turned to the stove and noticed the young man.

“So early... Where are you from, teacher?” the old man asked. His voice was neither friendly nor rude.

"I just came here to find out... I just came to say that I didn't want to come this way," the young man, dressed stylishly in a coat, wool hat, and scarf, politely replied.

The old man and the young man walked to the stove and started to warm themselves. The old woman, however, was busy with her work, her attention focused on the earthen pot on the stove. Her long hair was tied back with a string to keep it out of her face, and sometimes it would hang around her neck as she worked. After a while, she took the earthen pot off the stove with a towel and poured the rice soup into a bowl. Then, she put the pot back on the stove, added a little salt to the bowl, and stirred it. When the rice soup in the bowl spread out fragrantly, both men sighed with delight, and the old man, the host, said in a hungry voice. The old man said.....

"Teachers, we'll have coffee early in the morning."

He said.

“Yes. But when U Kyi Ya comes to this village, he doesn’t drink.”

"So... why don't you come and have some rice and soup with us?"

The old man said, "Do you like what I say?"

The guests were also delighted because he was so polite.

“Ha... drink it, Uncle Kyi.. it will be good.”

“Hey, ma’am. I’d like another glass.”

"The young man of the house ordered the young woman. Then the four of them gathered around the stove and sat down, leaning against it, and began to enjoy the hot rice soup that the young woman had served them.

“Uncle and I work in the fields,” the young guest asked.

"Yes. A farmer... he only works in the fields."

“We are just starting to plow the fields today,” the young man, the landlord, said.

Then the young woman, who had not said a word, said with a smile, “That’s why Father and Brother got up early on purpose.” Then the old man and the young man inadvertently looked down at the bowls of rice soup in their hands.

"That's it... our family can eat a lot, right?"

The old man whispered to the child.

The young woman was holding the child in one arm. She offered more rice soup to her father and Ko Nyo, and when she said kindly, "Please add more," the young guest did not refuse and accepted the cup.

The baby in the mother's arms was quietly sucking the milk. The baby's head was tightly pressed between the mother's breast and arms, seeking protection from the cold. The baby's sucking sound was a soft, gurgling sound.

The old man was drinking rice wine with a shy smile. What he was drinking was...

"Well... even the rice soup is delicious... Teacher Lay."

"He said," he said. Then the young man...

"Teacher, we can't even drink this little rice and water," he said, sounding like a complainer.

As they talked and drank, their cold bodies began to feel warm, and their faces began to show signs of renewed energy.

At this time, the light was becoming more colorful. The red color seemed to make the world feel even cooler. The two hosts turned their faces to the east, their faces shining with the morning light. The young man looked in the direction they were facing and saw a beautiful mountain standing in the light. But when he looked back at the host's face, he saw that the sun was shining in his clear, round eyes.

At that moment, the two hosts spread their arms and said, “Now… it’s time for us to go to work.” The young man turned to the guest and…

"Teacher... would you like to watch us plow the fields?"

I asked.

“No. I’ll go back to Sha, it was a pleasure to eat and drink with you all.., thank you... I’ll come back later.”

The host said, “No need to thank me.”

After shaking his big hand with the meaning,

"Come anytime... Just like we eat... you guys need to eat and drink."

He said.

Then the two, who looked like father and son, went to the large field and prepared the oxen and plows. In the eastern sky, the light was shining intermittently, illuminating the vast fields with an unpredictable end.

The young guest, along with a group of farmer couples, glanced at the hut and walked towards the village.

* * *

That's it. He understood why it was so exciting. So to this day, he still remembers nothing specific. He has replayed the incident countless times. Every now and then, the details, almost forgotten, would come back to him in vivid detail.

A delightful little incident...

Shumawa, July, 1948.