Do you believe it? A 5-year-old boy would “kill” his biological father in his heart. Don’t be in a hurry to scold him for being cruel. If you open the Brazilian national book My Sweet Orange Tree, you will not only not blame him, but even see the deepest shadow of your childhood in the little boy named Zeze. It makes us cry in laughter and understand what “gentleness” is in tears.
The protagonist of the story is Zeze, a little boy who is only 5 years old and his brain is full of fantasy. He is naughty, and adults call him a “little devil born at Christmas”. Because the family was very poor, my father was unemployed and my mother worked in the factory. The family has no extra patience, and Zeze has become the punching bag of the whole family. Every time he is naughty, he is beaten up.
Through Zeze’s childlike eyes, we see the cruelest truth in the adult world – violence is often the venting of the weak to the weak. When you open the book, you will find that Zeze’s “bad” is actually a child who is extremely unloved and desperately asking for help.
The sweet orange tree that can talk, the last refuge
Since there was nowhere to escape in reality, Zeze built a shelter for himself, that is, the sweet orange tree in the backyard. He can ride on a branch and imagine that it is a galloping horse; he can lean on the trunk and tell it everything he has in his heart. In the book, the sweet orange tree is Zeze’s only spiritual sustenance. Only in that fantasy world can he not feel the coldness of his fist, and can he fully express the grievances accumulated in his heart.
This sweet orange tree is actually the “non-speaking friend” in each of our childhood.
Maybe it’s the sewn puppet at the head of the bed, or maybe it’s a silent brick in the corner of the wall. When the whole world is misunderstanding you, the “non-speaking friend” is the whole reason why you can live. Zeze’s self-talk under the tree is innocent on the surface, but unspeakable loneliness below.
The miracle seen
Fortunately, Zeze’s dark life finally showed a ray of light. He met a Portuguese named “Old Portuguese”, an adult who was really willing to squat down and listen to him. Lao Portuguese will not scold him for “lying” because he is full of fantasies, let alone fight with him. He will listen patiently to his “childish” words, and even take his every little wish seriously.
Zeze even asked Lao Portuguese innocently,
“Can you buy me? In this way, there will be one less mouth to eat at home.
I feel a little uncomfortable when I see this sentence. When a child would rather be “bought out” than go home, you should be able to guess how deeply the so-called “home” has hurt him.
And Lao Portuguese’s gentleness, like the sun in winter, gradually smoothed out the wounds in Zeze’s heart; and like a sweet spring, moistened his dry little heart, bringing hope and courage to live to this child who was about to be unable to stand.
Please be gentle
So, why should we watch the tragic childhood of a 5-year-old boy? Because Zeze’s story is never just his experience. There are too many childhoods that are not understood and too many children who lack love.
Unfortunately, Zeze saw the face of poverty and violence too early; but he was also lucky because he met Lao Portuguese, the man who could shine in the dark. After reading this book, you will have a strong impulse to hug the naughty child around you, or hug the once misunderstood self. Behind every “devil” child, there is a heart that longs to be loved. Life without gentleness is meaningless.
If you feel lonely and helpless now, if you are having a headache about how to educate your children, if you have long forgotten what you were like when you were a child, then read My Sweet Orange Tree. It will make you believe that no matter how cold the world is, no matter how difficult life is, as long as there is a little gentle light, it is enough to penetrate the darkness and illuminate the whole life; as long as there is a love that is seen, it is enough to heal all wounds and warm every day in the future.
