The 96-year-old Caretaker

By Yu Jiacheng

It is a chilly early autumn day in the mountainous village.72-year-old Ren Caimei sits in a wheelchair, looking far into the panoramic hills in the distance.“Caimei, a bit cold?” Another whitehaired old woman briskly fetches a coat and covers her. Then the old woman helps comb Caimei’s hair into a central parting style, the same as her own, using a water-dipped wooden comb while humming songs.

This white-haired old woman has been taking care of the paralyzed Ren Caimei for the past 28 years. Her name is Sun Yincong, the 96-year-old mother-in-law of Mei.

The Bond Between the In-laws

Sun Yincong lives in Tai’an Village,Guwei Town of Ruicheng County in Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province. She lives a simple but happy life. She’d never imagined the disasters that piled up in the latter part of her life. In the winter of 1989, Sun Yincong’s husband passed away because of an illness.Ten days right after the funeral, her 47-year-old son Gao Jianjun died of a gas leakage in his home. In an age when she was supposed to enjoy the peace of life, the 68-year-old Sun Yincong suffered from the loss of both her husband and son within two weeks of one another. The double tragedy hit her and confined her to her bed temporarily. At the same time, Ren Caimei, her daughter-in-law, also fell ill after the shock.

In such miserable days, Sun Yincong and Ren Caimei had only each other to count on. But Ren Caimei did not have the same mental fortitude as Sun Yincong. Her son and daughter in their early twenties were working far away and rarely returned home. The sudden loss of her husband struck her deeply. She repeatedly murmured,“Mom, life can’t go on. I no longer want to live.” They would then hug each other and cry.

Sun Yincong always comforted her daughter-in-law saying, “Don’t be so sad. As long as I am here, our life will not collapse.”

As time went on, Sun Yincong slowly recovered from her pain. She got back to her old routine, tidying the house and making meals. She was as deft as before. In contrast,Ren Caimei’s physical and mental conditions were getting worse day by day. One morning, Ren Caimei ran to the river with faltering steps, shouting in a trance that she was calling her husband for breakfast. She almost drowned in the river. Sun Yincong only realized then that her daughterin-law was mentally unstable.

Sun Yincong helped Ren Caimei home and began watching her closely.However, one day six months later,Ren Caimei suddenly vomited and soon became unconscious just as the two were about to sit down for lunch.

Ren Caimei was immediately sent to the hospital where the doctors diagnosed the event as a stroke.Though her life was saved, the stroke caused hemiplegia and only her wrist and lips could move. She could no longer speak a complete and clear sentence.

初秋的山风还有些凉，72岁的任彩梅坐在轮椅上，向远处的山头张望。“阿梅，有点冷吧？”另一位白发老太脚步轻快地拿来一件外套给她披上，又拿出一把蘸了清水的短木梳，边哼着歌儿边给她梳了一个跟自己一样的中分发型。

28年来悉心照料半身不遂的任彩梅的白发老太，是她96岁的婆婆孙银聪。

婆媳同病相怜

孙银聪家住山西省运城市芮城县古魏镇太安村，一直过着平淡却幸福的日子。没承想，厄运在她的后半生接踵而至。1989年冬天，孙银聪的老伴因病离世。就在老伴儿出殡10天后，47岁的儿子高建军在家中因煤气中毒，不治身亡。短短半个月，68岁的孙银聪在本该颐养天年的时候遭到了暴风骤雨般的打击，送完白发人又送黑发人的伤痛让她一度卧病在床。此时，她的儿媳任彩梅也因为精神刺激过大而病倒。

同病相怜的孙银聪和任彩梅在那些日子里始终相依相伴。可是任彩梅没有孙银聪坚强，她一双20岁出头的儿女在外打工，长期不在家，丈夫的骤然离世让她陷入崩溃。她总是反复念叨：“妈，日子过不下去了，我不想活了。”婆媳俩抱头痛哭，但孙银聪还是不断安慰着儿媳：“别难过，只要我在，这个家就不会垮掉。”

随着时间的流逝，孙银聪慢慢从伤痛中走出来，收拾屋子，烧菜做饭，手脚利落，一如往常。任彩梅的身体和精神状况却一日不如一日。一天早上，任彩梅脚步蹒跚、神情恍惚地往河边跑去，说是要叫丈夫吃早饭，险些栽进河里。孙银聪这才意识到，儿媳可能因为悲伤过度，精神出了问题。……