The Motorcycle Army of Previous Years' Spring Festival Travel#
In previous years' Spring Festival travel, the motorcycle army was vast and mighty, like a long steel dragon winding along the highway. That scene was, wow, comparable to a Hollywood blockbuster. But what about this year? The motorcycle army seems to have evaporated. What’s going on? Did everyone get rich and switch to high-speed trains and planes? Haha, thinking too much. The truth might surprise you.
1. The Disappearing Motorcycle Army#
I remember last Spring Festival, I saw a group of older brothers riding motorcycles back home at a service area. They were gathered around a bonfire to keep warm, their faces filled with exhaustion and anticipation. When I approached to chat, I learned that most of them were workers from construction sites. One older brother said, “Riding a motorcycle home saves money, and I can bring more things for my kids.” After hearing that, I felt a mix of emotions. But this year, such scenes are gone. Why? Because they can’t go back, or rather, they don’t dare to go back.
2. The Anxiety of Returning Home#
For today’s young people, going home for the New Year feels like entering an exam room, filled with tension. Why? Because once they get home, the relatives start firing questions like a barrage:
- “Have you found a job?”
- “Do you have a partner?”
- “When are you getting married?”
- “When are you planning to have kids?”
This isn’t celebrating the New Year; it’s like facing a trial! Not to mention those who are unemployed, have failed in their startups, or are single. Going home for the New Year? So, rather than being interrogated at home, it’s better to stay in the city and lick your wounds alone. Nowadays, even celebrating the New Year has become a luxury.
It’s truly ironic. We work so hard, isn’t it just to return home in glory? And what’s the result? We don’t even have the courage to go home. We always say we need to strive and fight. But what are we really fighting for? Is it for a self that is afraid to even go home?
Some say this is the price of progress in our times. Bah! When did our society become so utilitarian? When did relationships between people become solely about measuring benefits? What about family ties? What about warmth? What about the hometown flavors that once haunted our dreams?
Perhaps we all need to stop and think carefully: what do we really want? A bigger house? A more expensive car? Or a social environment that allows us to return home carefree for the New Year?
If even going home for the New Year has become a wish, then what’s the meaning of our hard work? Perhaps true progress isn’t about GDP growth, but about everyone being able to return home calmly and reunite with family.
To conclude today’s sharing, I’d like to borrow a line from American poet Robert Frost: “The road home is the longest road in the world.” I hope that in the near future, this road can become less long and less difficult.