My Hometown

I never really want to share information about my hometown with anyone else. Because it's a tiny little town up in the mountains of northeast Fujian province, outdated, undeveloped and most importantly conservative.

Even though I can`t help being ashamed of where I come from, it cant change the fact that it's such a lovely simple place to live. It has an altitude of 900 meters, which makes it a super cool place when it comes to summer. While other cities of the province are suffering from the high temperature during summer time, the residents there are enjoying the coolness of the suburbs. I used to take walks after supper on a path with fireflies flitting around, and the breeze caressing my skin like silk. Everything was so nice except for the annoying mosquitoes.

There is a waterfall 13 kilometers away from the town, which is its most famous scenic spot. My mum worked as a dispatcher at the hydroelectric power station near the waterfall. So I was brought to the power station staff quarters after I was born. But soon after my dad got a job in town，we moved to the town and have lived there ever since.

I wouldn`t say the people there are simple and nice like all the country people in the fairy tales. Yes, they are simple, because there is not much to do in that small town. It's easy for people to find out that they and their acquaintances are somehow connected. But nice? That really depends. Quite a lot of people set off for Shanghai in the early 2000`s , trying to make a fortune in the steel industry. Soon after that，it is no exaggeration to say that every household had members involved in the steel industry. Some of them soon became the giants in the industry. They returned to town with their luxurious cars and outfits during the Spring Festival, which caused such chaos that the town became a mess. Those nouveaux riches parked their high-end cars right in the middle of the street and chatted with each other while sitting in the driver`s seat. So ironic.  After 10 years` prosperity , these people got shaken out by the market. Only those who built their companies step by step and ran ithem legally survived. Those who  squandered their money disappeared, leaving plenty of news about people going bankrupt, being put into prison, and committing suicide. Anyway, there is no stupid traffic jam during the spring festival anymore.

I rarely go back to my hometown now, all my friends have left that town and never  gone back. Maybe we are all scared of the conservative atmosphere of the town, and trying to make a difference by struggling in a different city. However I do miss the days spent messing around with my friends on the mountain, and the flitting fireflies after nightfall in the summer.