粘耗子

Glutinous Rats

母亲站在灶台边,把粘耗子一个个摆放在大铁锅里,一圈一圈摆得密密实实,盖好盖子后,坐在灶膛前的小板凳上,像有些累了眯着眼,头一低一绺白发飘下来,随着热气弥漫开来,母亲的身影一点点变得模糊,灶膛的火呼呼地着起来。那火快烧到母亲的脚边了,我想去扶起母亲,可身子怎么也动不了,

When I was a child, each household in my village would make a kind of sticky dumplings or glutinous rats as they were nicknamed. The villagers would start their work on the same day, as if they had agreed on the date. Then a festive air began to permeate. In each summer villagers who live in the mountainous areas of Benxi have their slack season, a time when they start this ritual of making sweet and sticky rats of strong aroma. They soak the sticky rice for a night and grind it into watery powder. Then they spread oiled perilla leaves over their palms and wrap the powder with bean-paste fillings. Now these rats are ready to be steamed. In addition to sticky rice, my mom used yellow rice or sorghum rice. Her fillings were also variegated. Sometimes she preferred grinded perilla seeds. She would bake the seeds with some salt. It was said that such fillings could be used as medicine. Once, my mom used cabbage and leek as fillings. They were very tasty.In the summer when my mom died, she had longed for my home coming. When I was home she tried to make glutinous rats for me. She plucked perilla leaves in the backyard and took out the grinded rice powder from the refrigerator. This time the fillings were kidney beans. She watched me wolf down the rats with a satisfied smile.My mom has gone. I begin to frequent a local market where glutinous rats are available. My real purpose, on many occasions, is not to buy the rats, but to find something that can bring me back to my hometown. I know I am trying to keep my memories alive with the glutinous rats.