The Warmth of Life in Red Dancing Shoes#温暖生命的红舞鞋
Only from now on will I forever cherish these red dancing shoes, because they once warmed the insecure and bleak life of a girl on the confusing path of growing up, and also witnessed a most unforgettable and sincere friendship.
When I was in teacher's college, all seven of my roommates were city girls, while I came from the remote and desolate mountains.
Although fate had been unkind to my poor family, it had quietly shaped me into a slender and delicate flower of a girl. Yet, despite this, a sense of inferiority still hung over my life like an unshakeable shadow.
It was in the cold winter when a fashionable pair of red dancing shoes began to trend on the streets. My roommates convened a meeting and decided to choreograph and perform a dance for the school's upcoming arts festival. Determined to make our performance the highlight of the festival, we all agreed to purchase the red dancing shoes.
I felt uneasy because I had heard from Han Mei, who slept in the bunk above me, that the price of those red dancing shoes was 100 yuan, which was almost equivalent to three months of my food expenses at that time! Watching my roommates buy the shoes one by one, my heart was both anxious and sad.
Han Mei, as the head of the dormitory, started urging me to buy the red dancing shoes too, so I could only force a smile and agree. I knew that this pretense wouldn't last long, so I gritted my teeth and wrote a letter to my parents. I lied, saying that I needed 100 yuan to buy study materials, and asked them to send the money.
After I finished writing, I hesitated before putting the tear-stained letter under my pillow, because in front of my eyes appeared a scene hundreds of miles away: at the foot of a barren mountain, there were two old houses made of mud, and a middle-aged couple was struggling to weave grass curtains under the moon and stars. Each grass curtain could only sell for a few cents. How many curtains would they need to make 100 yuan! That was my impoverished family and my aging parents!
After much contemplation, I couldn't bring myself to send the letter.
A week later, Han Mei gathered us together for another meeting, asking each person to reveal their birthday. Everyone anonymously wrote down their birthday on a piece of paper, and after Han Mei processed them, she asked us to draw lots again, saying that we would celebrate the birthday of the chosen person. When I unfolded the piece of paper I drew, I was stunned to see Han Mei's elegant handwriting: "Congratulations, you're the winner!" Before I could fully come to my senses, applause erupted from my roommates.
Coincidentally, my birthday was in three days. On that evening, my roommates returned early and surrounded me like a constellation of stars. As I blew out the candles on the cake amidst the chorus of "Happy Birthday", the cheers of the girls filled the air. And Han Mei, with a smile on her face, handed me the birthday gift on behalf of everyone. When I opened the box, I could hardly believe my eyes—it was the long-awaited pair of red dancing shoes!
At the school's arts festival, I danced with my roommates in these red dancing shoes, earning thunderous applause from the audience. From then on, I proudly wore the red dancing shoes with my roommates, striding through the beautiful campus with my head held high. We participated in group activities together, even working part-time jobs off-campus to support ourselves through college.
In short, I never felt inferior because of my humble background again...
It wasn't until we, the eight girls who had never been apart, hugged and cried together at our graduation from teacher's college that I finally understood the story behind those red dancing shoes. It turned out that it was a beautiful secret orchestrated by Han Mei and the other roommates to protect my dignity. It left me so moved, with nowhere to express my gratitude but to forever cherish those red dancing shoes. Because they once warmed the insecure and bleak life of a girl on the confusing path of growing up, and also witnessed a most unforgettable and sincere friendship!
唯有今后永远珍藏这双红舞鞋，因为它曾温暖过一个少女在懵懵懂懂的人生成长道路上自卑苍凉的生命，也见证了一段最难忘而又最诚挚的友情。
我上师专时，同宿舍的七个女孩清一色都是在城市里长大的，唯有我来自于荒凉遥远的大山里。
虽然上天苛薄了我的贫寒家境，但也在另一方面悄悄把我塑造成身材纤细苗条、面容俊美秀气的花季少女。尽管这样，自卑仍然像一片无法驱散的阴霾笼罩在我生命的天空。
那还是在寒冷的冬季，街上开始流行起一款时尚的红舞鞋。室友们便召集在一起开了个碰头会，为了迎接新年前后学校举办的艺术节，决心自导自演一个由宿舍全体成员表演的舞蹈。为了能让这个节目成为艺术节上全校师生瞩目的亮点，一致同意购买红舞鞋。
我感到很不安，因为早就听到睡在我上铺的韩梅说那种红舞鞋的价格是100元，在那个时代差不多抵得上我3个月的伙食费啊！看着室友们一个接一个陆续买回了红舞鞋，我的心既忐忑又难过。
韩梅作为宿舍长开始催我也去买红舞鞋，我只好装出强笑的姿态诺诺答应。我清楚这种敷衍维持不了多久，就咬咬牙硬是给父母写起信来。内容无非是扯谎说购买学习材料，需要家里再汇寄100元钱。
我写完后在装进信封前又犹豫了，因为我的眼前仿佛出现了数百里之外一座光秃秃的只有石头没有树木的大山脚下，有两间用土坯垒起的老房前，一对身子孱弱的中年男女顶着月亮星星在吃力地编织草帘。每个草帘仅仅能卖几角钱，他们要编多少个才能凑齐100元啊！这就是我那贫寒的家和日渐衰老的爹娘！
我思前想后到底把被泪水打湿的信藏在了枕头下，因为实在没有勇气把它投递出去。
一周后，韩梅又把我们召集到一起开会，要每个人都报出自己生日。所有人就把各自生日时间都匿名写在一张小纸条上，韩梅把它们稍作处理后，再次要我们一一抓阄，说准备选中其中一个人生日大家好替她隆重慶祝一下。我把抓到的纸条展开一看，上面赫然是韩梅娟秀的字体：恭喜你成为中奖者！未等我彻底回过神来，室友们的掌声已不约而同响起来。
恰巧3天后就是我的生日。就在那天晚上，室友们特意集体早早回来，众星捧月般围着我。待我在祝你生日快乐歌声中把蛋糕上的蜡烛一一吹灭时，顿时女孩们的欢呼声四起，而韩梅更是满脸微笑着代表大家把生日礼物交到了我手里。我打开包装盒一看，简直不敢相信自己的眼睛，竟然是那款渴盼了多少个日夜的红舞鞋！
校园艺术节上，我就穿着这双红舞鞋同室友们翩翩起舞，博得了台下一浪高过一浪的掌声。从此，我同室友们一样穿着红舞鞋，挺起胸膛自豪地穿梭于美丽的校园，而且和她们一起参加集体活动，甚至一起到校外勤工俭学补贴自己的学杂费。
总之，我再也没为自己的寒酸家境感到自卑过……
直到师专毕业，我们八个从未曾分开过的女孩子搂抱着哭成一团时，我才洞晓了关于那双红舞鞋的幕后故事。闹了半天，竟是以韩梅为首的室友们为了保护我的自尊而精心导演的一个美丽秘密。它使我的感动无处发泄，唯有今后永远珍藏这双红舞鞋。因为它曾温暖过一个少女在懵懵懂懂的人生成长道路上自卑苍凉的生命，也见证了一段最难忘而又最诚挚的友情！