Wall Inside and Outside

Mama Wang sat on a small stool, picking over a bunch of spinach she had just bought from the entrance of the alley. The leaves were still covered with glistening water droplets, like eyes that had just been crying. Today was International Women's Day, but what did that have to do with Mama Wang? She still had to get up early, still had to serve the whole family, still had to haggle with the vegetable vendor for half a day over a few cents.

"Mama Wang, it's a holiday today, why are you still so busy?" Sister-in-law Li from next door came over with a bowl of steaming hot dumplings, smiling.

Mama Wang looked up and forced a smile: "Hey, what holiday? We common folk, we don't have so many rules. Besides, even if it's not a holiday, we still have to live."

Sister-in-law Li stuffed the dumplings into Mama Wang's hands: "Look at you, you still have to eat something warm, no matter how busy you are. These days, women can hold up half the sky, we can't mistreat ourselves."

Mama Wang took the dumplings, and a warm feeling surged in her heart. She knew Sister-in-law Li meant well, but this saying "hold up half the sky," why did it sound so awkward? In her life, let alone half the sky, she couldn't even hold up a roof. Her husband had passed away early, leaving her alone to raise three children. Life was tight, like a taut string that could snap at any moment.

"Mama Wang, what do you think this 'Women's Day' really means?" Seeing that Mama Wang wasn't speaking, Sister-in-law Li leaned closer and asked in a low voice.

Mama Wang shook her head. How would she know what this "Women's Day" meant? She couldn't understand any of those fancy words in the newspapers. She only knew that as the days passed, the world outside the wall was changing faster and faster, so fast that she couldn't breathe.

Outside the wall, skyscrapers sprouted like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, car horns blared incessantly, and young girls wore fashionable clothes, their faces beaming with confident smiles. They talked about "freedom," "independence," and "dreams," words that were like a book from heaven to Mama Wang, distant and unattainable.

"I heard that they're going to give out childcare subsidies this year?" Sister-in-law Li suddenly remembered something and said excitedly.

Mama Wang was stunned for a moment, then gave a wry smile: "Subsidies? Will they reach us common folk? It's not like those officials..." She didn't finish, but silently lowered her head.

Inside and outside this wall, it seemed like two different worlds. The people outside the wall enjoyed the benefits of the times, full of spirit; the people inside the wall were still struggling in the mire of life, their steps heavy. Mama Wang didn't know when this wall would collapse, or if she would live to see that day.

She looked up and gazed into the distance. On the horizon, a touch of sunset dyed the clouds red, like a burning flame. Could this flame illuminate the darkness in her heart?

"This world, it's really... Sigh!" Mama Wang sighed deeply, her voice full of helplessness and sorrow. This sorrow was like an old well in the depths of the alley, deep and cold, swallowing all hope and light. It was like an elegy of the times, and also like the mockery of fate.

This wall was not only made of bricks and stones, but also the imprint of the times, the shackles of fate, and a deep sense of powerlessness. It lay there, silently telling the absurdity and helplessness of this world, much like the castle in Kafka's writings, visible but unreachable.

And Mama Wang was just a tiny, yet incredibly real, struggling figure in the shadow of this castle.