天堂杭州有個小小的“家”

杭州靈隱禪寺東側北高峰下，茶園連片，有百畝之多，其間單門獨戶突兀起一座樸素淡雅的小院落。院墻內(nèi)外有幾樹綠蔭，掩映如孤島。橫過茶園，有條名叫白樂橋、古代馬車般寬的路，盡頭處是靈隱寺后門和上北高峰的山道。小院正門時常緊閉，偶爾打開就合上。門前路過的人多是茶農(nóng)、僧人和當?shù)叵憧停麄冎肋@里不對外開放，只有初來乍到的游客對它好奇，透過院墻上的花窗，見到里面粉墻黑瓦，屋檐三重四疊，玻璃窗欞和墻壁爬滿綠藤，屋頂上樹冠如傘，有座寧靜的二層小樓，再走近門前，望門頭“孟莊”二字的匾額，又瞧門左側立著的石頭上刻著的字時，才“噢”的一聲走開。

八月的絲絲雨霧里我們拖著行囊來到時，見兩扇黑漆小木門如普通人家，很是親切，回家一樣高興地又按門鈴又拍打銅門環(huán)。旁邊的團團桂樹無聲無息。門里一陣響動，傳來應答聲和取木門栓聲，一會兒門“嘎吱吱”打開來。十天后我們離別時，桂花初開的香氣在暮色中若有若無，從車窗伸頭往回一望，見大門口路燈暖暖的橘黃色光暈里，主人相送的身形立在桂樹下，心窩一熱，眼前立即閃現(xiàn)一幕幕在“家”數(shù)日的情景，耳畔仿佛飄來巴金生前給這創(chuàng)作之家的一句留言：“這真是我的家?！?/p>

孟莊的正門不常開，一扇圓形側門卻天明開到夜里，人出人進的。門里無外人，一年四季住著工作人員和流云般一批批帶家人來休養(yǎng)的全國各地作家。我揣通知書攜夫而來，與來自天南地北、只聞名未謀面的9位作家和其家眷20余人同一屋檐下生活了十天，如歸的感覺，與過去20年間住過的千余名作家在留言簿中所記下的，與貼在棋室兩邊墻上的三四十位大名鼎鼎作家的留言，不相上下。我們是今年第八批入住者，初見面孔新，一兩天就相處成一家：共同在餐廳吃飯，洗衣房洗衣，花廳觀魚，棋室下棋，書房閱讀，客廳聊天，陽臺聽蟬，看過道上入住者們的留影照片，出門游玩結隊成群彼此照應，一人有難題十人出手相助。在俗塵喧囂的當今，有這樣一個地方讓人把高低之心先放一放，以家常之態(tài)共處，無憂無慮，輕松舒服地生活幾天，實在難得。我就是在這里初次感受到什么叫杭州人間天堂的，同時禁不住對創(chuàng)作之家感慨起來：住過這里的作家們，包括文學巨匠巴金，有“家”的感言，20余年后的我等無名之輩，竟然也同感，可見治理這個“家”的功夫非一朝一夕可得，也非三言兩語可道。

這個小小的“家”很惹人喜愛。進門后處處精致清雅，簡潔明亮，一塵不染，一看就想住下，并且住出它宜居宜室的妙處。比如盡管房間、過道有落地玻璃窗、玻璃門，室內(nèi)每個角落都能被天光照亮，但還是留出兩個小天井，一個在大門與二門之間，方方兩步寬，墻上爬滿青藤；一個在客廳外，置假山，有錦鯉游來游去的魚池，四面的瓦溝水都淌在池子里。這兩個承天接露之地，小得如同兩個鼻孔，讓人感覺到小樓均勻的一呼一吸。再比如書房門外十步見方的小庭院和幾臺石階下去的半畝地左右的綠草坪，一小一大抵圍墻，由于墻體被藤木遮蔽得不見影子，宛如小樹林，讓人有延伸到戶外一樣的原野感，很暢快。

我對小庭院印象尤佳，這里讓我找到不只是一般意義上的如歸，而是內(nèi)心深處歸于文學創(chuàng)作這個家。這里原本是個在書房呆久了出來信步的地方，由于它太小，除我之外不見別人來此轉(zhuǎn)悠。別人都是一家人兩口三口地出門散步，門外茶園一覽無余，靈隱寺古木夾道，溪流相行。我與丈夫每晚也到寺旁散步聽水聲，直到樹叢黑得令人發(fā)毛才回頭。而只想獨自一人踱步時，我不由自主就往小庭院來了，這里地上鋪著小石子，沿院墻有叢叢紫竹和芭蕉。我每在庭院中央的樟樹下一坐，眼前似乎夢幻般出現(xiàn)我最喜愛的幾位唐宋詞人的影子，在翠竹碧葉間若有若無地低吟淺唱起一句兩句唐宋小令來。我不明白為何在這里理解蘇東坡、李易安等人的詩詞，比別處容易得多？起身走走，抬頭瞥見黑黝黝瓦頂上的苔蘚；或在庭院邊上憑欄，望近處草坪上立著的一塊青藤披發(fā)般的石頭，辨認其上刻著的密密麻麻的字跡。這種時候，眼前會晃動曾在此住過而自己不曾見過的作家們的身影，其中以巴金的身影最為清晰，大概是客廳墻壁顯著位置上掛著他住這里的留影，小庭院里的立石上刻著他的留言的緣故吧。我問創(chuàng)作之家負責人柯朗曦那塊立石的事，他說巴老過世后，創(chuàng)作之家無比懷念，因此刻石。我從石頭背面刻文上讀到巴金耄耋之年幾次來此居住的具體時間，知道那幾年正是《隨想錄》熱銷、中國學界文壇無不談論這本懺悔錄之時。那時還是文學青年的我去新華書店購回《隨想錄》，一本接一本囫圇吞棗地捧讀，根本沒想到此地有個巴老的“家”。

創(chuàng)作之家的石刻有三塊，鎮(zhèn)“家”石正面刻著巴老手書的留言，全文是：“這真是我的家。我忘不了在這里過的愉快的兩個星期。謝謝你們。巴金 一九九○年十月十四日在杭州創(chuàng)作之家”。與這立石相對，中間隔了小庭院，橫坐在草坪上的，是刻滿作家簽名的石頭。還有就是佇立正門旁邊的那塊，上面刻著的“中國作家協(xié)會杭州創(chuàng)作之家”幾個字，是套用魯迅的手跡。

靈隱景區(qū)是杭州西湖風景名勝區(qū)的核心地，上世紀末本世紀初景區(qū)內(nèi)居民和單位全部搬遷，唯一留下了創(chuàng)作之家。這里原本是杭州一位商人的別業(yè)，人們稱“孟莊”，總共一畝一分一厘地，中國作家協(xié)會1955年購得，1988年推倒重來，建起“中國作家協(xié)會杭州創(chuàng)作之家”。創(chuàng)作之家的工作人員大多是建“家”的元老，從青年再到中年，年齡最大的快退休了?！凹摇崩镒龅暮紟筒朔浅？煽?，尤其是西湖醋魚和東坡肉，讓我們吃得忍不住問這問那的。大廚章師傅是“家”里的年長者，我問起孟莊建成的年代，他帶我徑直到小庭院，指著蔭蔽了半個院子的幾株樟楓老樹說，這是孟莊遺物，已經(jīng)彎腰搭背靠墻支撐了。我說這有江南園林的韻味。章師傅笑了，說臺風一來很麻煩，樹搖晃得把瓦片都閃了裂，每年花氣力翻修瓦頂。

在這個20余年中接待過那么多中國作家協(xié)會會員，日后不斷有作家來休息，百年后不知要住過多少作家的“家”里，我要么在自己的房間里慢慢呷著龍井茶，與它默對；要么在廳堂間愜意地到處走來走去，與它神交；要么在庭院里小憩，與它融為一體，仿佛這樣才不負了這個人間天堂里的“家”。

（本文攝影：黃豆米）

Home to Authors in Paradise-like Hangzhou

By Huang Doumi

Authors Home is one of the names for a freestanding residential courtyard at the foot of North Tall Peak and paces away from the prestigious Lingyin Temple. The courtyard stands adjacent to a large tea plantation spread all the way to the foot of wooded mountains in the north. The front gate of the courtyard usually stays closed. Tea farmers， monks and local pilgrims know that the courtyard is not a tourist destination， but tourists are often curious about the residence that looks traditional， mysterious， cozy and attractive. On their way to the majestic temple or to the towering peak， they often stop and try to peer into the courtyard through the open windows on the wall.

Traditionally it is called “The Mengs House”， a residence built and owned by a wealthy businessman surnamed Meng several generations ago. Now it serves as a guesthouse where authors from all over China come to spend a certain period as guests of China Writers Association.

Inside the courtyard stands a two-storied house， with overturned eaves， black roof tiles， walls covered by green vines， largely covered by trees spreading overhead.

My husband and I came to the guesthouse on a rainy day in late August 2012. We were in Hangzhou for a ten-day vacation. So were nine other authors and their family members. The guesthouse was where we stayed. When we left ten days later， sweet osmanthus was beginning to bloom and the aroma was wafting.

My husband and I called it home. So did the other nine authors and their family members. So did about 1，000 authors from all over the country who have stayed there， as testified by messages in visitors books. The best-known guest in the history of the guesthouse is probably Ba Jin （1904-2005）， a Shanghai-based novelist of the 20th century China and former president of China Writers Association. A stone stele in the courtyard manifests an inscription by Ba Jin： “This is my home. The two pleasant weeks I spent here is unforgettable. Ba Jin on October 14， 1990.” Another stone stele stands in the center of the lawn and carries the names of some authors who have stayed there.

I was impressed by the beauty of the West Lake and I was impressed by the guesthouse where everyone feels at home. We were the eighth batch of guests staying at the residence in 2012. Within a day or two， we mixed and felt like a family. We shared a dining room， a laundry， a fish pond， a chess/poker room， a library， a sitting room， and a balcony. The walls in the corridors were covered by photos of the visitors of the past. The casual and carefree ambience at the guesthouse is relaxing. It was at this guesthouse that I first came to understand why Hangzhou is widely known as “paradise on earth.”

I was not surprised to find that almost all the guests who had stayed at the guesthouse described it as homelike.

The courtyard is a lovely affair， small， homey， tidy， well lit， and dustless. This is a house where I would want to live in with all the conveniences for home. Things here are of small proportions. The small courtyard has two small patios. One connects the front gate and the door of the house and the other sits beyond the living room， with a rockery and a fishpond， all miniaturized. There is a 10-pace x 10-pace garden outside the door of the library and a lawn， both reaching the courtyard wall， covered thickly by vines.

A stream zigzags past the guesthouse. In the evening， my husband and I often strolled to the nearby Buddhist sanctuary and sat there listening to the stream. We would stay there until the woods became dark.

The guesthouse used to be part of a residential area near the temple. Toward the end of the 20th century， all the residents and institutions there relocated except the Mengs Residence. China Writers Association bought the 750-m2 residence in 1955 and， in 1988， the old house was leveled and a new courtyard was built on the site. Most employees at the guesthouse have been working there since 1988.

Chef Zhang cooks in Hangzhou style. He is the oldest employee at the guesthouse. We found his dishes were pleasant and yummy. We had so many questions to ask about his secrets to turn such ordinary food into delicious memories. I asked him how old the Mengs Residence was and he showed me several old trees whose shades cover almost half of the lawn. The trees are so old that they lean on the wall for support. I commented that the trees add a lovely touch to the garden in traditional architecture style， common to the south of the Yangtze River Delta. He laughed and said the trees made trouble when typhoons hit Hangzhou in summer. The trees shake and sway in typhoons so much that roof has to be refurbished every year.

During the ten days and nights I was Hangzhou， I enjoyed every minute of the home： sipping Dragon Well Tea in my room， wandering through the house， the garden， the lawn， and the patios， sitting quietly somewhere in the courtyard， merging myself with the home away from home， thinking of ancient poetry that stays in minute details of the residence. That was my way to enjoy the home in the paradise on earth.