Sleepwalking

This book is a children’s novel with a strong color of the times. Through the funny and touching growth stories of Ding Ding and Miss Diandian， it depicts a unique picture of childhood life in a state-owned factory in the seventies and eighties of the twentieth century for young readers in the new era. In the process of growing up， Ding Ding and Diandian learn valuable qualities such as kindness， sincerity， bravery， and optimism from their parents and other people around them and realize the value of family affection and friendship.

Xu Chengyun

Xu Chengyun is a Chinese teacher and researcher at the Teaching Materials Research Office of the Jiangxi Provincial Department of Education， a senior middle school teacher， and one of the first batch of subject leaders.

That winter， when Ding Ding first started kindergarten， Fangcheng held a New Year’s cultural performance in the auditorium， the first act being a dance performed by the older girls from kindergarten. Ding Ding went with her father to watch the performance， sitting in the front row. The children wore beautiful makeup， each little face pale and rosy， with thick， arched eyebrows， bright eyes， and cheeks adorned with blush-like little suns rising on the horizon. Their red， pouty lips added a playful and beautiful touch， making each look like they stepped out of a painting. Ding Ding envied them as they danced on stage in white dresses shaped like little lanterns， smiling brightly under the dazzling stage lights. Ding Ding thought: How wonderful it would be to be like them!

Opportunity knocks! Shortly after the school year resumed， Teacher Zhao busily organized the class to practice dancing and announced， “The best few dancers will represent our class in next month’s performance in the auditorium.”

Hearing this， Ding Ding felt her heart full of joy! This might be her chance to wear makeup and dance on stage! She thought: This time， I must practice diligently and try to be chosen by Teacher Zhao! She knew her dancing skills were not the strongest in her class. During regular dance lessons， the teacher often praised a few other children for their coordinated movements and graceful postures， while Ding Ding was only praised for her attentive attitude. Where skill falls short， effort will compensate. Determined， Ding Ding resolved to practice hard enough to impress her teacher and earn a spot on stage.

Their performance was called “Season of Harvest，” beginning with basic movements such as the “Sickle Dance” and “Hammer Dance.” During each practice， Ding Ding closely watched the teacher’s demonstrations of the hand and foot movements and then tried to mimic them as closely as possible. Even during breaks， she didn’t rest， instead replaying the teacher’s movements in her mind， critiquing her execution. Whenever she thought about possibly being chosen， about wearing beautiful makeup and dancing on stage， and about the surprised looks on her parents and younger sister’s faces， all her exhaustion vanished， replaced by a smile and a sweet， sugary feeling in her heart.

A few days later， eight children were chosen to practice in the center of the formation -- the elite picks. Unfortunately， Ding Ding was not among them. Ding Ding felt she was already dancing well， keeping in time with the music just as well as the selected children， so she continued to work hard， focusing intently on every move and gesture the teacher made.

Then one day， Xiao Yi was suddenly absent due to illness.

Soon after Xiao Yi and her mother left the classroom， Teacher Zhao entered with a serious face. Ding Ding knew that Teacher Zhao only looked that way when she was worried， her expression drooping like morning glory flowers wilting at sunset.

Teacher Zhao quickly had everyone continue practicing “Season of Harvest.” As she clapped the beat and hummed the tune， she swiftly observed each child’s movements. Ding Ding worked hard to perfect each movement， her face always smiling as if she were already performing on the grand auditorium stage. She imagined the auditorium filled with a sea of faces， all watching her. At the end of the rehearsal， Teacher Zhao announced that Ding Ding would replace Xiao Yi in the dance performance， and Ding Ding took her place.

Wow， happiness came so unexpectedly! Ding Ding’s heart thumped loudly.

From that day on， she practiced the Sickle and Hammer dances tirelessly at home， thinking that only by rehearsing them over and over could she dance them well. Before meals， she danced as many times as she could. Right after eating， when her mother said she couldn’t dance until her food had been digested， she would sit on a small chair， occasionally touching her belly， cursing herself for eating too much. As soon as she felt her belly had shrunk a bit， she would resume dancing. Her younger sister would join her， dancing and singing along. Her parents watched with delight.

Unexpectedly， a few days later， something frightening happened: Ding Ding sleepwalked!

Around four or five in the morning， her parents heard rustling noises from the next room. Her father quietly got up to look and saw Ding Ding dancing in the middle of the room just like she did during the day. She danced intensely and earnestly: sometimes bending at the waist， swinging her arms up and down like she was cutting rice; sometimes spreading her arms wide， moving them up and down as if threshing rice; and sometimes raising her arms straight and high， as if winnowing. At that moment， Ding Ding seemed to be dancing solo on stage.

“Her eyes were still closed! Is this the sleepwalking I’ve heard about? Can dancing affect someone this way?” her mother was worried.

As they watched Ding Ding dance， her parents quietly discussed:

“You’re not supposed to wake someone who is sleepwalking. I’ve heard it can scare them to death if you do.”

“So what do we do?”

“What can we do? Just lock the door and make sure she doesn’t sleepwalk out.”

Luckily， after two rounds， Ding Ding went back to bed as if nothing had happened.

But her parents couldn’t sleep.

They say you shouldn’t tell someone about their sleepwalking the next day for fear of frightening them. Because of this， her parents spent every night on edge， locking the door and watching over Ding Ding during her episodes to ensure her safety. They hoped the performance would end soon. They didn’t care whether she performed or not; they just wanted their child to be healthy.

Two days before the performance， Xiao Yi recovered and returned without a fishtail patch on her face. Teacher Zhao watched her perform a few movements and still praised her graceful dance. Teacher Zhao was the best at designing dance routines in kindergarten and had specifically choreographed a solo part for Xiao Yi， which was interspersed with the group dance.

On the performance day， Ding Ding saw herself looking beautiful in the mirror and felt it was her best appearance yet! She and the other children wore flowery clothes and pants， dancing to the music on a stage that depicted a festive harvest scene. Ding Ding wasn’t nervous at all; she felt as if she had arrived at an autumnal farm surrounded by golden rice fields. She couldn’t spot her parents and sister in the audience because there were too many people， but she believed they would be amazed and say， “Ding Ding is dancing beautifully!” Their routine received the loudest applause， thanks to Xiao Yi’s appearance， the excellence of their dance， and Teacher Zhao’s clever choreography.

Yet， the thing her parents feared most still happened. The day after the performance ended， around 5 a.m.， Ding Ding got up and danced again. Her parents were very worried. “Oh dear， has she become obsessed with dancing? Why is she still sleepwalking after the performance ended?” “We need to take her to the hospital in the morning， oh!” Then， to their surprise， Ding Ding walked over and started talking to them.

“Dad， Mom， stop looking. I’m not sleepwalking!” Ding Ding turned her head playfully and said， “I just love to dance. I was just practicing some of Xiao Yi’s movements. What do you think?”

It turned out she wasn’t sleepwalking. She had just gotten up in the middle of the night to practice dancing.

“You little rascal， you scared us to death!” her mother ordered her to go back to sleep.

Their hearts were finally at ease， and they could sleep well again.