OPINION> Commentary
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OPINION> Commentary
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Heroes in history will henceforth look like them
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-05-21 07:19
I am very grateful to all the people who saved my life! If it were not for you, I don't know how long I would have lived. Many of my friends and classmates are still buried under the rubble. I don't know whether they are still alive or dead. I am so worried about them and I hope they can be rescued as soon as possible. As I remember, on May 12, we had lunch happily together and then took a nap as usual. No one would have known that a deadly earthquake were about to separate us forever. When the earthquake hit, we were having class in the afternoon. We listened to our teacher carefully and all of a sudden, the classroom started to shake violently. Our teacher He Haiping soon realized what had happened and told us to run. I quickly ran outside with four or five classmates without knowing that some of my classmates hadn't managed to escape. When I looked back, the whole school building collapsed and a big cloud of dust and smoke was coming toward us. When the smoke dispersed, I went back to look for my classmates. I saw some of them were injured with cuts and bruises. Our teachers tried to move the rocks and the rubble to save those who were buried. At first, I was frightened but I soon joined the rescue effort. One of our teachers said, "We have to rely on our own to save as many lives as we could!" The rescue team came not long after the quake. We were excited to know that some of our classmates were saved. But later no one came out of the debris alive. After the disaster, we all know how valuable life is and how important unity is. We are now helping and taking care of one another. Right now, I am very worried about my dad Liu Shiping and my friend Xiong Lin. If they are still alive, I want to say to them, "Are you alright? Don't worry about me. I am fine. Please take good care of yourselves!" All I hope is that my family will be safe and I can still have the opportunity to go to school in the future. I want nothing more than that. I sincerely thank all the good people who are concerned about us and gave us a new warm home when our community was destroyed by the earthquake. Li Tao, earthquake survivor, student from the Beichuan Middle School On blog.sina.com.cn In the past seven days, we have shed more tears than we have in all past years combined. When the terrible news came from Wenchuan, Dujiangyan, Beichuan, Mianzhu, Shifang and other places struck by the deadly earthquake, we shed tears for our friends, relatives and countrymen who were buried by the collapsed buildings.
We were brought to tears when we saw Premier Wen Jiabao rushed to the disaster areas in the great danger of aftershocks to comfort and encourage the victims and President Hu Jintao kissed a three-year-old injured kid after the devastating quake. Tears streamed down our eyes as we saw young soldiers' hands were bleeding as they clawed through the debris to save more lives. We cried for the radio, TV and newspaper journalists who reported at the frontline in the worst-hit areas. We shed tears of respect for the teachers who protected their students at the expense of their own lives and those who risk the lives of their own children to save other people's children. When we saw trucks carrying relief supplies running day and night on the road and anxious people lining outside the donation stations to give blood, we shed tears of hope. We wept and we were heartbroken because of the cruelty of nature and God's ruthlessness. But we clearly know that tears do not mean weakness and cowardice. We felt sad for the people's suffering but we did not stop the pace of the rescue and reconstruction effort. Nature can shatter or even kill us, but we will never bow down and surrender to it! On May 19, when sirens wailed throughout the country, we made the strongest voice in our vast silence: tears only make us stronger and we must not yield to the disaster. We will stand united and strong. We will build our new life on the ruins and use our beautiful new cities to commemorate our dear departed ones. Zeng Ying on blog.sina.com.cn We "Mother Love in Action" group arrived in Mianzhu on Saturday, one of the hardest-hit areas in Sichuan. I and the vice president of the All-China Women's Federation, Mo Wenxiu, and other psychological experts visited some of the affected children and pregnant women in Mianzhu. The South Square of Mianzhu, accommodating over 8,000 people, has become one of the largest settlements of the quake victims. More than half of them are women and children. The youngest child is only three months old. There is an urgent need of water, milk bottles, milk powder and other babycare equipment. In Mianzhu, daytime temperatures have risen to 29 C and it is even hotter in the relief tents. Coupled with poor sanitary conditions, some children have developed eczema. There is also a shortage of children's clothing. We felt very encouraged by the children affected by the earthquake, who were not as overwhelmed by fear or sadness as we thought. Many we encountered told us that when they grow up, they want to join the People's Liberation Army or become a police officer so that they could help other people at times of danger. They take care of each other. The older ones look after the younger ones. Some 14-year-olds even volunteered to help the adults carry water, food and other supplies and take care of the tents. They were brave, strong and optimistic. Their strong characters and willingness to help others in hardship moved us greatly. The main purpose of our visit is to have an understanding of the situation of the affected children as well as their psychological conditions so that we can develop a long term and sustainable plan of the psychological rehabilitation for them. We've collected much information and we were touched by the scenes we saw and the stories we heard. Yang Lan, famous TV hostess on blog.sina.com.cn In only several days, huge amount of money has flowed in. This shows how deeply we are concerned about the disaster and how high the government's credibility is in its relief effort. Money came from different parts of the world. People donate money according to their actual financial conditions. Wang Yongqing, founder of a plastics giant, made a generous donation of 100 million yuan while many ordinary citizens gave a few yuans. Behind each donation is love and compassion. And the total amount keeps rising rapidly. Although no one has asked where his contribution went, the government is fully aware that the public is concerned about the money management and the specific procedures. Whether the money goes toward the government's account or any foundation's account, every source is to be documented and tracked in a transparent way. Wang Zhenyao, director of the Disaster Relief Department of Ministry of Civil Affairs, said: "Without transparency, people will get angry!" But at this critical moment, there is no time to publicize every donation because saving more lives is foremost task right now. And people will not criticize the government for this. People only hope that the money will get to the hands of victims as soon as possible. However, our government did not simplify its working procedure because of the arduous rescue task. The more urgent the situation is, the more detailed the work is. This shows the calm and the courage of a highly efficient and pragmatic government when facing a great disaster. Luanshipiaoping On blog.xinhuanet.com As a young mother with a four-month-old baby, I am especially concerned with the child victims. I have been in great agonies since I knew from TV news that many newly-born babies slept nakedly under only one quilt. My heart aches for those innocent angels who are also suffering from the disaster. How much I want to hug them! The teachers who saved children from the jaws of death at the cost of their own lives, and the medical staff and rescuers who insisted on helping the victims without any information about their own relatives, all moved me to tears. This kind of silent heroism is the most beautiful human nature. I pray that all child survivors can someday forget the earthquake nightmare and grow healthily. I also call on all people in society who are capable of supporting them to love those children. China Daily mobile news reader 138****1475 through text message Yesterday our class initiated a donation campaign. Immediately, a poor classmate donated 50 yuan for the quake-hit areas, leaving him only 3.6 yuan to live on for the rest of the month Deeply moved by him, I believe that the Chinese people are all relatives and can get through the catastrophe together. China Daily mobile news reader 135****8950 through text message I come from Taiwan and experienced the disastrous September 21 earthquake in 1999. From these disasters we can feel the true love among people in the face of merciless nature. From these disasters I learn that we should respect lives and nature. We should cherish the values of people and nature around us. China Daily mobile news reader 136****8106 through text message At 2:28 pm on Monday, the students at our school spontaneously mourned in front of the national flag on the campus. All of us stood in lines. Keeping silent under a blazing sun, we heard only the drawing of breath and sobbing. Immersed in great pain, we stayed there quietly after observing the three-minute silence. The Chinese people's hearts are beating together. Come on, China! China Daily mobile news reader 138****3378 through text message I'm a college student in Xi'an. On Monday when the sirens rang at 2:28 pm, we all observed a three-minute silence. Everything seemed to stop at that time. For us, the short three minutes were as long as three centuries. Facing up to the calamity, we the Chinese people are not to be easily defeated. Let's join hands to get through the hard times. China Daily mobile news reader 134****5656
through text message I'm a college student and experienced a strong earthquake a decade ago. At that time I was greatly frightened at seeing my classmates' bodies pulled out by rescuers. But somebody patted me on my back, saying "kid, don't be afraid, everything will finally pass." Then I felt a little better. Facing the great damages brought by the earthquake, I just want to tell the children in the quake-hit regions that "please don't worry, everything will pass someday". We are all families. We are all siblings. All those who fought in the frontline moved us all. Wish you all success. China Daily mobile news reader 158****3876 through text message If I were a bird, I would fly to the earthquake-hit region with hope and encouragement. If I were a huge umbrella, I would want to protect my fellow-victims under my arms. China Daily mobile news reader 139****2157 through text message The small girl at a kindergarten in Beichuan county moved me to tears. Despite her thighs locked in the rubble and bleeding, the resolute child didn't cry but comforted the rescuers in turn. After the calamity happened, we all hope that the victims can get out of their plight, moved as we are by numerous people like the little girl. I sincerely pray for the girl and wish all victims safety and peace. China Daily mobile news reader 139****9351 through text message I am a German and have been a member of the German-Chinese Friendship Association since the late 1970s. I have two sponsorships for Chinese pupils in Shanghai and Shandong and naturally I donated to two funds in Germany who will support the victims in China (Oxfam and Caritas International). I know that the German Red Cross will be sending a mobile hospital to Sichuan which can treat 30 patients in beds and ten thousands of other patients. Many newspapers give reports on the earthquake and publish addresses where people can make a donation for china. So please believe me: you have many friends in Germany and I am sure expats in China will donate too or help in other ways. I know that many people here are also trying to help the victims in Myanmar too. What counts is friendship between many people in Germany and China. Agathe on China Daily website I stood with my students today in respectful silence sharing the grief of those who have lost loved ones. Let's focus on what we can do to help rebuild Sichuan rather than waste energy on criticizing. What others do is their business. Even though I am a laowai, or expat, Chengdu is my home - our thoughts are with the survivors, rescuers and all those giving their time for the common good. Leonard on China Daily website I stood today along a roadside, across the street from an elementary school and watched in silence as drivers pressed against their horns. No traffic jam, no annoyed driver trying to get ahead or beside or around some obstacle. The men playing Chinese chess stopped and held their expressions. The workers from the roadside shops all stood side by side and looked forward, heads tilted downward in common contemplation. No bicycles passed, no cars moved, no pedestrians walked by. For the first time in my life in Beijing, time stood still. For these three minutes the air, the precious space of painful awareness of the souls lost and the suffering spirits of the survivors was given our collective respect. As if suspended, the time seemed long and yet not nearly, not nearly long enough. First a car drove by, then slowly people moved a little. Then one woman jostled her keys and walked past me. I felt as if I should go, yet I didn't want to. Foreign_friend On China Daily website I have been to China twice and loved it. We are going again in the fall, and I cry every night as I read the stories and see the pictures from each day's search for survivors. China is one of the sweetest places on the planet. We have adopted two girls from Hunan and our son is waiting for us in Zhejiang. I see their beautiful faces in every child in every quake news story and it just breaks my heart. To think of the families that have been ripped apart, it is just too horrible. I wish that US media outlets would cover the quake as well as the China Daily news. But most people here have never been to China. So how would they know what they are seeing anyway? You have to have been to China to really understand how big this disaster really was. I wish all of the people in China peace and healing. Much love from Oregon. Cynthia On China Daily website
(China Daily 05/21/2008 page11) |
