Students and Projects:
Jianping He (何建平)
$280 of $280 donated
Sichuan, China
Like many in my village, I did not own my first set of clothing until I was five years old. My family had been too poor to buy cloth. My family rents fields from others, and my father works a second job as a manual laborer downtown. My family must pay tuition for my brother and me – I am in middle school and my brother is in elementary school. During one tough time, I dropped out of class for a semester because my family couldn’t afford my tuition fee. Originally, I lived in a remote rural area, from where children would walk five hours to get to school since public transportation was not available. My old home was about 5 miles away from my current school. Everyday, I had to walk for an hour and a half to get to school. Because my parents wanted my brother and me to be closer to school, we decided to move, and found a nice neighbor willing to rent some farmland out. Unfortunately, the weather was very bad. When there was a storm, my family would have nothing to eat for several ...
Ma Guijun (马贵军)
$20 of $240 donated
Sichuan, China
I was born eighteen years ago in Shuhe Village. My village is located at a very high altitude. As a result, few types of crops grow and transportation is difficult. There is only one narrow path for livestock to walk on when going up and down the mountains. Thanks to the government's aid, in 2004, I completed elementary school at a school that was 20 km away. In 2008, I hope to graduate from Shuhe Middle School. But I am very afraid of what will happen once I graduate. Without external financial aid (hopefully from the US), I will not be able to pay the school fees associated with high school enrollment and studies. If given the opportunity, I will work extremely hard and use my grades to pay back my supporters. I will remain indebted to the donors that sponsor me. I would like to thank my parents, teachers, and the various organizations that have helped me get to where I am today. (Translated from Guijin’s autobiographical sketch)
Longfeng Ran (冉龙凤)
$380 of $380 donated
Sichuan, China
My family has endured many unforeseen obstacles. My sister passed away when I was six years old. In the past decade, I have been through many misfortunes that others seldom experience. My father’s leg was injured in an accident recently, but even before the accident, my family had barely enough income. My mother’s physical condition is failing, and my family has reached a point of destitution. We live on farming and raising pigs, and our main source of income was my father’s job. I cannot continue my education because my family does not have enough money right now. My brother has already dropped out of school. I never complained when I was doing housework and farmwork for the family, but when my parents told me that they could no longer afford my tuition fee, I felt distressed and depressed. I wish I can support my family, but I feel that I would not be able to shoulder much weight as a young woman in the family. My parents had been saving money for me to study, and learning w...
Qinghai Ran (冉青海)
$70 of $280 donated
Sichuan, China
My whole family lives solely on tobacco farming. Lately, we have lost much money in our crops, and my brother left the village to find a job. However, my brother is illiterate and earns very little money, not enough to cover my family’s declining annual income and my educational expenses. In these recent years, my parents and my brother have had to pinch and scrape in order to put me through school. The village we live in is extremely poor and technologically backward – with a horrible environment and inferior living conditions. Children are usually forced to grow up quickly, and I am no different. At school, I never had many friends. Initially, I did very poorly in school, was censured by my teachers, and was almost expelled due to failure to pay academic fees. I didn’t give up though, and I started to study harder than anyone in my school. Eventually, I was the top of my class. While I spend more time studying and focusing on my grades, my classmates still look down upon me ...
Jinhua Shen (申金华 )
$195 of $195 donated
Sichuan, China
I come from a poor village. My family has no income besides a couple acres of sterile farmland. The output of our fields couldn’t even support our basic daily expenses. Because we couldn’t afford the tuition fee, I dropped out of school for one year when I was in elementary school. In order to continue my education, I did some labor, and my father borrowed a little money from his relatives and neighbors. My elementary school was three hours away from my home, and the bus ride took two hours. I had little money for other expenses like food. I usually skipped meals at school and stayed hungry. Day by day, I went hungry until I graduated from elementary school. Eventually, I got accepted by the County Middle School. Holding the admission letter, I was so happy, but only for a while. My father told me that he couldn’t afford to pay for my tuition fees. I worked hard during that summer and tried to earn enough money to be able to attend. Unfortunately, I still didn’t have enough ...
Guangen Shen (申关根)
$200 of $200 donated
Sichuan, China
I was born in a small remote village, nestled in the mountains. Although I long to visit the big cities, my village lacks developed roads. People in my village either do farm work or hard labor. The only source of income in my family is the money earned by my father. Unfortunately, when I was little, I fractured my right arm, and in order to afford my medical expenses, his family had to borrow money from neighbors. To pay for tuition fees of both my sister and me, my father had to find a second job. The work was hard to find because my father is illiterate. Like many other poor families who have children attending school, my family is heavily in debt. Despite my difficult circumstances, I love to read. Physics is my favorite subject. When I was in elementary school, I often borrowed physics textbooks from my older sister every time I went home. Since I lived approximately 8.3 miles away from my elementary, I could only go home once every three weeks. In middle school, I enjoyed phys...
Shangui Yan (严善贵)
$150 of $150 donated
Sichuan, China
My family has a couple acres of field and farmland. Due to the recent dry spell, the output of these fields is not much. My younger sister and I are the only two children in my family, and our parents love us so much. My father is a farmer, as well as my disabled mother. The day I started school, my mother broke down into tears because she realized that she could never afford to pay tuition for her children to fully complete their education. For the majority of my sister's and my life, all our clothes were given to us by kind friends. When I was in fourth grade, I got a disease that forced my family to use the little money that we had saved to pay for my medical expenses. My father even sold his own blood to get money for me. Luckily, I was treated and cured. I used to be number one in my class, but after I went to middle school, my performance dropped noticeably. I lost confidence and courage, becoming unsure about my future life and studies. I didn’t know if my family could ...
Shangwen Zhang (张尚文)
$10 of $280 donated
Sichuan, China
My family of four has struggled with economic hardships for years. We only own a small lot of land. Due to the poor health conditions of my mother, most of the farmwork falls on the shoulders of my father. My younger sister and I help out on the weekends when we return home from boarding at school. After the crops have been harvested, my father travels to a nearby city to earn a minimal income through hard labor to help the family get by. I often cry at night under the covers because I am torn between wanting to attend school and also wanting my father to not have to work so hard. I hope to finish school so that I can help my family out of poverty. (Translated from Shangwen’s autobiographical sketch)
Pengfang Zhang (张鹏芳)
$270 of $270 donated
Sichuan, China
My family has struggled with economic hardships my entire life. Since my father passed away when I was only six months old, I never had the chance to utter the words “daddy”. After the death of my father, my mother shouldered the responsibilities of raising two children. At times when the crop harvest was poor, I would often suffer hunger pains from not having enough to eat. Coming from a single-parent family, my older brother and I would often be made fun of by other children in the village for not having a father. However, I learned to bear these hardships without complaint because I know that my mother has to be even stronger to support the family. I used to contemplate the option of ending my education in order to support my older brother’s schooling. I know this would also lessen my mother’s burdens by reducing the cost of two tuition bills. However, with the help of past donors, I am again seeing hope in my future. (Translated from Pengfang’s autobiographical sketch)
Li Zheng (郑丽)
$205 of $205 donated
Sichuan, China
My family relies on our annual harvest to support all of our expenses. However, due to recent droughts, my parents have had to spend money to buy water for our crops. Due to this new cost in crop harvesting, my brother and I borrowed money from relatives in order to pay for tuition. Sometimes when my parents fall sick, they choose not to receive medical treatment in order to afford our tuition. They normally wait out the illness and hope that they will recover soon, instead of spending the family’s resources that they have reserved to pay for our tuition. But since my older brother and I both have excellent grades at school, my parents deem the sacrifices to be worth it. I recall one instance at school that made my poverty all the more apparent in comparison to my fellow students. When I first entered middle school, my teacher told me that I could not receive any of the new textbooks because my tuition had not been paid in full. Although unwilling and embarrassed, I passed the new...
Zhiqing Lv (吕志清)
$220 of $220 donated
Sichuan, China
I was born into a loving family, and although my parents had to labor strenuously, I still had the opportunity of beginning elementary school at age 5. However, my good fortune did not last long. In 2000, my mother passed away as a result of poor health and over-exhaustion from laboring in the fields. In order to give my mother a proper burial, my family spent nearly all of our savings. We even had to sell our land to cover the cost. After the funeral was over, we were only left with a shabby house. My grandmother broke her leg earlier this year, and thus became entirely dependent on my family. As a result, my father’s burdens have become even heavier. I am extremely grateful for today’s opportunity of receiving education grants through the Peach Foundation. I hope that I will be able to receive donations so that my father will be less tired everyday. (Translated from Zhiqing’s autobiographical sketch)
Chao Xu (徐超)
$280 of $280 donated
Sichuan, China
Six years ago, my father mysteriously disappeared, leaving my mother to raise my sister and me by herself. Although my family owns a small parcel of land, my mother’s health conditions prevent her from actually laboring in the fields. To make ends meet, my family rents out our fields (and even parts of our home) to other farmers. Because my mother works in the city to earn an income for the family, I currently live with my grandmother. I do not see my mother except during the wintertime or under special circumstances. My younger sister lives with an uncle and currently attends elementary school. (Translated from Chao's autobiographical sketch)
Yonglin Xiao (肖用林)
$280 of $280 donated
Sichuan, China
I have faced many setbacks in my childhood, but I have overcome each with courage and confidence. My only hope for the future is to fulfill my dreams. Ever since I started my education, I have always excelled in school. However, after graduating from elementary school, I overheard my parents tell their neighbors that they planned to discontinue my education after middle school so that I can help out my family with farm work. Upon finding out my parents’ intentions, I was overcome with sadness. However, my relatives persuaded my parents otherwise, and allowed me the opportunity to continue my education. Although it is difficult to make up for the schooling I missed, I am determined to regain my position at the top of my class. I believe that going to school isn’t enough – one must also excel in whatever he or she is learning. I aspire to do well in all of my school subjects so that I can distinguish myself one day. (Translated from Yonglin’s autobiographical sketch)
Yincong Fan (范银聪)
$250 of $250 donated
Sichuan, China
My parents did not receive much education, and only my father can be considered semi-literate. Given their background, my parents both understand the importance of education and hope that one day, their children will be able to stand proudly in society. When I was in third grade, a major thunderstorm damaged the roof of my house. The next day, my uncle came to help fix the roof, but unfortunately, slipped and fell six meters to the ground. After being examined at the hospital, the doctors deemed that immediate surgery would be necessary to save my uncle’s life. In despair, I had to discontinue my education to help pay for my uncle’s medical expenses. A year later, my father intended for me to return to finish elementary school. However, my mother was diagnosed with lithiasis and needed me to stay home to help out with farm work. I would often cry when seeing other children going to school while I had to stay home. But I never allowed my tears to be seen by my parents because I k...
Daiyun Chen (陈代云 )
$140 of $140 donated
Sichuan, China
Dear donors of the PEACH Foundation: Greetings! I am a freshman in high school, currently studying at Yanyuan Town Minzu Secondary School. My family has faced a lot of hardships, and my teacher said you are able to provide support to families in poverty. Therefore I’m submitting this application. Let me tell you a bit more about my family conditions: My family lives in Shuwen Town, Guanfang Village. There are four members in my family: my father, my mother, my brother and myself. Our house is made of soil. It’s not beautiful to look at but it is enough to shelter us. My parents are both farmers. Most of our income comes from farming and largely depends on our crop harvest. My father sometimes tries to find odd jobs to make some money, but they are mostly labor jobs and don’t provide much income. My brother is in second grade of middle school and it costs a lot of money as well. My family has very little land, so we can only produce a small harvest every year. Our family doesn...
Yaoqin Yang (杨耀琴 )
$250 of $250 donated
Yunnan, China
I have a younger brother who is also studying at the Taian Middle School, so there are only two people in my family who are working, my mother and my father. In addition, my mother is getting older and her health is deteriorating, so sometimes she can’t work. There have even been times when our income has not been enough to pay for her medicine. My father works long hours in the fields, but still there are years when we can’t afford to buy anything, since we have little land and low income. Our family has no income except what is earned from farming. Sometimes my family can’t afford to pay my living expenses, and this becomes a problem. Even though their lives are so difficult, my parents have never said they don’t want my brother and me to go to school. They only continue to say that we only have one chance to do well in school, so we must do our best and not miss this opportunity. These words really touch my heart. Since the school is far from home and our parents have no ...
Shanling Li (李善玲)
$250 of $250 donated
Yunnan, China
The Autobiography of a Middle School Student Middle school student, a common phrase. There are many messages hidden in this common phrase. Some of the messages are good, some bad, but please listen as I explain them to you. I am a common middle school student. My name is Shanling Li. I am a girl of the Bai ethnicity. I am 14 years old. I was born on the 7th of January in 1993. I live in Yunan Province, Lijiang county, Yulong Town, Xinzheng Village. Outside of school I like to read, collect specimen, and run. Some of the meaningful experiences include being the Team Leader and Group Leader of my class, wining the title of “Three Excellence Student”, etc. I have also stayed beside my grandpa when he was suffering from mental illness. My family’s economic hardship has taught me to live frugally. My family is a common family. My family members are my grandpa, dad, mom, sister and myself. My sister is 0 years old and a fourth grader in elementary school. My family’s economic stan...
Yaolan He (和耀兰)
$250 of $250 donated
Yunnan, China
My name is He Yaolan. My family lives in a remote mountain village. There are five people in my family: grandpa, dad, mom, older sister and me. My sister and I are both in school. She attends Li Jiang Secondary Vocational School. I am in 9th grade at Tai An High School. As a result of our geographical surrounding (mountains), our farm revenues are meager. Thus my parents rely on 5 to 6 "mu" (Chinese measure of land area) to support the family financially. My sister and I need about 80 to 100 yuan weekly to cover our expenses. When we are short on money, we have to borrow from our neighbors. We often worry that we can't afford to pay school tuition. My grandpa's health is in poor condition; he is deaf and his vision is severely impaired. He cannot take care of himself and he needs to be looked after daily. My mother is also ill and constantly going to the hospital. At this point, I think our dad is the only one who can support us financially. Because my school is ve...
Wu Wan Tao
$150 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
Dear respective supporters, Greetings. I live in the Yun-Yang county, Feng Chun Ling city, in a village named Lao Zhao in a family of four. My father works as a day laborer while both my mother and myself are both sick – that make our family finance difficult. As far as I can remember, I was born with many illnesses: nose bleeding, stomach ache and headaches. I had kidney stone when I was in fourth grade, and my father had to work harder to cover my medical cost. During my eighth grade, my headache and nose bleeding came back, but I insisted attending classes with my hands holding on my nose; I was afraid of lagging behind in school if I went to hospital often. My father wants to take me to bigger hospital to treat me but the cost is high. Despite being a sick student, I have confidence that I can work harder, and my illness and financial difficulty will not prevent me becoming a useful member of society. My near term goal is to pass the exam and attend Jian-Shui First High School...
Ma Shi Xiang
$100 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
Dear supporters, Bless you for your considering helping me. My name is Shi Xiang Ma, and I was born on the 3rd of January, 1995. I live in Yuan Yang city, Ur Pu village council. We live in poverty, and I had been thinking of dropping out of school. But what else can I do? I cannot help my father. My father attended middle school; my mother attended only elementary school. My father insists my continuing school. In the family we also have our grandmother of 60 years old and my brother at 12, 3 years younger to me, to support. My brother achieves better grade than me so far; with your assistance and support, I will improve my grade standing by working harder. At the beginning of my schooling, I did not pay attention to class and lag behind. My father with patience gradually helps me out. He wakes me up early in the morning to go over recitation; after class, he supervises me to finish homework. With much improvement, I increase my confidence. However, sometimes it is still hard, words...
Chen Yong Qiang
$125 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
To dear supporters, After hearing your assistance of poor students completing their education, I am full of hope, happiness and respect to kind heart. My name is Yong Qiang Chen, and I was born at E Zha village in Yuan Yang into a poor family, and I nearly dropped out of school. But through the insistence of my will, I stay in school. Now I am in middle school with good grade standing: out of 80 students in my class, I stay within top 5 students. I could have achieved better result; but due to our financial difficulty, and high living cost, your assistance will help me greatly. My mother gets sick frequently and my family all relies on my father’s labor to earn a living; both of them are simple country folks. Due to our hardship my father looks much older than his age. Until we have better handle of our finance I keep facing the possibility of dropping out of school. Until I accomplish my goal and bring honor to my parents, I have to strive hard and work incessantly. I enjoy atten...
Shi Ming Ying
$250 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
Dear supporters, I am applying for your grant to continue my schooling, and I am so grateful to fulfill my dream from my mountain village of Wen Yuan. My name is Shi Ming Ying, female, from the Yi minority. I was born on the 17th of February of 1994. My family lives in Yuan Yang city of E Zha County. Attending now my 9th grade class, I become the top student of my grade last year. When I heard of your interest of assisting me, my tears almost came out to my eyes. My parents divorced and I live with my grandmother since I was 8 years old. My step mother would rather not live with me, so I stay with grandma and making my life difficult. My father now seeks to divide the family estate but my grandparents refused several times. So he becomes violent and treating my grandparents and me badly – he even hit us. I do not want go home when school are off; but I have to help my grandparents to manage household. I lost my mother’s love, and family happiness. Since my elementary school, my ...
Jiang Zhou
$0 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
Hi, I am a shy and quiet boy, live in a remote mountain village; we have 5 family members living in a house with broken windows. We live in Yun Nan province, Yuan Yang city, Za Niang village. I like my house because it is my parents' work; they spent all their energy and borrowed ten thousands yuan - an astronomical number to me. My father works as a laborer outside, while my mother works in a plot of land every day. We have little to eat while work hard every day to pay the debt. Over the years my father becomes thinner and my mother contracts some illness due to overwork, so we had to sell our pigs for her treatment. Over these years, both of my parents work to manage to earn our modest living. But they insists that I and my younger brother continuing schooling. Observing my parents getting older and thinner over these years, I feel sorry for them. I keep thinking of bring happiness to help them so I come home for school breaks. My parents know that I am a grateful son, and I ...
Lu Qing
$250 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
My name is Lu Qing, a female from Yi minority in Yun Nan Province, Pu Jian city, Ku Lun Ur village. I was born on the 8th of July, 1994 into a family of 5: my parents, grandmother, and my younger brother. I am attending a school now 5 KM away from home. During my schooling I have faced many difficulties; I remember I stayed behind a grade due to our financial trouble. My parents leave home to work outside, and they seldom come home for some time. I remember my parents quarreled about the school fees, and I stayed back at home to help out the planting. But now despite our difficulty, I continue school and trying to make the best effort to show to my parents; they do not ask me to drop out. Sometimes, facing my own difficulty and I think of stopping school; but my parents now encourage me to continue attending school. Over these years, maybe I am not a strong-willed person; I often feel the pain, our difficulty, lying on the bed, thinking myself as a droplet in the vast sea, having no...
Lu Yu Fang
$250 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
I live Nin Yuan county, Yung Nin city, Fang Pin village in the Province of Yun Nan. There’s poor transportation to my village, and it is a long walk from school to home. In my family I have a younger brother and sister; buy my sister stopped school to help out the family – my parents can afford only us two to attend school. Getting up very early in the morning to work in the field, but we still cannot keep up the basic food and clothing for the family. I know my schooling is the only way out in the future. I simply have to work diligently. I remember when I entered 6th grade, and we could pay the school fees. My father went to borrow from the neighbors. Seeing his dark and gloom face, feeling powerless, I told myself, “I will stop school.” I told my father I stay home and work to earn and help the family to support my younger brother. But my father said to me “You have to continue; despite our hardship, I will go to door by door to borrow the money for you to attend.” He...
Li Dao
$0 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
My name is Li Dao, and I live in the village of Pao Ma Ping, Nin Lang County, in the Yun Nan Province. Our family has 7 members, and I am the 3rd among my siblings line-up. Both of my two older brothers and younger sister are attending school still, and the only source of income comes from the labor of my parents. We manage to survive with what we can afford barely. My parents insist we all attend school despite the difficulty. I can still vividly remember the first time I walked into our school – a house built with mud and bamboos. It’s quite common in our area to have mud and bamboo house due to poverty. I spent two years there and then I moved on to a much better school. When I first step into the new school, I could feel so much difference. When I saw other students with new cloth on, I began to make a fuss and crying out loud. My parents were ashamed. Later I understand my parents better, and my father’s rough hands make me felt my indebt to him. When I entered 6th grade,...
Yang Wen Hua
$0 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
My family consists of six members, and both my parents are common farmers. Furthermore, my father is weak and in poor health, so he is unable to heavy labor; therefore he is not welcomed by employers when he travels, looking for work, and he can only stay at home to do farm work. Even though my father is hardworking and frugal, sometimes the economy does not allow us to be self sufficient. However, despite this, my parents did not discontinue their own children’s schooling, but instead allowed us to receive an education like “others.” This often makes me proud. My parents want me to continue my education so that in the future I can live outside of our village. They had to make sacrifices in food and drink to save every cent for me. For ten or so years, my parents fought for life every day, and even though they were beaten black and blue by life’s hardships, they still shouldered the hoe during hot, summer days and stood stubbornly against the cruel, winter wind. In order to ...
He Qiu Hua
$25 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
My name is He Qiu Hua. I am 16. I live at Jin Mian Village, Long Tong Town, and my family is relatively poor. In my home, we have 6 people (Dad, Mom, Older Brother, me, Uncle, and Grandma). Dad and Mom are both farmers. My Uncle is blind, and he cannot really do much at home. It is a good thing that Grandma can still help my parents with some housework. My brother and I are both in the process of getting our education. My parents, in order to support my brother and I, have slaved away under the burning sun. And our land has very minimal vegetation, not enough water, and the weather is always overly hot. Once a year, we can only have one harvest for our corn. Sometimes, farmers may have no crops at all. We say “our livelihood depends on the weather.” I remember that when I first started school, my older brother’s tuition had been paid in paid and my parents were going to pay mine as well. However, my mother fell very sick and our savings had to be spent on her medical treatment...
Liu Yan
$0 of $250 donated
Yun Nan, China
Right now, I am in Red Flag Middle School. My name is Liu Yan, and I am one of the students in class 85 in ninth grade. My home is in a farm village, and I am the youngest in a family of five. My parents have to take care of my three sisters and it is very difficult. Every day, they always get up early and return late. Their wrinkles are becoming deeper and deeper, their hair whiter. When we were little, my grandma seemed dissatisfied because the three of us were all girls, and she never held us or took care of us. It was my mom and dad who raised us. At the time, often mother would go to cut grass, always somehow carrying all of us along with an umbrella and some clothing. After she is covered with clothing, and after putting us on top and blocking the sun with the umbrella, only then could she cut grass. Whenever we started crying, she would hurry over to pacify us- especially me; I really worried my parents when I was little. At the time, my nose was bleeding, and my parents also...
Lv Qi Cheng
$0 of $250 donated
Si Chuan, China
Funny enough, I was born May 10, 1995, the year of the Pig. I’ve always despised the fact that I wasn’t born in the year of the Monkey, and instead, I get the Pig. If I was born in the year of the Monkey, how lovely that would be! I would have the powers of the famous Monkey King (like in the fairy tales – Journey to the West), taking my weapons and journeying to the Far West. When I encounter creepy creatures and villains, I would defend my people against them like a true hero. I would be mighty and invincible, and I could answer any riddle. If I had such special powers, how wonderful that would be. Sigh. But I was born in the year of the Pig. Some people say that means I am gluttonous and lazy animal with big, flapping ears and a long, ugly snout. Anyway, people would tell me that I am unable to speak clearly, am as dumb as a pig… so dumb, that I can’t even answer simple questions. Some would say I’m a big, fat pig. I get negative comments all the time, even right in m...
Li Pu Ba
$100 of $250 donated
Yun Nan
My name is Li Pu Ba and I am a sixteen year old girl. I am in my junior year of high school. I have seven people in my family, four kids. My parents are often out working, so only my grandparents are home most of the time. My siblings and I all are in school. I was born in an underdeveloped area near the mountain border. Although the World Vision has funded a concrete road through the village, the people in the village don’t have the capability to continue to build. Our village has very poor hygienic conditions. We don’t have the ability to construct facilities like pig pens, so people can leave around their pigs and chickens. You can see pig waste at the side of the road. Two years ago, my family started to build a house, but our family ran into economic problems, so the house remains unfinished. Because this condition has persisted, we use bamboo sheets to cover the windows to block the wind and sand from blowing in. It’s because of reasons like this why it is imperative tha...
Mao Chun (Mao Chun)
$75 of $250 donated
Si Chuan, China
May 1, 1992 was the day I was born into my impoverished family. As an older person now, I look back to the memories of our five-person family unit surviving in brutal poverty. My home did not have much grain or rice, while others had a plentiful supply. We sometimes borrowed from other families to feed ourselves and return the amount back to them the next year. If we were lucky to have a good crop season, you can see the smiles on my family’s faces, and vice a versa. During Chinese New Year, others would kill their pigs to feast on, while we would never be able to. Without anything to eat, we would just hide at home, fearing that others would talk about our lack of festivities. But our family would never step foot inside another’s roof just to eat pork. During the course of my studies, my dad would cross many roads in the wind to get to my relatives’ houses to borrow my tuition. Here a little, and there a little, we would gather enough to send me to school
|
