Liu Ximeng, who took her mother to college: the real strong man is the one who runs with tears
With a neat ponytail and two sweet dimples, she does housework without any ambiguity - she is Liu Ximeng who took her mother to college and recently won the 26th China Youth May Fourth Medal.
In the past few days, Liu Ximeng, a junior at Harbin Normal University, just finished the interview for the teacher's qualification certificate, and turned to review for the final exam.
No matter how stressful the study is, Liu Ximeng always spares as much time as possible to take care of her mother.
In 2001, she was born in Daqing City, Heilongjiang Province.
Her mother was unable to take care of herself due to illness. Liu Ximeng began to learn to live independently since she was 3 years old. When other children were crying and acting coquettishly in their parents' arms, she had already taken on all the responsibilities of the family with her tender shoulders.
When she learned that she had won the 26th China Youth May Fourth Medal, Liu Ximeng said: "Taking good care of my mother is what I should do. To be honored is a kind of recognition and encouragement. In the future, I will work harder to be a role model for young people."
She was more sensible than children her age.
"In the beginning, relatives came over in the morning to make the meal for the day. I wrote down every step by the side, and when it was time for the meal, I poured it back into the pot to heat it up." She recalled, "The pot table is too high, and I can't reach it, so I can only heat it up. Put two bricks under your feet and lie down on the pot table."
Scrambled eggs with tomatoes is the first dish that Liu Ximeng learned.
When she first learned to cook, Liu Ximeng would shout at every step she made to ask her mother in the bedroom what to do next. When she was not sure whether the food was cooked, she would bring the pot from the stove to the bedroom for her to see, and then Run back to the kitchen to continue cooking.
One winter, Liu Ximeng put the unthawed sticky bean buns she brought back from the outdoors directly into the pot, and the splashes of oil immediately jumped out of the pot and splashed on her face.
Mom looked at Liu Ximeng's scalded face with tears in her eyes, but she smiled and said, "Mom, look how fast I ran, I was only scalded by the oil."
When he was a child, his family was poor, so Liu Ximeng mostly relied on watching TV shows to gain knowledge.
Among them, she often watches a Chinese medicine program, in which the teacher will tell how to massage the corresponding acupuncture points according to different conditions.
Liu Ximeng followed the teacher's example, and controlled her strength and gently massaged in the direction of her mother's bones.
After about 20 minutes of massage, she was often sweating profusely, and her arms were so sore that she couldn't lift them up.
Although she has taken on more family responsibilities than her peers since childhood, the special family environment did not make Liu Ximeng feel inferior, but made her grow into an optimistic and positive person.
"I have more skills than others since I was a child, and my classmates can admire me." Liu Ximeng said with a smile.
When she was of school age, Liu Ximeng was both anticipating and frightening.
What awaits her is going to school alone, the long journey from school, and the mother waiting at home alone.
In order to go home as soon as possible to take care of her mother, Liu Ximeng always rushed out of the classroom as soon as possible after school and ran home with all her might, turning her mother over, feeding her water, and taking her to the toilet.
After entering high school, the academic pressure increases.
In order not to delay her studies, Liu Ximeng had to get up at 5 am every day to prepare meals for the day, and put them on the bedside chair within reach of her mother.
After taking her mother to the bathroom to wash up, she took the time to go to the bus stop to get on the first bus to go to school.
In 3 years, she has never been late once.
Recalling a winter night in the third year of high school, Liu Ximeng still has lingering fears.
Usually, she would call her mother during the evening self-study. "It was abnormal that day. I called several times and no one answered. After I got home, I realized that my mother was suddenly ill. Fortunately, the neighbor aunt found it in time."
In order to avoid accidents from happening again, Liu Ximeng had the idea of taking her mother to college in her heart.
After successfully being admitted to Harbin Normal University in 2019, Liu Ximeng told her mother to take her to university with her.
Relatives and friends kept persuading Liu Ximeng to let her mother stay in her hometown and live in a nursing home provided by the government for free, but Liu Ximeng insisted, "I only have a home when my mother is here, and I must protect her."
After entering the university, Liu Ximeng did not slow down her efforts, she arranged her life to the fullest.
In order to get more exercise for herself, Liu Ximeng actively participated in the student cadre election, serving as the class secretary and the station manager of the school's easy-to-class workstation; at the same time, with the help of teachers and classmates, she found a number of part-time jobs to subsidize her family.
After getting her first salary, Liu Ximeng bought her mother a hair clipper.
"Mom is a very beautiful person. With a hair clipper, I can help her trim her hair at home."
"The real strong person is not the one who sheds tears, but the one who runs with tears." Running with tears is a true portrayal of Liu Ximeng's life in the past 20 years. She feels that the enthusiastic people who have helped her along the way have given her the perseverance to persevere. Motivation, among which she wants to thank the teachers most.
"The sudden extra money in the meal card, the reduced test paper fee, the fruit, grain and oil during the New Year's holiday... During the most helpless time in my life, it was the teachers who gave me warmth and help." Liu Ximeng still remembers that one winter It was very cold. At that time, when she was in elementary school, she only wore a single jacket and single pants. It was the teacher who raised funds for her to buy the first down jacket in her life. That down jacket made her decide to be a "teacher like a teacher".
"Although fate has given me a bad script, I prefer to live the best role here." Speaking of the future, Liu Ximeng said that her greatest wish is to be by her mother's side and do her best to repay the society.
"I want to be a 'teacher like a teacher', passing on warmth and sowing the seeds of love and hope to more people in need." Liu Ximeng said.
China Youth Daily, China Youth Daily reporter Han Rong Source: China Youth Daily