Little Red Scarf is in Lanzhou, Gansu, and Yunnan provinces. We provide financial support and encouragement to children suffering from congenital heart disease. In addition, we provide families with post-operative care and help the children sustain a healthy lifestyle. I was shocked by Xiao Cui's weakness when I first saw her in the hospital ward. She looked like a 12-year-old girl, but she was actually 19. Xiao Cui lives in Lincang county in Yunnan province. She is of the Wa ethnic minority group and has dark skin. She took the night bus to Kunming with her mother, which took more than 10 hours. After such a long bus ride, both of them seemed weary. Xiao Cui said her mother does not know Mandarin, nor is she literate, so she seldom went out. She experienced motion sickness, but at least they arrived in Kunming. Their family is a single parent one. Xiao Cui's father died when she was quite young. Her mother has been taking care of the whole family. They have over an acre and a half of fields, which they planted with tea and a little tobacco and corn. They earned about 4,000 RMB ($600 USD) from the fields last year. With government subsidies, they earn a total of about 7,775 RMB ($1,200 USD) a year. Xiao Cui was diagnosed with congenital heart disease when she was in 9th grade, but they could not afford to do any treatment. Xiao Cui said her mother works very hard. They even paid back the debt owed before her father’s death. Life has been hard for them. Her mother borrowed 20,000 RMB ($3,000 USD) for her operation. Debt has made their life even harder. I looked at her mother, who seemed unyielding. I asked Xiao Cui about her mother, and she told me her mother has a big temper, but they had been getting along well. I knew it was not easy for a woman to sustain the family. As you can tell from the photo, the family lives in a shabby wood cabin. Her mother was smoking like a man. Xiao Cui has 2 older sisters. The 4 of them are all like sisters. Xiao Cui said her mother had serious stomach problems and gynecological diseases. She was too sick to do field work, so they had to rent out their tea fields for about 1,000 RMB ($150 USD) a year to someone else. Her mother did some temp work but their income was still unstable. They had to rely on their relatives for support. The family could not afford for her mother to have a check up in the hospital, so they had to rely on witchcraft to treat her mother’s illness. Climbing Xinglong MountainToday is day 5 of the summer camp, which the kids have been looking forward to. We will climb Xinglong Mountain, a protected natural forest reserve in the Lanzhou area. It’s a nice summer resort, and the climate is moist. After breakfast, most of our group hit the road. It took 10-20 minutes to get from the campground to the bottom of Xinglong Mountain by bus. The campground owner volunteered to drive the younger kids in his car to Xinglong Mountain. All our kids are from villages and are very good at climbing mountains. It didn’t take them very long to charge way up ahead of us.
The Yurt GameToday was another full and vibrant day. The campers got washed up and were all ready for the morning warm-up exercises. The first game we played was called the "yurt" game, led by Teacher Yun. She introduced how to play and the principles behind the game, so each camper would understand the importance of cooperation. Given the weight requirements of the participants, Teacher Yun invited the older campers to play the game first. This game required a high level of cooperation and coordination among the participants. The tension from the campers on every side was supposed to form a stable circle that looked like a yurt, so they would not fall down. In the beginning, the campers tried several times but still could not fully understand the importance of cooperation. They swung back and forth. After more attempts, the campers eventually cooperated perfectly, and the whole circle became stable. Since there weren't enough participants to reach the ideal number for the game, the circle didn’t look quite like a yurt. But from this game, the campers experienced the importance of cooperation. The game was successful! The Human Chair GameIt was still too early for breakfast, so Teacher Yun introduced another game called “human chair," which was a team game that helped campers to experience the spirit of teamwork. This game required everyone to be fully involved and engaged; no one could be lazy.
Although all the campers were involved in the game and tried many times, they still failed. We discovered the reason was because the big age gap caused a power imbalance. Throughout the whole process, everyone tried their best, but it was unsuccessful. We adjusted our strategy and let some younger campers be cheerleaders for the rest of us. We tried the game one more time, and we succeeded! Heart Has a Thousand KnotsYesterday night there was a bit of light rain. When we woke up, the air was very refreshing. The campers were quite excited, and by 7:30 everyone was done getting washed up and ready. An early start! Last night we played the “heart has a thousand knots” game. We wanted to play it again today, but this time we increased the challenge to 27 people. This time everyone came to play regardless of age, and the game was actually quite challenging! Many of the younger campers wanted to give up. Although they had little confidence, the seemingly impossible became possible through collaboration, remaining calm, and countless rounds of trial and error. Everyone was happy about our success, and after the game was over we all gathered to talk about our feelings. We all agreed on the following lessons: perseverance leads to success, efforts yield great results, and there is strength in teamwork. Let’s give the campers a thumbs up and some applause! Gansu MuseumAfter breakfast, everyone prepared for our journey to the Gansu Museum, and our driver arrived just on time! The campers all orderly piled onto the bus. Everyone was in high spirits, and we began to sing the camp song.
Morning Exercises, Games, and BreakfastDay 2 of the summer camp began, and the children already could not contain their excitement. They got out of bed early in the morning and were eager to begin the day. Cindy’s family had already prepared warm-up exercises and were moving along to the radio. Another beautiful day had begun.
LRS Summer Camp 2016 has begun!
Children Check-In and Arrive
Learn how we're helping orphans in Myanmar, children at risk in Thailand, and villagers without clean water in Vietnam. Expanding Impact in Myanmar, Thailand, and VietnamWe are excited to announce these new projects and partnerships that will expand our impact in East Asia.
Longwan Caring Home is located in Dahua County, which was listed as one of the poorest counties in Guangxi Province. Longwan Caring Home is a big family consisting of orphans, single parents, and abandoned children. The normal expenses of the Home are covered by plantations, breeding, and small businesses. People ask us why we established Longwan Kindergarten. We wanted to give preschool children from remote areas an environment that they can learn and grow up in. We believe we will continue to improve in our professionalism and standards. The children need not only to play, but also to learn. We integrated both games and education in a day’s activities. Original article written by Aihua Ban, translated and edited by Maggie Li Grounded on core values of respect, love, and service to the elderly, the Xinyue Senior Center of Chongqing, China, promotes social work services for senior citizens and builds a harmonious living environment for them. It started when I had hurt my thigh bone, and my children had to take care of me. I have 3 great grandchildren, and they are all about 1 year old. So to alleviate the burden of my children I came to the Chongqing Nursing Home.
My clean, neat, and bright hut contains simple furnishings: a double bed, a desk, a TV, a closet, and 2 pictures of my grandson. I like to see the lovely photos of my grandson when I sit on the bed. His chubby face makes me laugh. I imagine him growing up and becoming a brave and hardworking young man. This is my sincere expectation and wish for him. There’s a round glass window, and I can see buildings outside, as well as some thriving flowers and trees. Interestingly, there’s a window with window shades in the back wall of the bathroom. The view outside is reflected on the wall. It is really a beautiful picture during the sunset. On the balcony are plants that were given to me by friends. Flowers blossom and send out their fragrance. The cactus is growing day by day. Outside the windows, the camellias attract butterflies and bees. The trees are getting higher in the spring rains. Birds are singing on the tree branches. What an interesting picture! On weekends, relatives and families park their cars along the road. They walk and chat with the nursing home residents. When the moon became big and round, I could not help but read a poem. This is my little room, which comforted my sadness and healed my physical injury. I live here and will spend my life it. I like it and love it, my beloved little room. Original article written by Guangbi Xu, translated by Maggie Li, edited by Yanyan Zhang and Carolyn D. Longwan Caring Home is located in Dahua County, which was listed as one of the poorest counties in Guangxi Province. Longwan Caring Home is a big family consisting of orphans, single parents, and abandoned children. The normal expenses of the Home are covered by plantations, breeding, and small businesses. Zhen Ron’s grandfather and father died in 2012. His mother left home and has not come back. Zhen Ron had been living with his uncle. Unfortunately, his uncle’s wife left the family, so life became difficult for them.
In 2014, Zhen Ron’s uncle brought him to Longwan. The children who came around the same time as Zhen Ron were studying in the senior class, but Zhen Ron wanted to stay in the junior class. The teachers joked with him saying, “You should go to the senior class.” But he would respond, “I do not want to.” Zhen Ron did not like speaking, but now he has become open and lively. He has learned to care for the younger children. He can wash himself clean before going to bed. Zhen Ron also likes toy cars and balls. When he's not happy, he closes his lips tightly. But the children who are older than him treat him patiently and comfort him if he is unhappy. Zhen Ron’s uncle is trying his best to earn a living, especially since Zhen Ron’s father left debt when he died. His uncle takes Zhen Ron home during the winter and summer holidays. Zhen Ron always greets his uncle with the brightest smiles. He weeps sadly when he has to leave his uncle. We are with Zhen Ron together to witness his growing-up. Original Article Written by Banai Hua, translated by Maggie Li, edited by Yanyan Zhang and Carolyn D. |
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