In 1991, photographer Xie Hailong went from Beijing to Jinzhai County, Anhui Province in search of photography materials. By chance, he walked into the primary school of Zhangwan Village, Taoling Township, and ushered in a wonderful experience. meet.
When recalling those years, Xie Hailong said that the first thing that shocked him was the poor environment of the classroom: mottled walls, broken tables and chairs, and extremely poor lighting. He could not imagine that there were children studying in such a crude environment.
Suddenly, a pair of big, bright eyes caught his attention. Those eyes were clean, pure, and full of "penetrating power that can directly hit the soul!"
Out of the photographer's instinct, Xie Hailong pressed the shutter and took the picture That black and white photo that shocked the country. Countless people paid attention to students in impoverished mountainous areas because of this photo titled "I want to go to school." As a result, countless poor students received support from all parties and successfully completed their studies.
Later, Project Hope selected this classic photo as an official promotional material. Those big clear eyes became the memory of a generation. Someone once commented: "Project Hope is a book, and the cover of this book is "I want to go to school" This photo. "
The girl with big eyes in the photo is named Su Mingjuan . Her life has completely changed since she was taken with this photo of "big eyes" when she was 8 years old.
01. In a poor life, the pursuit of knowledge will never die
In 1983, Su Mingjuan was born in Jinzhai County, Anhui Province. The land here is barren and it is a national-level poverty-stricken county. The Su family is famously poor in this poverty-stricken county. Su Mingjuan's parents worked hard for a year, but the harvest was only enough to sustain the family for three months.
The fate of the vast majority of daughters in the county at that time was: after attending elementary school for a few years, they dropped out of school due to financial pressure and followed their fellow villagers to work in other places. When they were just over 20 years old, they found a suitable family to marry nearby, had children, and lived in the country. Earning a living from the land, they repeat the hard-working and poor life of their fathers.
Su Mingjuan’s father, Su Liangyou, did not want his daughter to repeat such a fate. He knew that the only chance for his daughter to escape poverty and leave the mountains was to study hard. But his family was so poor that even though Su Liangyou had to work from dawn to dusk chopping firewood in addition to farming, he only managed to save more than 100 yuan in a few months.
The tuition and miscellaneous fees for a primary school student alone cost 70 yuan per semester. Su Liangyou didn’t know how many grades he had the ability to name, but no matter what, he firmly believed that most of them were useful. When Su Mingjuan was 7 years old, he gritted his teeth and sent his daughter to the village. Run a primary school.
The conditions in the school are very difficult. Because there is no money to install glass, we can only let the cold wind howl in during the winter. We sit inside and attend class, and our whole body is frozen to the bone. But Su Mingjuan is very happy. She loves going to school and cherishes this hard-won opportunity. She is eager to change her destiny through knowledge.
Perhaps it was this desire that struck Jie Hailong and created the classic picture that shocked the country.
However, due to the blockade of information in the mountainous area, Su Mingjuan's family had no idea when the photo went viral across the country. It was not until 2 years later, in 1993, that the villagers brought back a newspaper with Su Mingjuan's photo from the county town that the family knew that the little girl was famous.
After becoming famous, Su Mingjuan gained the independence of many caring people. Since 1994, a military academy student named Li Wan has sent her money every year, so that she no longer has to worry about tuition fees and can focus on her studies.
With Li Wan’s assistance, Su’s parents originally wanted to return other funds, but many caring people firmly refused. After obtaining the consent of the donors, Su Mingjuan’s parents donated the remaining funds to Project Hope. , in order to help more poor children.
At the same time, Su Liangyou and his wife will also give back home-made bacon, hand-picked straw sandals and other gifts to strangers who have helped them. The words and deeds of her parents also planted the seeds of gratitude in Su Mingjuan's heart.
02. The blow comes unexpectedly, and growth is never smooth.
Although Su Mingjuan got financial support from her fame, it also came with a corresponding price: during elementary school and junior high school, various media wanted to interview her almost every day. When she was doing long, she Accepted 5 interviews in one day.
In addition, she also needs to take a few months to participate in various charity activities in other places. All these things also confused this little girl who was not very experienced in the world.
When looking back on this experience as an adult, Su Mingjuan once said: "I know in my heart that everyone came to help me with good intentions. I am very grateful to everyone, so I will not refuse these things. But there are too many such things, and I It is difficult to go to school normally. "
As she said, too many social activities affected her performance. When she took the high school entrance examination, Su Mingjuan unexpectedly failed. She originally thought she would miss high school, but due to her "special status" she was admitted to Jinzhai County No. 1 Middle School. Unfortunately, her joy of staying on campus did not last long before she was ruined by rumors among her classmates. .
Some people began to secretly talk behind her back. Some said that she was not qualified to go to high school at all and was only given special care because she was famous. Others said that they did not know the kind people who donated money to her. Seeing her current condition Will the results be disappointing?
These cynicisms were like a steel needle, mercilessly hitting Su Mingjuan's psychology. Her immature and sensitive self-esteem was deeply stung, and this strong little girl decided to refuse this special "charity".
She decided to drop out of school.
Her father was furious because of her anger. In his opinion, his daughter's education was the result of countless people's financial support. Dropping out of school meant failing everyone's expectations and wasting a hard-won precious opportunity. People cannot tolerate it. The teachers at
school also took this matter very seriously and traveled dozens of miles to visit Su Mingjuan’s home. They earnestly persuaded her not to be arrogant and to continue studying in school.
After hearing about it, Xie Hailong, who took the photo for her, also wrote a long letter to her, trying to persuade her not to give up the rare opportunity to go to school. He also published relevant articles, hoping that everyone would stop treating Su Mingjuan. Give her too much attention so she can grow up quietly.
Su Mingjuan was so moved by everyone's efforts that she no longer clung to her own little pretensions, put down all activities except for Project Hope charity activities, and concentrated on completing the remaining studies in high school.
03. I had been caught in the rain, so I wanted to hold an umbrella for others
In 2002, Su Mingjuan successfully passed the Anhui University Vocational and Technical College . Although
is only a junior college, it is already the best result that the poor children in this small mountain village can achieve. As the first college student in the village, Su Mingjuan finally used her own efforts to give back to all those who had helped and cared for her.
Anhui Provincial Hope Project paid for all her tuition, and the school granted her an annual poverty subsidy of 900 yuan.
But at this time, Su Mingjuan was no longer a little girl who could only rely on help from others. She began to provide help to people who had the same experience as her in her own way.
She applied to return the donation from the Hope Project and the school's subsidy. She used her holidays and after-school time to do various part-time jobs to pay for her own tuition. At the same time, she also donated the money she saved to other poor students.
Every summer vacation, she insists on going to the mountainous areas with her classmates to teach, using her knowledge to bring hope to the children who, like herself, struggled to study in the mountains during her childhood. Every time she teaches, she will buy daily necessities for the children. , and donate some money as much as you can.
After graduation, Su Mingjuan, who had a fixed income, turned donating into a regular habit. Every month, he would use part of his salary to donate to poor students. He has never stopped doing so for more than ten years.
She said, “I grew up with everyone’s help and care. Now that I have the ability, I must continue to do my best to help people in need."
This is her return to society, and it is also a promise she has been practicing.
04, airborne to serve as the Youth League Committee, and did not change her original intention despite the controversy.
In 2006, in order to better provide help to poor children, Su Mingjuan discussed with Xie Hailong, The famous "big eyes" photo was auctioned for more than 300,000 yuan She donated all the money without taking any money, and established a Hope Primary School in Qushui County, Tibet. This school solved the problem of schooling for hundreds of Tibetan children. Su Mingjuan's move also caused a stir in Anhui. Attention of the Provincial Youth League Committee, in 2017, Su Mingjuan was elected as "Deputy Secretary of the Anhui Provincial Youth League Committee"
This is a person who continues to shine. This gave her the opportunity to give back to the society, but unexpectedly it caused a lot of controversy. Some people tactfully questioned whether it was unfair for Su Mingjuan to be directly elected because her grades were mediocre and she had no previous Youth League committee work experience.
There were divergent opinions. Some people accused Su Mingjuan of being greedy for quick success and forgetting her original intention. Some people said that Su Mingjuan was taking advantage of her. The "big eyes" are for their own benefit.
Fortunately, the truth will not be hidden forever. The rumor was soon officially refuted. Su Mingjuan's position as "Deputy Secretary of the Youth League Committee" is only part-time. In order to better improve organizational efficiency and complete relevant work, she did not It is not in the official system, and all the previous accusations do not exist.
The entire incident has gone from criticism to dust. After settling down, Su Mingjuan has never been influenced by the outside world. She still focuses on her job and public welfare. In 2018, she spent tens of thousands of yuan to establish a special student aid fund. This fund has participated in the construction of many hope primary schools. Su Mingjuan, who has sponsored dozens of poor students and works for charity, has been repaying love in her own way.
Although she has endured a lot of injustice, Su Mingjuan is still doing her best to help. Those children who have had the same difficulties as her, perhaps, this is the true meaning of the Hope Project. It is more than just a book or a pen, but the love between people. This constant transmission of mutual help is what makes us The source of true hope in life
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【文|Nora】
【Editor|Valley】
