Chen Xiujiang,
did not find his first job in life until he was 30 years old:
corpse restorer.
He was originally a gangster, and
had been in and out of prison 5 or 6 times. Every time
is released,
's status is invisibly promoted, and
has more and more followers.
Until he was imprisoned for 6 years for the last time,
he suddenly had an epiphany in prison and
decided to find a job that was useful to society.
With the help of his girlfriend,
he carried the coffin, cleaned the body, and repaired the body.
He worked for 8 years and has delivered thousands of people with dignity.
In 2014, major disasters occurred in Taiwan.
Chen Xiu will set up the "76 Travelers Remains Beauty and Restoration Team".
In accidents such as air crashes, earthquakes, gas explosions, car accidents, etc.,
will help the victims repair their bodies for free.
Provide post-disaster treatment and care for their families. To comfort the soul,
team members have expanded from 27 to 300 people.
is Taiwan’s first and only public welfare organization that restores remains of
major disasters.
"I have always abided by the oath I made in prison.
I want to be a good person."
Readme Chen Xiujiang Editor Bai Wenping
My name is Chen Xiujiang. I am 38 years old this year. I have been engaged in the work of beauty and restoration of corpses. Over the past eight years, there have been thousands of corpses handled. To outsiders, death may seem taboo or even fearful, but to me, this job is very meaningful.
I grew up in a very complicated environment since I was a child. I belonged to the bottom of society and the order was relatively chaotic. I could say that I lived in places like brothels and hotels. After graduating from junior high school, I did not go to school and started to hang out in the underworld, which cultivated me. That's the kind of character that's not afraid of death.
In total, I have been in and out of prison 5 or 6 times. In fact, it’s not that I haven’t thought about repenting, but I will face various tests after returning to society. The first is that my living environment is complicated and there are many temptations; the second is that every time you are imprisoned, your status in the underworld is invisibly improved. Suddenly a bunch of younger brothers pop up and call you big brother, which will give you a sense of vanity; thirdly, I don’t think society will accept people with criminal records so easily, and it’s basically difficult to find a job.
The time that really made me regret was the last time I was imprisoned. That time I was imprisoned for a long time, for 6 years. During that time, I really allowed myself to settle down. The teacher who taught me in prison allowed me to go slowly. Understanding that this society actually has different perspectives makes me believe that there are actually people in this world who can selflessly contribute to others.
I don’t deny that I still did bad things for a while after serving my sentence, but one day I suddenly became afraid and found out that all my brothers around me had been arrested. I realized that I was afraid of going to jail, and I didn’t want to go back. I also remembered that I was in prison at that time. Prison oath: I want to be a good person.
I happened to meet my wife at that time. She was still my girlfriend at the time. She always encouraged me and supported me. Later, we both entered the funeral industry together. She was a corpse makeup artist and I was a corpse restorer.
Finally, when I was 30 years old, I got my first legitimate job in my life.
Corpse restorers help the deceased to walk dignifiedly at the last moment. If there are broken limbs, wounds or mutilations on the body, we try to help him repair them. This job not only repairs the body, but also repairs the souls of the family members.
From carrying coffins, to cleaning, to repairing, I have been exposed to and learned every step one by one. The hospital morgue and funeral parlor are where we work. I have never encountered anything that makes me feel scared. I think this is also the case. We need to educate the people and educate their families. I hope they can know that even if your loved ones are gone, there is nothing to be afraid of.
What touched me the most was once when my friend’s family was in a car accident and was run over by a truck. The undertakers at that time treated the body very casually, cleaning, turning over and repairing it. My first reaction was that I don’t want to be in the future. People around me are treated in this way when something happens to them, so I have to stick to the ethics of this profession.
When we handle the body, we always do it according to the way he was alive, telling him every action we have to do, such as "Uncle, let's help you turn over", "Miss, let's help you trim your nails now", even if he I can’t hear you, but I think this is the respect and attitude we should have.
After a person dies, his body tissue, muscles, texture, and face are different from those when he was alive. What’s more, he may still have defects. We use flat photos to simulate his appearance and then make a three-dimensional face. , the reconstruction process relies on our hands to slowly explore.
For example, if a burned face is carbonized or scorched due to a fire, fake leather or silicone must be used for facial shaping and reconstruction; in car accidents, criminal cases, and homicide cases, there will be wounds and even broken limbs. We He also needs to be mended, using a method similar to medical aesthetics, so that no defects can be seen on his appearance. If there is a broken limb that cannot be recovered, we will help him make a prosthetic limb or prosthesis. The whole process is very long and takes about 20 to 30 hours.
We need the family members to fully understand that no matter how skilled and experienced we are, it is impossible to repair him as he was before he was alive, especially some parts that were added by us and do not originally belong to his body. The degree of simulation is limited.
To do this job, you must have a very strong and stable personality, and you must learn to let go of yourself. Because when we deal with it, we will have empathy and treat the deceased as our own relatives, just like if he is an elder, we will treat him as our parent; if it is a child, I will think that it is my child, so Your roles are constantly changing and you can relate to the grief of the families.
I have dealt with everything from a 3-month-old baby to a hundred-year-old man. But until now, I am not sure that I can handle these emotions. In fact, I cry easily. I think crying is my outlet.
In 2014, I established the "76 Walker Remains Beauty and Restoration Team", which is the first and only non-profit organization in Taiwan to deal with post-disaster remains. Originally there were only 27 of us, but now we have 300. Whenever there is a major accident, car accident, or even a personal case, we will do our best to help if there is any need.
Penghu Air Crash. On July 23, 2014, a TransAsia Airways flight from Kaohsiung Airport to Penghu was affected by a typhoon, causing the plane to have an uneven landing and failed to take off again. The flight crashed into Penghu and affected 11 houses, causing 49 injuries. One person died and 9 were seriously injured.
When the Penghu plane crash occurred, there were many casualties. At that time, several industry personnel called for volunteers to go to Penghu to help repair the remains, so a few of us went there. Unexpectedly, within just a week, another accident occurred. .
Kaohsiung Gas Explosion. On July 31, 2014, Petrochemical explosions occurred in multiple blocks of Kaohsiung City. The pipelines buried underground were corroded and could not bear the transportation pressure and exploded. As a result, multiple intersections were blown open and buildings were damaged. , even the police and firefighters who came to rescue were also affected, resulting in a total of 32 deaths and 321 injuries.
There were two accidents in a row, and a lot of people were killed or injured. The total number of people we served was exactly 76 people. At that time, I thought, could we set up a group like this to help deal with major accidents, and other partners could I agreed, so our "76 Walkers" started from here.
Tainan earthquake, a magnitude 7 earthquake that occurred in southern Taiwan on February 6, 2016, was the most serious earthquake disaster after the 921 earthquake. A residential building in Tainan collapsed, killing 117 people. 551 people were injured.
For the first time, I experienced what purgatory on earth is.
There are too many deaths, and the victims are constantly being discovered and brought in. In my impression, in the funeral parlor, the cry never stops.At that time, many of our partners were women, and women have richer emotions. More than a hundred people died in the earthquake, just like we had to send away more than a hundred relatives in a short period of time. That kind of sadness is not something that ordinary people can bear. I still feel like You can still hear the cry.
We were all present at the subsequent Hualien earthquake and Puyuma train derailment, and the structure became increasingly complete, including the on-site processing team, the social work team, the administrative team, and the body recovery team with the largest number of people. The internal division of labor was as follows The management of materials and manpower is also getting better and better. In addition to sending off the victims properly, I think our more responsibility is to help the families deal with the funeral and get over the grief. Each voluntary repair of
will cost about 100,000 yuan. These expenses are paid by several of our core cadres out of their own pockets. We usually plan to spend part of the money on these emergencies. Our families also support us very much. These things.
I often feel sorry for my family. My son lives in school, but I haven’t spent much time with him since he was a child. My daughter is over two years old this year, and the most time I spend with her is sleeping.
So in our industry, we often joke that if you want to break up with your partner, come into the funeral industry to ensure that you break up immediately. First, our working hours are not fixed, and second, most people still have fears and negative thoughts about the funeral industry. .
What I feel now is that I have gradually become indifferent to life and death. Death is nothing to be afraid of, but something you should face actively. I really like Haruki Murakami’s words in "Norwegian Wood": Death is not life. Opposition, but part of it.
is not dead, and it is not considered alive. My current goal is to hope that my family and I can spend more time together, and then "76 Walkers" can continue to develop. One day, it will not only be in Taiwan, but also in mainland China or other places. I will try my best to help more people and accomplish what I want to do. Even if I die now, I will have no regrets.
Some photos provided by guests
