China
22:49, 01-Jan-2019
Overcomers of Adversity: Person of the Year 2018
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22:15, 04-Jan-2019
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Life is not easy.
There are some Chinese people who stand out because of their character, hard work and perseverance.
They may be physically challenged, but never give up.
They are the amputee climber, volunteer teacher, and blind violist …
In 2018, CGTN explored those diverse lives that make up China. Many of them have managed to triumph over adversity.
We chose 9 stories from 2018 to share with you. Click the photo to watch the full story.
1. Amputee Climber
"Every time I told myself that 'this is the last try." But he kept breaking his promises to give up. Since he first left his footprints on Mount Qomolangma at 8,600 meters, he finally finished the last 244 meters 43 years later. With frostbitten cheeks and fingers, he said: "That was for the last time…this year!"
2. AIDS in China at a low epidemic level
Guo Xiaoping started the Red Ribbon school in China's Shanxi Province for children living with HIV. He was able to overcome the stigma associated with those three letters, and now has 30 students on a 60,000 square-meter campus.
3. Blind Violist
Wang Zi'an lost his sight at birth but despite his disability, he has spent the past 13 years pursuing a career in music. He admits there is pressure and uncertainty but remains excited about the future. Wang looks forward to learning more music and hopes to study further after graduating from the Birmingham Conservatoire.
4. You are my sunshine
Feng Yuqiong, 22, is an art teacher at the School of Art and Craft, a non-profit organization which is designed to help "left-behind" children in China's remote areas embrace their artistic dreams. "the School of Art and Craft is a place fulfilling my childhood dream. "
5. Migrant Lives
The efforts of rural migrant workers have been the engine of China's economic growth over the last three decades. They have always been strangers in the cities they help to build. For new and old generations alike, making money and then going home to reunite with family is the dream of many migrant workers.
6. Debut, when I'm old
Those seniors had never received any artistic training. Chen wanted them to draw whatever they wanted, in whichever form they desired. Besides inviting them to draw, he also spent time with them and listened to their life stories.
7. Lust for life and poetry
Poetry is like a ferry or a friend.
It carried me out of the hard times.
I think poetry is for everyone.
Anyone can, if they want to, live a poetic life.
8. A place for silent souls
Unlike other venues bustling with chatty patrons, the only sounds you'd hear here belong to juicers spinning, coffee dripping, and bread being crunched. "Ninety-nine percent of our bakery staff members have hearing impairments," said Qiu Junkun, the co-founder of Silent Cake bakery.
9. Photojournalist in the field
"American war correspondent Robert Capa once said that ‘if your pictures aren't good enough, you are not close enough.' But after shooting parents recognizing their kids' bodies, I reflected for a long time and came out with something different. I was already close enough to them physically. But, I could not bear to cross the boundaries of emotions."