Six years after sitting at the same desk, Tan Yongmei will continue to accompany her brother through three years of junior high school. In this edition's photo taken by our chief reporter Luo Wei, every day Tan Yongmei never leaves her brother's side to take care of him. The home filled with the laughter of three siblings is a testament to their happiness.
At 4 PM yesterday afternoon, on the square of Xiaonanhai Town Middle School in Qianjiang, 12-year-old Tan Yongmei was participating in military training on the playground with other children; at the same time, her classmate and elder brother, 18-year-old Tan Youming, was sitting alone on the side of the playground watching them undergo military training.
Six years ago, in order to prevent her cerebral palsy-afflicted brother from crawling around the house alone, the younger sister began attending school with her brother. From first grade in elementary school to the start of seventh grade in junior high school this autumn, over six years, the younger sister held her brother’s hand as they walked countless times between school and home, falling down countless times, only to get up again.
Yesterday, the younger sister said: "He is my brother, I cannot let him crawl for the rest of his life."
From age 6 to 12, over six years, the younger sister supported her brother as they walked countless times between school and home, falling down countless times, only to get up again. The blood ties of family affection made the small frame of the younger sister burst forth with infinite strength, creating a miracle.
In her early childhood, her brother could only crawl on the ground, so the younger sister pushed him out in a stroller.
This family with three children, due to the father working away from home for long periods, only had the mother and the three children left at home. When mentioning her daughter, Shu Ming choked up with tears: "If it weren't for her, I don't know how this family would have been able to keep going."
Eighteen years ago, the eldest son Tan Youming was born. "He couldn't stand at one year old, didn't talk at two, and at three years old, after checking at Chongqing Medical University Affiliated Children's Hospital, he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and brain atrophy." Before the age of five, Tan Youming couldn't eat by himself, and before the age of ten, he couldn't walk. "As he grew older, we couldn't lift him anymore, so he just crawled on the ground." When Tan Youming was six years old, his younger sister Tan Yongmei was born. The two children were together from a young age; the brother had poor intelligence and spoke unclearly, but only Tan Yongmei could understand him.
"Since my brother couldn't walk, I used a stroller," using the 50 yuan New Year money given by her grandfather, she bought a small stroller, and Tan Yongmei began pushing her brother out.
Shu Ming usually went uphill to do farm work, and at the tender age of three, Tan Yongmei learned how to cook rice with an electric rice cooker, wash clothes, and take care of her brother until Tan Yongmei was six years old and it was time for primary school.
During Elementary School: Supporting Her Brother to Primary School, They Were Classmates for Six Years
"To be honest, I never dreamed of him attending school." At this point, Tan Youming was also 12 years old. What should be done if the brother who couldn't be left alone at home?
Tan Yongmei said: "Mom, I'll bring my brother to school and let him sit at the same desk as me." Thus, a pair of special students started attending Xiaonanhai Town Central Primary School in Qianjiang District.
During physical education classes, Tan Youming couldn't play ball or do exercises like other classmates, so Tan Yongmei gave up her own sports activities to help her brother walk on the playground and practice hanging from the bars.
Time passed, and every day at school, taking care of her brother, helping him use the restroom, tying his shoelaces, Tan Yongmei grew from a six-year-old girl into a twelve-year-old teenager.
For six years, her brother did not betray her sister's efforts; he learned to write and walk while holding onto the wall.
For six years, every morning Tan Yongmei helped her brother to school, took him home for lunch at noon, then brought him back to school, and finally took him home after school, regardless of sunny or rainy days, windy or snowy weather, without interruption.
Once during a heavy rain, Tan Yongmei held an umbrella in one hand and supported her brother with the other, walking towards school. Halfway there, Tan Youming slipped and fell towards Tan Yongmei, and both fell to the ground. After getting up, Tan Yongmei couldn't lift her brother and cried loudly. Later, a passerby helped them.
Under the help of his younger sister, Tan Youming made rapid progress. Although he still needed help with washing his face and hair, he learned to write and walk while holding onto the wall. "I am truly grateful to heaven and earth," Shu Ming wiped away tears, saying that she never imagined her son could achieve such a day.
Starting Junior High: The Sister Said: "Wherever I Go, I Will Take My Brother With Me"
The decision once again faced the two siblings. In June, Tan Youming and Tan Yongmei graduated from elementary school. Because her grades were consistently top-ranked in school, both Xinhua Middle School and Qianjiang District Middle School in the urban area of Qianjiang were willing to accept Tan Yongmei to study in the city.
Tan Youming did not speak for several days at home, and neither did Tan Yongmei. "I know he doesn't want his younger sister to leave," Shu Ming said that if her younger sister boarded in the city, since Tan Youming couldn't keep up with the academic pace anyway, they planned to let him stay home.
Finally, Tan Yongmei expressed her stance: "Mom, I will still study in the town." Shu Ming swallowed her tears and agreed.
"We all can't understand; the younger sister has sacrificed too much," said Zhou Hui, the elementary school teacher who had watched the two siblings grow up. "When the younger sister succeeds, she will be able to take better care of her brother."
Initially, Liu, the homeroom teacher of Class One, Grade Seven at Xiaonanhai Town Middle School, disagreed with the two children continuing to be in the same class. "The younger sister talks very little and is more mature than her peers," the teacher felt that the heavy burden of life had placed considerable pressure on Tan Yongmei, making her quieter and less smiling than other children of the same age.
"But when she cannot see her brother during class, she cannot put her mind at ease," Teacher Liu eventually agreed with Tan Yongmei's suggestion: "After all, this has been her lifestyle for many years."
Tan Yongmei arranged for her brother to sit near the door at the back of the classroom. She wanted to teach her brother how to open the door, "so I won't worry about him being locked in the classroom, and he can open the door for mom when he is at home alone."
Tan Yongmei said, she will continue to take her brother through three years of junior high school, "He is my brother, wherever I go, I will take my brother with me."
Journalist's Notes: Power Comes from Family Love
During the interview, I hoped to uncover a shining point. This point, which I wanted to present, was the power behind the younger sister persistently bringing her disabled brother to school for six years. On the way to Xiaonanhai Town, I thought the power might come from a touching detail in the brother's relationship with his younger sister during her childhood.
This detail might be hiding candy and leaving it for her, or wiping away her tears under the sunlight on a certain day. However, after more than four hours of communication with this family, I did not find such a detail. The younger sister's memory of her brother was limited to his state of crawling on the ground, and for her, the intellectually impaired brother had never given her anything.
When the interview ended, I suddenly understood where the power came from. It is the only power that requires no payment yet yields returns: family love.
Text for this edition / By our reporter Liu Shanshan