"We are responsible for guarding the border, and you are responsible for healthy growth"
——The special love between the Kek Turuk Border Defense Company and the Xincheng Road Kindergarten in Fengrun District, Tangshan City, Hebei Province
A letter: childish words warm the hearts of soldiers
In winter, the border post is covered with snow and ice, almost like an isolated island. On January 16, an army-green pickup truck crossed the mountains and snow to the Kkturuk Border Guard Company at the top of the snow-capped mountains, delivering long-awaited supplies, training equipment, and letter packages to the officers and men.
Among the many mail packages, an ordinary letter with the recipient "all officers and men" aroused the strong curiosity of officers and soldiers. This ordinary letter was sent from Xincheng Road Kindergarten in Fengrun District, Tangshan City, Hebei Province, what is in the thick envelope? Under the curious eyes of his comrades-in-arms, the squad leader opened the envelope to Wen.
A stack of watercolor paintings jumped into everyone's eyes——
The first-year Zhang Yiran painted a border guard soldier who was on duty, and the note read: The uncle of the People's Liberation Army and the boundary monument are very good comrades-in-arms, and I also want to be the comrade-in-arms of the uncle of the People's Liberation Army.
The first-year Qi Xingyu painted a crushed volcano, next to the rescue of the People's Liberation Army, the note reads: The teacher said that the uncle of the People's Liberation Army will stand up when we encounter danger, and when the volcano erupts, the uncles will come to protect us. Hopefully, the mountains where the uncles live will not erupt, because it is too dangerous and I don't want the uncles to be hurt.
Wang Tianyuan, the sophomore class, painted a colorful tent, and the note reads: When the uncle of the People's Liberation Army patrols, it will be very cold, so I drew a big tent, and when the uncle of the People's Liberation Army is tired, he can go in to rest and eat delicious food.
……
Every stroke of watercolor painting is full of innocence and childlike fun; every touch of color in watercolor painting represents the children's colorful dreams. Looking at these immature and sincere watercolor paintings and reading the children's innocent and warm words, the officers and soldiers smiled and smiled, and their eyes were red.
At this time, Xiang Wen found two letterheads in juanxiu in the watercolor painting. Through the affectionate narration of this letter, the officers and soldiers knew the origin of these paintings.
The letter writer is Liu Xintong, a teacher at this kindergarten. At the end of November last year, Liu Xintong inadvertently saw a short video reflecting the lives of the officers and men of the company, "The Flower of Youth Blooms kek turuk". The strong visual impact, coupled with the touching and profound story of Shubian, deeply touched Liu Xintong.
Kekturuk, which means "the place where flowers bloom" in Tajik, is actually a literal "forbidden area of life" – an average altitude of nearly 5,000 meters, no bouquet of flowers all year round, only rolling barren mountains...
"It is precisely because of the sacrifice and dedication of soldiers such as the border defense company and the day and night protection that the peace of the motherland and the integrity of the territory have been achieved." Seeing the cracked lips, rough skin, and thick plateau red of the plateau officers and soldiers who were similar to his own age in the video, Liu Xintong was both touched and more distressed. "I want to plant a seed of respect and love for soldiers in the hearts of children, and tell them that without the protection of soldiers, where can our happiness come from?!"
On December 9, 2021, Liu Xintong played this short video in its entirety to the children. The children's reaction surprised and moved her at the same time:
"I don't want stones on the mountain because I don't want my PLA uncle to be injured."
"I want time to stop so that the uncles of the People's Liberation Army don't get old."
"Teacher, you can take us all over so that we can accompany the uncles of the border guard company, and they will not be alone."
Children, you say a word, I a word, the childish words reveal the heartache and love for the uncle of the People's Liberation Army, which makes people moved.
"What can we do for the border guards?" Seeing the children's paintings on the classroom wall, Liu Xintong had a clever move and asked the children to draw a picture for the uncle of the People's Liberation Army.
The assignment received a warm response from the children. They let go of the wings of imagination, poured their reverence and love for the uncles of the People's Liberation Army into their pens, and expressed themselves in the world of innocence.
On December 13, 2021, after sorting out the children's paintings, Liu Xintong sent a flat letter to the Kkturuk Border Defense Company considering that there was still more than half a month before New Year's Day. She hoped that this special New Year's gift would be delivered to the officers and soldiers before New Year's Day.
Unexpectedly, from the end of 2021 to the beginning of 2022, the letter spanned most of China, traveled more than 4,000 kilometers, and lasted 34 days before it was mailed to the border officers and soldiers.
The children's hearts deeply touched the hearts of the officers and men on the border. Wang Tianbin, a recruit, held one of the paintings, looked at the front and the back, and his face showed irrepressible joy: "When I saw these paintings, I felt that my blood was rushing. I must practice martial arts well, defend the border well, and reassure the motherland and the people! ”
"We have you behind us, and we have our support behind you!" These warm words in Liu Xintong's letter drove away the severe cold of the snowy plateau and warmed the hearts of the officers and men of the company.
On the same day, the officers and men wrote a reply letter to the children, and also specially took a bunch of plateau soil from the greenhouse, which means "it is the responsibility to guard the soil, and not to let go of the land", and gave it back to the children as a special New Year gift.
In the reply, they wrote: "Maybe our name is unknown, but someone must be worried!" There are us at the border, please rest assured! ”
A bunch of soil: The Border Pass Oath shows the sun and the moon
The Phoenix City in the Spring Festival - Tangshan City, Hebei Province, is full of lights, and the atmosphere of the New Year is everywhere. On the morning of the first day of the Chinese New Year, Liu Xintong, a kindergarten teacher on Xincheng Road in Fengrun District, rang on her mobile phone.
"Hello, hello, your courier has arrived, please come and pick it up." Hanging up the phone, Liu Xintong was a little confused: "Recently there was no online shopping, where is the courier?" With doubts, Liu Xintong came to the door of the community to collect the courier, and saw the five words "Kek Turuk" on the sender's address, and suddenly came to the spirit.
Holding this "mysterious" express delivery from the edge of the sky, Liu Xintong trotted all the way back home. On the way, she still looked down from time to time, and her heart was happy.
"Dad, Mom, border guards have written back to me and the children!" As soon as one foot stepped into the door, Liu Xintong couldn't wait to tell her parents.
In the expectant eyes of her parents, Liu Xintong carefully opened the package: a handful of plateau soil, a few small plateau stones, and a reply. Liu Xintong looked left and right, and loved it.
"We are responsible for border defense, and you are responsible for healthy growth." Liu Xintong couldn't help but read this letter that spanned thousands of rivers and mountains.
"Children, you are the flowers of the motherland, the future of the motherland... Perhaps, now that you are still young, you do not understand the truth of this, but we firmly believe that your innocence and kindness will support your times..." Reading and reading, tears unconsciously slid down your cheeks.
"We were very surprised that the border guards were so loving!" On the phone, Liu Xintong excitedly described the mood to reporters at that time, "I can't believe it, I just did a very small thing, but I got such a heavy gift from them, and my heart was full of emotions." ”
In Liu Xintong's view, this plateau soil and plateau stone is not only a simple "return gift", but also symbolizes the security of the motherland's border defense and territorial integrity.
Why was Liu Xintong and her parents moved?!
"Director, the border guards have written back to us!" Receiving a call from Liu Xintong, the head of the park said vigorously: "It's really good!" That's nice! Send it to you quickly. ”
When Liu Xintong sent the letter and "return gift" to the WeChat group of kindergarten teachers and staff, the group was full of joy.
"This gift is good, this gift has meaning!"
"Such gifts are priceless, and they are even more a living teaching material for us to engage in national defense education."
"We want to collect, preserve, and use this special gift so that it shines and shines."
Everyone you say a word to me, it is not hilarious. Some teachers suggested that these stones be placed on the window sill of the teacher's office and placed together with the stone paintings drawn by the children, just like the border guards have been accompanying the children, and when they see these stones, they can think of a place called "Kek Turuk" on the far side of the sky, and there is a group of officers and soldiers guarding there...
This proposal has been unanimously approved by everyone.
For this precious plateau soil, Liu Xintong suggested using it to cultivate flowers. She said: "This not only means that children thrive in the soil of national defense education, but also encourages children to grow up to contribute to the country like brave border guards." ”
The discussion on this side did not stop, and the discussion on the other side began. When Liu Xintong sent the photo to the kindergarten parent group, the parent group suddenly became lively.
"I always thought that we were far away from the border pass of the motherland and far away from the border guards, but I did not expect that this time, I felt very close to them."
"The child came back to me and told me that he painted a picture of his uncle in the People's Liberation Army, and at first I didn't believe it, but now I know that the child has done a very meaningful thing and is proud of him!"
"National defense education should start with dolls, maybe they don't understand it now, but it is a great thing that this seed was planted in their hearts early!"
Finally, the parents issued a common voice: "Only when there is a country can there be a home, and they guard the territory of the motherland, and we must guard them." ”
(Reporter Lu Jun, special correspondent Hu Zheng, correspondent Ran Qihong)
Witnesses say
One theory: Patriotic support for the army starts with me
■ Liu Xintong
One day at the end of November 2021, I saw a short video on the Internet entitled "The Flower of Youth Blooms kek turuk", and the officers and men of the border defense company stood on the top of the mountain like boundary monuments, which made me awe-inspired. With this respect and touch, I deliberately checked the relevant information of Kek Turuk on the Internet to know that in such a harsh and remote place, there will be stubble after stubble of officers and soldiers rooted in this dedication. This moment hit the softest spot in my heart.
In fact, when I was a junior in college, I went to Xinjiang, Tibet and other places many times to collect styles, and created military theme songs such as "Soldiers in the Outpost in the Clouds", "The Edge of the Sky", and "Islands". It is precisely because I have personally experienced the life of the plateau border pass that I have experienced the harsh climate and the hardships of border defense in the video. I think that in such an era of diverse values, perhaps few people pay attention to these soldiers who guard the border, but their sincere heart of silently adhering to the battle position and performing the duties of the border has touched me and infected me. Although it cannot be reached, the heart yearns for it. I must do something for them to bring them some warmth.
So I played this video to the children and organized them to paint a picture for the officers and men of the border defense company. Watching the children's serious attention to watching the video, I couldn't help but applaud, I was moved, and a sentence popped up in my head: "When I grow up, I will become you."
Yes, let these children establish the concept of national defense from an early age, regard the border guards as heroes in their hearts, and in the future, some of them may be like the current border guards officers and men, put on military uniforms and serve the motherland. This is the response of the heart and the inheritance of the spirit.
After preparing the letters and gifts, the next day, I went to the post office to send this ordinary and meaningful New Year's gift. Watching the envelopes be stamped, postmarked, and delivered to the drop box, my heart followed suit.
However, after more than a month, I did not hear back. Just when I was sorry and lost because of the long distance of this letter, on January 16, 2022, I suddenly received a call from a distant border defense company, and listening to the voice of thanks on the phone, my heart finally settled.
What surprised me even more was that the officers and men of the border guard company quickly replied after receiving this gift. Looking at the soil and stones from the distant border passes, watching colleagues and parents in the WeChat group you said and I said a word of heated discussion, I sighed a thousand times: although separated by more than 4,000 kilometers, we and the border guards and officers and soldiers are in touch with each other. Touching these stones, I felt as if I had touched the feelings of home and country cast in the blood of the border guards. I know that in that distant border pass, there will always be loyal border guards, with youth, sweat and even life, to protect thousands of families, bringing us a stable sense of security!
"Soldiers also have a home, and soldiers also have feelings, but for the sake of national tranquility and the happiness of the people, they must stand on the sentry of the wind and snow during the Spring Festival of the reunion of thousands of families." This is my understanding of the military, but also the interpretation of the military profession. Every time I think about this, there is always a force that makes me tear up, and there is always a touch that makes me remember it.
As an ordinary member of the sons and daughters of China, I think what we can do is to pay more attention to the soldiers, to care more about and respect the soldiers, and to bring them a touch of warmth as much as we can. In fact, expressing patriotic support for the army does not necessarily have to be a vigorous feat, and sometimes a sincere effort, a pure exchange, may be able to express it very thoroughly, very concretely, very vividly, and very deeply. I think that as long as each of us starts from me, the trickle will surely converge into the torrent of the times of patriotic support for the army.
The weather is cold and the wind and snow are urgent, and the border pass is warm and gushing.
During the Spring Festival, letter after letter, gift after gift, and package after package, full of true love and earnest entrustment, gathered from the hinterland of the motherland to the snowy plateau and border checkpoints, like a turbulent warm current nourishing the hearts of officers and men. At an altitude of 4,300 meters above sea level, in the Kek Turuk Border Defense Company of the Kashgar Military Sub-district of Xinjiang, a letter from a kindergarten in Tangshan City, Hebei Province, and a watercolor painting full of childlike fun made the iron-boned Shubian boy wet his eyes. They wrote a reply letter to the children, and also specially took a bunch of plateau soil that means "it is the responsibility to guard the soil, and not to let go of the land", as a special New Year gift to return to the children...
Figure (1): Teacher Liu organizes the children to watch the video.
Picture (2): Kindergarten children are carefully drawing.
Picture (3): The warriors were very happy to see the children's paintings.
Photography: Hu Zheng, Ran Qihong, Liu Xintong
Draft:Zhang Rui
Source: China National Defense Daily