Title: The Veterans' Way Home: Memories of the Guangzhou Railway Station
Body:
When the sunshine of 1992 sprinkled on the old platform of Guangzhou Railway Station, it was not only a meeting point for travelers in a hurry, but also a microcosm of an era and a group memory. That year, a group of veterans who had just taken off their military uniforms began an extraordinary chapter on their way home here.
Some of them still have the seriousness and rigidity of military life on their faces, and their eyes reveal confusion and expectations for their future life. They carry their bags – the objects and memories they have accumulated over the years. The veterans gathered together to talk about the days when their comrades-in-arms had nothing to talk about, and at the same time, they were also planning the blueprint of their new lives.
Inside and outside the station, the scenarios are different. Some veterans chose to mingle in the small commodity market, trying to exchange their scarce but precious supplies for the necessities of life, while others sat quietly in the waiting room, looking through the hurried crowd outside the glass window, as if thinking about how to tell their long-lost relatives about the vicissitudes of life when they were about to arrive at the doorstep.
Against such a diverse and complex background, plainclothes naval officers silently observed every corner. They don't want to disturb anyone, they just perform their duties to make sure order is in order. At one point, however, perhaps it was the sound of an inadvertent dispute that caught the eye – it seemed like a subtle but real spark from the inevitable collision of the changing times.
Interestingly and ironically, I saw the smile on the face of that moment—the contented smile of a veteran soldier who had carefully selected a gift for a friend, or the helpless smile of a stuffed backpack squeezing into an already crowded train car.
The story always moves forward with ups and downs. Occasionally, verbal altercations erupted between the veterans, but more often than not, they were able to understand and support each other. Different backgrounds, personalities and destinies have brought them here, forming a temporary but real community in the special space of Guangzhou Railway Station.
Through this storytelling, we can see how ordinary people at a particular historical stage cope with the challenges brought about by the transition period. Although many details and colors will be erased over time, those about perseverance, about change, about hope and disappointment are intertwined into a chapter that is always worth remembering and reflecting.
Finally, the train slowly leaves the platform, carrying stories and dreams to all directions. The Guangzhou Railway Station still stands silently here to witness every farewell and reunion, and I, as one of the recorders, are here to tell you the most authentic and touching moments of that special time.