Shanxi, June 15 (Shi Junjie) In the Jinzhong City Military Retreat, you can often see a busy photographer running forward and running, constantly pressing the camera shutter, leaving precious memories and recording the time of veterans. He is Yang Wenxiang, secretary of the three retired branches of the municipal military retirement center and head of the photography team.
Yang Wenxiang is 53 years old and has 32 years of party experience. Since coming to the military retirement center in 2012, he has picked up the camera in his hand, with the veterans around him as the "protagonist", starting from recording the bits and pieces of the lives of the retired military veterans, capturing one wonderful moment after another.
"After taking off my uniform or being a soldier, I was inspired by the feelings of these veterans who did not hesitate to exert their residual enthusiasm, and I was also deeply moved by the spirit of unlimited loyalty to the party and selfless dedication to the people of the veterans, which completely subverted my traditional view of the military rest house." Recalling the scene when he first entered the military rest house, Yang Wenxiang said so, which also became his original intention to pick up the camera and start recording the images of veterans.
Nearly ten years have passed, and Yang Wenxiang has also been filming in the military retirement center for ten years. In the past ten years, he has always composed and frozen with reverence and reverence, and has successively created photographic works such as "Salute under the Military Flag" (group photo), "Today is My Political Birthday" (group photo), "Child's Heart and "Child Dream", "General", "The Last Military Salute", "Live to The Old Age" and other photographic works, many of which have also been published in provincial and municipal newspapers and periodicals, and achieved very good social repercussions.
"Nowadays, although some of the old comrades in the work have passed away, they have left countless unforgettable and touching moments in my heart..." Regarding veterans and military retreats, Yang Wenxiang's memory is always constantly opened.
"Political Commissar Li Mingjun was an old leader I knew earlier in the institute; he was only 18 years old when he participated in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea; just like the engineers seen in the movie "King Kong Chuan," he braved the fierce bombardment of the US military and brilliantly completed the task of building bridges and supporting them." Yang Wenxiang introduced that it is such an old comrade who has made outstanding achievements in battle, who has never been proud of his achievements after returning to China; in his life, he is strict with himself, simple as ever, always wearing an old military uniform, standing like a bell, acting like a wind, and actively participating in the activities of party organizations. "I'm a party member, so I can't cause trouble for the party organization." For this sentence that Li Mingjun often said, Yang Wenxiang remembered it deeply, and a "Final Military Salute" made him unforgettable.
On February 5, 2015, he visited Li Mingjun with the leaders of the military retirement center, and before leaving, Li Mingjun stood at the door of his home and solemnly gave them a military salute, and he casually used his camera to capture this touching moment. However, what he did not expect was that only half a year later, Li Mingjun died of illness, and this "Last Military Salute" was also frozen into eternity.
In Yang Wenxiang's shooting experience, a group of photos of "Salute under the Military Flag" made him feel very deeply. 2017 is the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, in order to commemorate this festival that belongs to the soldiers themselves, the military rest center organized some old comrades to take photos of saluting the military flag. At 3 p.m. on July 11, when he finished the photographic equipment and 17 veterans were all in place wearing the uniforms of that year, the scene at this time shocked him, "They are all like the ambitious steel warriors who are about to go out, through the lens I can deeply feel their pride as a soldier, although their faces are old, but the eyes still show the unique firmness and sincerity of the soldiers." Yang Wenxiang said that that scene still often appears in front of his eyes.
In the municipal military rest center, there are many people and many things that touch Yang Wenxiang, and also remind him that he must always remember that he is a communist party member and a veteran.
Yang Wenxiang said that in the military rest center, not only are there many veteran soldiers such as Li Mingjun, Zhang Baojin, and Rong Haifeng who are using their own practical actions to practice their solemn commitments to the party and the army, but many retired soldiers are also making their own contributions to spreading red culture and carrying forward positive energy.
For example, Pei Yu Civil Affairs Committee, he wrote his book "Children's Dream" to the old revolutionary area of Zuo Quan, deeply loved by children, I had the privilege of capturing the photo of "Child's Heart and "Child Dream", and fixed this moment on the innocent smiling faces of children. There are also comrades-in-arms such as Zhang Yilin, a learning model who 'lived to learn from old age', Han Xiaogang, who was diligent in turning from medicine to 'art', and Zhao Hua, a warrior who went to Wuhan to fight the epidemic, all of which left precious and wonderful moments in my lens. Yang Wenxiang said.
Along the way, Yang Wenxiang's shooting for retired military cadres has become an indispensable part of his life, but he has never complained or regretted. He always said: "I am shooting veterans, but also drawing energy from veterans, and I am still far from what veterans have done, far from enough!" ”
After accumulating and precipitating nearly 10,000 photographs, Yang Wenxiang said that every time he sees these photos, what comes to mind is the moving story behind it, and he always thinks that the glory of the party was polished with the blood and youth of generations of ancestors, and the prosperity of our country was bought with the lives of countless revolutionary martyrs. These veterans are like the light of the sun, always guiding him forward.
"His beginnings are simple, and his works will be great." I want to redouble my efforts to interpret the style of retired military veterans with the lens, and use light and shadow to shape the immortal military soul of the retired comrades-in-arms. Yang Wenxiang said.
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