Chinese and American youths visit Guling.
"Long live the friendship between China and the United States!" With the theme of "inheriting the love of Guling and deepening friendship", the 2024 "Guling Yuan" Sino-US Youth Exchange Week was held in Fuzhou, on the 24th, Chinese and American young people jointly planted 186 trees that symbolize Sino-US friendship, such as golden cinnamon, red maple, and deep mountain smile, and Ge Yisi, an American student of Peking University's Yenching Academy, wrote a message in Chinese and hung it on the tree, hoping that Sino-US friendship can flourish like this tree.
The 100-year-old Guling relationship is a good story of friendly exchanges between the Chinese and American peoples. On this summer day, young people from all walks of life in China and the United States gathered in Fuzhou to relive the story of Guling, inherit the love of Guling, and enhance the exchanges and understanding between the people of China and the United States.
Generations relay to continue the love of Guling
In summer, Guling is cool and pleasant, and it is a good place to escape the heat. More than 100 years ago, a large number of Western merchants, missionaries, and consular personnel came to Fuzhou one after another, and they built holiday villas in Guling despite the scorching heat, living in harmony with the villagers, leaving many moving stories.
A hundred years later, this relationship was talked about by future generations, and a new friendship arose from it. In this summer, a group of American "Friends of Guling" went to Guling again to pursue the "Guling Story" of their ancestors.
"Every time I come I feel relaxed, happy and calm." Mu Yanling, a descendant of the Mu family in the United States and an expert in Guling cultural studies, is 73 years old this year, and since she first set foot in Guling in 2015, she has actively contacted the descendants of Guling overseas Chinese and created the "Friends of Guling" website, and worked with teams from Fuzhou and Shanghai to rescue and excavate the history of exchanges between China and the West in Guling, and continue to write a good story of friendship between the Chinese and American peoples.
In April this year, Mu Yanling was awarded the "Moving China 2023 Person of the Year". Why can a foreigner "move China"? The award speech of the organizing committee was, "The cedar has deep roots and the drum ridge is long." The love relationship spanning three generations is inseparable from the years, and the ocean is constantly separated. Walking together on a road, drinking a well, containing the land of friendship, the nostalgia that cannot be parted with. Transcending institutions, cultures and languages, it carries fraternity, friendship and peace. ”
"Guling is a place like no other." One of her favorite stories, Ms. Mu said, was when the U.S. consul in Fuzhou, Gerxi, hosted a birthday party in Guling in the summer of 1903, which was attended by dozens of local villagers. ”
What exactly is friendship? In Mu Yanling's view, "friendship" is a lasting state of affection, which includes understanding and respect for others, as well as spending time with others and trusting each other. "All of this is happening in Guling, where many foreigners have worked for 30, 40, or even 50 years, and their descendants have lived here. They are engaged in building churches, hospitals, schools, working as doctors, having time to gain an in-depth understanding of Chinese culture and develop respect for the Chinese. Mu Yanling said.
Mu Yanling also worked with Chinese students in the United States to design a Guling logo, which has two hands of friendship on the logo, forming a heart-shaped, representing the deep friendship between people, and a tree in the heart-shaped, just like the thousand-year-old cedar king on the Guling, representing endless friendship. "There is a ring around it, and the ring has two meanings, the first is a community, and the second is the whole world, which represents a deep friendship and love that can bring peace to the world." Mu Yanling said.
"This is my sixth visit to Guling." Lee Gardner, a descendant of the Gardner family in the United States, said that every time he goes to Guling, he is not only looking for his roots, but also continuing his family's relationship with China. The last time he went to Guling was in 2023, when he picked up a pot of soil from Gezhi Middle School, and as a token of appreciation, he gave back vanilla from the Americas that attracts butterflies. "I call it the grass of friendship, which represents my friendship with the Chinese." Lee Gardner said.
The American "Friends of Guling", a descendant of the Ke Zhiren family, Bi Lehua and her parents were both born in China, and she lived in Guling as a child and could speak some Fuzhou dialect. She also said in Fuzhou dialect that her journey was "jǐn huàn yǐ", which means "very happy". She said that she was shocked by the changes in Guling, when she was a child, there were many trees in Guling, and the scenery was relatively simple, and now Guling is full of flowers, which is more beautiful than before.
Make friends Chinese and American young people work together to sow the seeds of friendship
Young people are the most energetic and full of dreams, and the future of China-US relations lies with them. The week attracted more than 200 young Americans from more than 10 different fields in 29 states, special territories and overseas territories, as well as nearly 300 Chinese youth.
The young friends cover more than 10 sectors such as government, foreign affairs, medicine, business, culture, education, arts, sports, media, science and environmental protection. During the week, Chinese and American youths will participate in 50 activities, including dialogues and discussions, concerts, friendly sports matches, youth fairs, art salons, and art film screenings, to inject youth into China-US friendship.
On the afternoon of the 24th, Chinese and American young people participated in the "treasure hunt" activity in Guling, walked through Liushan King Park, Centennial Swimming Pool, Yixia Villa, Wanguo Public Welfare Society, Guling Church and other buildings and sites, "measured" this beautiful history with their footsteps, and planted the friendship tree together to continue to write the edge of Guling.
Jack is a "post-90s" from the United States. He has loved watching Chinese kung fu movies since he was a child and is full of yearning for traditional Chinese culture. More than 10 years ago, he came to Wudang Mountain to practice martial arts, and is currently the sixteenth generation disciple of Wudang Mountain Sanfeng School of martial arts. This is Jack's first time in Guling, he is wearing a black robe, long black hair, and long hair is tied up on the top of his head, quite a warrior's style. He said that it is very meaningful for young friends from China and the United States to have more exchanges, share each other's stories, and enhance understanding. He also deliberately took his daughter to participate in the "Guling Yuan" Sino-US Youth Exchange Week, so that she could understand the beautiful story of Guling.
Ge Yisi has been to Quanzhou, Fujian Province and other places, and feels the richness, tolerance and diversity of Fujian culture. This is his first visit to Fuzhou and Guling, and he feels that Guling is a very magical place, and he hopes to have a deeper understanding of how the people of China and the United States lived together and helped each other a hundred years ago. "This is a great reference for our generation of young people to communicate." Ge Yisi said that he hopes that more young Americans will come to China to visit and study, come to Guling for a walk, learn about the history and culture here, and enhance mutual understanding.
Chen Ling, a student at Fuzhou University, was the group leader of the event and was responsible for the daily travel of young Americans. She said that through this event, she narrowed the distance with young friends in the United States and formed a deep friendship. "Although we have different nationalities, different skin colors, and different educational backgrounds, we still have a lot of topics and things in common, and we can still be good friends." Chen Ling said that it is very meaningful to plant the tree of friendship with American friends in Guling, a place of friendship.
Consul General Geng Xin of the U.S. Consulate General in Guangzhou was 21 years old when she first came to China, where the children grew up. "For young Americans, China is the best choice for you to explore the wider world and appreciate the wonders of the world, demonstrating your intellectual curiosity and courage to try new things." Geng Xin said that the mutual learning and exchanges between the people of China and the United States will benefit both sides, and the young people of this exchange week will review the special history of Guling and draw valuable experience from it.
Wang Ruhua, Vice Chairman of Amway Foundation, said that philanthropy is an important area of people-to-people exchanges and cooperation between China and the United States, and an important channel for the people of the two countries to convey love, release goodwill, enhance understanding, accumulate trust and develop friendship. "The young people of China and the United States will gather together and look forward to everyone adhering to humility, respect and curiosity, learning and inheriting the 'Guling Relationship' and sowing new seeds of friendship."
In recent years, Fujian has inherited and carried forward the "Guling Spirit", actively promoted exchanges and people-to-people exchanges with the United States, and has concluded 17 pairs of sister city relations, and Oregon has gone through 40 years of friendly history, in March this year, 21 Oregon teenagers came to Guling to participate in the "Eight Fujian Tour" activities. Fujian's intangible cultural heritage, such as opera, paper-cutting, and tea art, has been displayed in the United States one after another, and 87,000 American friends came to Fujian for sightseeing last year. The people of the two places have exchanged hearts and minds in exchanges, increased trust in exchanges, and forged a deep friendship.
Retain the "nostalgia" and promote the protection and inheritance of Guling culture
Mu Airen's blown suona, Ke Zhiren's personal seal, and the lacquerware of the Oi Shutang family...... Walking into the Guling Family Story Exhibition Hall, the story of Guling is told, which revolves around the experience of eight overseas Chinese families, including Fu Yihua, Pu Tianshou, Lan Maria, Bai Lingwei, Ke Zhiren, Oi Shutang, Cheng Ludia, and Mu Airen, telling their love for Guling, as well as the touching stories of descendants returning to Guling to find their roots.
"When I saw this pavilion, I felt like I had found home." Seeing the detailed story of her grandfather Ke Zhiren's tiger fight in the museum, Bi Lehua shared the family's good memories in Guling, and she also found her mother Ke Miaoyu in a group photo of all the teachers of South China Women's College of Arts and Sciences taken in 1928.
"I'm very familiar with every text and every photo, because that's what I'm responsible for." Mu Yanling said that she hopes that more and more people can learn about these moving stories of Guling through her efforts, convey the "Guling Spirit" of "peace, friendship and love", and build a bridge of friendship between Chinese and American youth.
On the 22nd, the "Guling Family Story Exhibition Hall" and the "Guling Historical Building Exhibition Hall" were officially opened to the public. The historical buildings of Guling are an important part of the historical buildings in Fuzhou. In 1886, the first expatriate villa was built in Guling. Since then, the summer post office, medical center, and international public welfare society have appeared one after another, and in the heyday, there were 366 historical buildings of various types in Guling.
Since 1992, the Management Committee of Guling Tourist Resort has continued to upgrade Guling, and has successively repaired the Wanguo Public Welfare Society, Zhuang Caiwei, Xu Guangrong Villa (Gardner Exhibition Hall), Li Shijia Villa (Dameng Book House), Guling Medical Center (Yixia Villa), Fujia Villa, Chanchen Villa, Guling Tennis Court, Swimming Pool and other buildings, and received a group of descendants of foreigners who returned to visit and seek their roots.
In the Guling Historical Buildings Exhibition Hall, the reporter saw that the exhibition hall reproduces the discovery process of Guling historical buildings, the changes of houses and the friendly interaction formed in the process of Chinese and foreign housing construction and management, vividly showing the historical features and cultural heritage of Guling, as well as the formation of an international community.
Lin Xiaoling, Secretary of the Party Branch and Chairman of Fuzhou Guling Protection and Development Co., Ltd., said that in the future, the two exhibition halls will be actively used to continue to promote the protection and inheritance of Guling culture, and further promote friendly exchanges between Chinese and foreign people.
In addition, in order to let the international community, especially the young people of China and the United States, understand the story of Guling, this exchange week also launched the "Guling Yuan" website in Chinese and English. (Reporter Lu Jinfu text/photo)
Chinese and American youths plant trees in Guling.
American student Ge Yisi wrote a message in Chinese.
Mu Yanling is planting trees.
Chinese and American youths visited the Guling International Public Welfare Society.
Jack takes his daughter on a tour of the event.
Chinese and American youths visit Guling.
Chinese and American youth are planting trees.
Guling Historical Building Exhibition Hall.
Source: Fujian Daily