55-year-old Zhang Ji suffers from peroneal muscular atrophy, muscle atrophy in his limbs, and difficulty in moving, but in the past six years, he has traveled more than 80,000 kilometers in a wheelchair and accompanied by his family.
Despite enduring the pain, Zhang Ji read thousands of books, traveled thousands of miles, and lived his "free" life.
"We can't stop exploring and moving forward because we are afraid of many difficulties"
Zhang Ji was very interested in history, and every time he saw a red venue, he wanted to go in and find out, and later came up with the idea of traveling to red venues across the country. Since 2017, he has embarked on a tour of China's red venues.
Going to the red venue is not easy for Zhang Ji, a "wheelchair man". Memorial halls and museums are okay, they are usually barrier-free, but for those sites or former residences where the mountain is high and the road is far away and the pit is deep, it is much more difficult.
Because of the steep slopes or stairs, it is common to carry wheelchairs up and down. Zhang Ji's wife, Zhang Xinyu, is not tall, but she has practiced her strength in carrying it again and again.
The difficulties on the road did not hinder Zhang Ji and his wife, Zhang Ji said, "You can't stop exploring and moving forward because you are afraid of many difficulties." There are a lot of good things, no matter what your circumstances are, to enjoy it."
In this way, "walking" all the way, absorbing energy all the way. In the past six years, Zhang Ji has visited 450 red venues distributed in 29 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities across the country, passing through more than 600 counties, traveling 82,000 kilometers and taking more than 40,000 photos. Zhang Ji carefully selected nearly 500 photos from them and published a red tourism catalogue entitled "Forward" at his own expense.
In addition to the hardships on the road, it was not easy for Zhang Ji to take photos. Due to muscle weakness, I sometimes have to point the camera with my nose, press my chin, and press the shutter with the middle finger of my right hand, which is still a little strong.
When asked why he didn't use a lighter mobile phone to shoot or just ask his wife to help shoot it, Zhang said that he liked the perspective seen in the viewfinder, and photography is also a way of expression.
"Although there is a disease in the body, there must be sunshine in the heart"
The six-year journey was difficult for Zhang, but it was nothing compared to the hardships he experienced growing up.
In 1969, Zhang Ji was born in a family with genetic diseases, and his mother, uncle, and aunt were all patients. When he was 6 years old, Zhang Ji suffered from the rare disease Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease, which was manifested by muscle atrophy in his limbs and almost zero grip strength in both hands.
Zhang Ji had his first attack at the age of 7 and underwent triple arthrodesis at the age of 14. Until now, steel nails were worn to the ankles to prevent skeletal deformities. In Zhang Ji's childhood memory, unhappiness took up most of the time.
When he was 14 years old, Zhang Ji took a year off from school at home because of surgery. The books and publications that his father brought back from outside became a light that illuminated his childhood.
JJ: My dad would show me biographies of people with disabilities, such as Helen Keller, and then I would look for such cases myself. In this year, my mind has matured a lot, reading books is a relief, and I have become more and more confident.
In this way, Zhang Ji gradually formed his cognition of himself and society through reading.
Zhang Ji said that although several members of the family are rare disease patients, they have all made more or less achievements in their respective industries. Zhang Ji's mother was a high school teacher before her death, and she was awarded the title of Shanghai Model Worker three times. The bits and pieces of her mother's diligent work in her memory have subtly affected Zhang Ji's way of dealing with the world and her attitude towards life. He often admonished himself: "If you are sick in your body, you must have sunshine in your heart."
After ten years of hard study, Zhang Ji was admitted to East China Normal University, majoring in economics. He is fluent in English, French and German, and has also passed the Corporate Counsel Licensing Examination on his own.
Even though he was in a wheelchair and suffering from diabetes, kidney stones and other diseases due to complications, Zhang Ji still decided to embark on a red journey at the age of 48, and the energy he drew from the book and the road made him always maintain a sense of upward and gratitude.
Zhang Ji: There are three disabled people in our family, how do you want them to help you, you still have to rely on your own way, there are more difficult people than us, the sun will always rise, you must have such a belief in your heart.
"Life is to live actively, read thousands of books, travel thousands of miles"
On the 2017 and 2018 World ALS Day, Zhang Ji donated his photography and collections, and the proceeds from the charity auction were used for public welfare activities to care for ALS.
Zhang Ji loves both photography and reading, and has collected many books. In recent years, he has donated his collection of books and works to the community and the streets. This year, he donated 1,500 books of various types to the Xujiahui Street Library. Zhang Ji said that he used to gain confidence and energy in books, and now he also wants to continue to pass on this spiritual power.
Zhang Ji said: "People sometimes live actively, and only when they get up from a trough and overcome difficulties will they feel happy." Life is short, try to lengthen the latitude, increase your thickness, read thousands of books, and travel thousands of miles. ”
▌Source of this article: CCTV News WeChat public account (ID: cctvnewscenter) comprehensive "24 Hours, Meet You"