Qinghai Ran (冉青海)

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My whole family lives solely on tobacco farming. Lately, we have lost much money in our crops, and my brother left the village to find a job. However, my brother is illiterate and earns very little money, not enough to cover my family’s declining annual income and my educational expenses. In these recent years, my parents and my brother have had to pinch and scrape in order to put me through school. The village we live in is extremely poor and technologically backward – with a horrible environment and inferior living conditions.

Children are usually forced to grow up quickly, and I am no different. At school, I never had many friends. Initially, I did very poorly in school, was censured by my teachers, and was almost expelled due to failure to pay academic fees. I didn’t give up though, and I started to study harder than anyone in my school. Eventually, I was the top of my class. While I spend more time studying and focusing on my grades, my classmates still look down upon me because I am poor and thus, "dirty." They laugh at my "low-class" behavior, the clothes I wear, the dialect I use, and my "outdated" thoughts. I am an outcast from my peers because of my social status.

I am currently still in debt to the school and those who lent money to help my family afford the tuition bill. I really wonder what tomorrow could be like...my dream is to become a teacher in higher education. I hope for the best and will not surrender as long as I have this faith.

(Translated from Qinghai’s autobiographical sketch)