National Holiday

By Wentao, Deng (Dylan) & Fanyu, Sun (Freya)

Since October 1, 1949, China's National Day has been celebrated every year as promised. The National Day is a national symbol that came with the founding of the new China and has become particularly meaningful. It became a symbol of an independent country, carrying the responsibility of reflecting the cohesiveness of our country. The most memorable National Day for me is still in 2019, the 70th anniversary of the founding of our country. The military parade at that time stunned the world. As the national anthem was played, soldiers’ movements were so identical as they were of each other’s replica. Without any error or noise, the solemn processions continued to walk. Although the sun was scorching and sweat drops were penetrating their uniforms, none of them gave up nor complained. Countless students and children were holding flowers and walked with the troops. The unified country spirit and perseverance have been incisively and vividly revealed.The newborn but devastated New China was like a toddler just learned how to walk. After a brutal war, countless people used their blood to build a bridge to success. Through natural disasters, citizens lived with hardships even after the constant famine. To this day, for example, Shenzhen, once a small fishing village, is now a city of towering buildings. Looking at the whole of China, there are numerous highways, countless corporate skyscrapers, the world-renowned Three Gorges Project, and the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, which has never been built before. Our motherland has a vast territory, a glorious history, mountains and treasures, beautiful scenery of brooks and rivers. The motherland is in my heart, as well as the heart of each and every Chinese child.

“The national holiday is much more than just a week of vacation or the military parade. It is, as certain to me as to any Chinese citizen abroad, a sense of belonging, a sense of being at home.” The very instant I heard Mr. Vincent’s comment on the national holiday, I understood the feeling. I could sense in his words a particular resonance that can only be felt far from home, the feeling of nostalgic sentiments; and for a person who was 16632 kilometers away from home, I fancy such sentiments so strong to be neglected.

I was once in Brazil, the country on the far opposite side of China around the globe, and such sentiments, therefore, can be easily interpreted. I can still recall the feelings of watching the national holiday military parade with my parents. It was late at night, we sat in the living room, gazing at the television where people come and go in the crowded streets. The festive red lanterns were hung high to show the auspiciousness; Chinese knots connected to the hearts of millions of Chinese children; streets and alleys were full of laughter and singing from time to teeming with cars and pedestrians flowing like water from a babbling brook. On the bulletin board, on the highway, on the overpass, red flags waved like a trail of dragons. It resembled those in the previous years, yet I managed to interpret something differently. I wasn’t old enough to know what it was, but it gave me a sense of uneasiness. It wasn’t until then did I realize how far away I was from the place of my birth. It somehow, like a magic spell, awakened the nostalgic sentiments buried deep down my once-ignorant heart, generating waves of loneliness and isolation. At that moment, I truly wanted to go back, to the place I call home.