Xie Shuhua (right) and Ma Chengyin pull their parents across China.
To fulfill her mother’s dream of traveling, Xie Shuhua, a 63-year-old retired teacher from Xuzhou, Jiangsu, used a specially made pedal cart to pull her 91-year-old mother Xu Meirong to see the sights around the country. Joining them were 52-year-old Shandong farmer Ma Chengyin and his 80-year-old father. Wang Rui, who was honored as one of “China’s Top Ten Filial Sons,” served as their tour guide. The five people from three different families—setting out from Beijing on September 17, 2013, traveling southward, and arriving in Haikou on January 11, 2014.
Xie Shuhua looped a thick rope over her shoulder and gripped the handles of the human-powered “RV,” striding forward energetically. “Can’t tell I’m 63, can you?” The retired teacher lifted her sun-tanned face and beamed. Her silver-haired mother, sitting inside the curtain-drawn cart, looked out at the roadside scenery cheerfully, her smile full of happiness. Ma Chengyin, 11 years younger than Xie, looked even more relaxed. A man of medium build accompanied them on their journey, occasionally lending a hand. His name is Wang Rui. To fulfill his mother’s dream of seeing the world despite her motion sickness, he and his brother Wang Kai once pulled a pedal cart with their mother aboard, traveling over 30,000 kilometers and leaving their footprints in 30 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions. In 2011, the Wang Rui brothers were named one of “China’s Top Ten Filial Sons.”
Xie Shuhua and Ma Chengyin said that it was precisely because they were moved and inspired by the story of the Wang Rui brothers pulling their elderly mother around China in a homemade RV that they chose to show filial piety to their own parents in the same way. Their actions gained the support of Wang Rui, who acted as their guide, making the journey go very smoothly.
The human-powered “RV” the two elders rode in looked like a large flower sedan. The “RV” was about 2 meters long, 1.5 meters wide, and 2.2 meters high. Inside were changes of clothes and daily necessities, and the floor was padded with four layers of sponge mats. It could be said that although this “RV” was small, it had everything it needed. By day it served as transportation, and by night it became a “hotel” for parent-child pairs.
“Mom, come take a photo.” After disembarking from the boat, Xie Shuhua took a picture of her mother, laughing while wiping away tears of excitement. Xie Shuhua said that she had walked for five months and worn out three pairs of shoes.
The 91-year-old mother Xu Meirong is in good spirits, though a bit hard of hearing. Whenever her daughter’s act of pulling her along on the trip is mentioned, she can’t stop smiling from ear to ear. “I’m happy—the scenery along the way has been wonderful. I just hate to see my daughter’s feet covered in blisters.”