24 urban youths hike the Three Gorges for 12 days to do charity work

　　A group of urban youths hiked the Three Gorges for 12 days to do charity work. They took family portraits for over 100 farming households along the way, screened 24 movies, and raised 50,000 yuan in charitable funds.

　　In Liu Xiaohua’s office, there are nearly ten walking sticks made of branches and bamboo poles, each inscribed with different names: “Liu Xiaohua,” “Fu Shaoyong,” “Peng Shaolin,” “Yin Guo,” “Luo Huiyi”… Behind these names lies the arduous journey of a group of youths hiking the Three Gorges.

　　Liu Xiaohua can be considered a professional volunteer. Over the past few winters, he has almost always ridden his bicycle with his partners to mountainous areas to collect the wishes of impoverished children. This July, “One of my colleagues once hiked to Tibet. After hearing about his experience, I thought, why couldn’t we do charity work by hiking?”

　　“I spend a lot of time in the reservoir area, and the Three Gorges is synonymous with Chongqing. Isn’t hiking the Three Gorges very meaningful?” Without hesitation, Liu Xiaohua immediately posted a message on the Chongqing Volunteer Service Network—recruiting volunteers to hike the Three Gorges.

　　“A single call drew a hundred responses.” That’s how Liu Xiaohua described it. “Within a day, nearly 100 people had signed up.” Fu Shaoyong from Shenzhen, Luo Huiyi from Guangdong, Zhang Shuman from Guilin… Private business owners, white-collar workers, and students from all over gathered in Yunyang, Chongqing, on July 15—the starting point of this hike.

　　As the head of the Chongqing Youth Education Volunteer Association, Liu Xiaohua, whose online name is “Wind-Up Toy,” also took on a task approved in April this year by the newly established Chongqing Youth Volunteer Service Foundation: “Collect information on left-behind children and elderly along the way, and screen movies and take family portraits for local residents at each stop.”

　　Carrying their own reasons and dreams, the first group of 24 participants in the Three Gorges Charity Hike set off in three teams from Yunyang, passing through Fengjie and finally arriving in Wushan—a total distance of 150 kilometers. What does 150 kilometers mean? Before setting off, only Li Haijun, who had previously hiked to Tibet, had a sense of the scale. The other team members simply thought, “It must be far.”

　　The journey was farther than expected.

　　On the first day, filled with excitement and enthusiasm, none of the team members complained after walking over ten kilometers.

　　But the second day was different. “Because we weren’t familiar with the route, on the second day we wandered several kilometers around Xinqin Township in Yunyang, walking from six in the morning until nine at night.” A 15-hour trek covering over 40 kilometers left blisters on Liu Xiaohua’s feet, and one university student wanted to quit. The originally high-spirited group of 24 began to have their own thoughts.

　　So, during the evening summary meeting, everyone spoke from the heart. “The physical and mental pressures were immense.”

　　Continue walking, or turn back? Most chose the former. “Only one person dropped out.”

　　After two days, almost all the men had blisters on their feet. To continue, they needed to solve this problem first. The experienced Liu Haijun suggested placing sanitary pads inside their shoes.

　　The physical pain was manageable, but the mental torment nearly broke many. “There were constant sharp turns along the way. Even though the destination was straight ahead, we had to wind around for a long time to get there. And often, we’d see houses in the distance, only to find them deserted when we got closer. We were just too eager to ask for directions and reach our destination.”

　　So, Luo Huiyi, who loved to sing, started leading everyone in song. Video clips show that the group often sang together, and when they forgot the lyrics, bursts of laughter would follow.

　　When approaching Hefeng Township near Wushan, close to Fengjie, they learned that taking a shortcut would save about 2 kilometers.

　　Someone suggested taking a small path, but it turned out to be impassable. The group had to backtrack and obediently follow the mountain road. During the evening sharing session, Liu Xiaohua said, “No matter how far the detour, as long as the path is unknown, we cannot proceed.”

　　The choice of whether to take a vehicle midway also caused disagreement among the team. “Because it had rained, we encountered a landslide where we were, and some girls got injured. Some suggested taking a vehicle. I really didn’t want to—after all, we had agreed to hike the whole way. It wasn’t a long distance, but they wanted to take a vehicle.” To this day, Luo Huiyi still feels uneasy about having taken a 15-minute vehicle ride.

　　This 12-day Three Gorges hike involved two batches of over 30 hikers. They took family portraits for over 100 farming households, screened 24 movies, and collected information on nearly 100 families in need.

　　The team also raised 50,000 yuan in charitable funds through their actions. “After organizing the information, we will deliver over 100,000 pieces of clothing collected by the ‘Benefit the Heart, Benefit the Easy—Recycle Idle Items Program’ initiated by the Youth Volunteer Work Department to those in need. At the same time, we will help transport agricultural products from remote areas to the Communist Youth League’s Civic Schools for sale,” said Liu Xiaohua.

　　After this hike, Liu Xiaohua gained four new partners in charity work. “Some of them have gone to Lushan to teach children, while others are helping raise donations.”

　　After overcoming difficulties and disputes, everyone said these 12 days of hiking were more about enjoyment.

　　Taking a shower in the vegetable field; using the sky as a tent and the ground as a bed, the team members collectively set up a shared sleeping platform in the yard.

　　A few days without TV or computers, a moment of mental reset; a bowl of congee upon finally reaching the destination after a long journey; a moment to rest on a chair during the trip; the warm hospitality of locals cooking with their own cured meat; the skinny ones with huge appetites after labor; the overweight feeling light and refreshed after hiking... All of these became sources of happiness—simple happiness—that these urban men and women, raised in the city and accustomed to a fast-paced life, had never experienced before.

　　Fu Shaoyong, a Chongqing native who runs a business in Guangdong, said that the success and happiness he had pursued over forty-one years had been misguided. “Happiness isn’t about pursuing material satisfaction. There are so many people living less comfortably than I am, yet they are happier than me. A peaceful mindset is the greatest form of wealth,” he said.

　　Luo Huiyi, still a sophomore in college, has been unsettled ever since she took a 15-minute car ride during the hike. She said, “These past few days, I’ve kept thinking that no matter what you do, never forget your original intention, no matter how long the journey. That’s the most important thing.”

　　Before setting off, Zhang Shuman doubted whether she could complete the hike. Now, she says she feels a kind of superpower. “Focusing on the present and taking it step by step—that’s a superpower.” Having previously felt lost and anxious about quitting her job, she has now found her direction and knows what truly matters.

　　Liu Xiaohua, who hiked twice with both the first and second teams, lost 10 pounds. The nearly 300 kilometers of hiking over the two trips made him feel the strength of the team. “Without the mutual encouragement among team members, I believe many people wouldn’t have made it—and neither would I.”