Essays ⁽³⁴⁹⁾

In 2010, chronic disease accounted for 85% of all deaths in China; 45% of chronic-disease deaths occurred before age 70; and chronic disease caused 70% of the total disease burden. It is estimated that in 2010 China had over 200 million people with hypertension, 120…

Every morning at three or four I rise and, in the dead quiet, read alone in the living room to start the day. Around six I prepare breakfast for the family; after breakfast I see my wife to the shuttle bus stop, then stop by…

Today is the forty-first birthday of Mr. Nicholas Stephenson Maimaiti Zhou Ergou. Before dawn, while all was quiet save for the chirping of autumn insects, he was already up. In his heart he said to himself: "Happy birthday, Nicholas Stephenson Maimaiti Zhou Ergou." It was…

Today my child started school. After breakfast, I cycled with him to the school gate, only to be told parents were not allowed in. My son scanned his health code and went in, so I took the opportunity to drop by the National Library. I…

Because of the pandemic, we reduced contact with the outside world and gained a lot of extra time. To add pleasure to life and to lower the chance of catching COVID-19 at supermarkets and markets (we have not been to a supermarket for seven months,…

On August 24, the weather was fine, and we made a spontaneous decision to go on a long ride. We set our destination at Yanchi Town, 62.4 kilometers from home, making for a round trip of 124.8 kilometers. Yanchi is a very remote town in…

In the twinkling of an eye, from sowing to harvest to pulling out the now-old stalks, I have completed a full season of vegetable growing. During this time, our family of three has also built the exercise habit we had wanted to build for years…

In my WeChat Moments I often see obituaries or memorial messages posted by family members of cancer patients; some are so wretched that they bring tears to the eyes. A young mother, still grief-stricken because neuroblastoma has just taken her toddler, longs for the child…

After the Start of Autumn (Li Qiu), Beijing has become cooler day by day, especially after several heavy rains. Because of the pandemic and to reduce waste, my study was, for a while, lent to a friend; a few days ago that friend left for…

Every year in the fifth and sixth lunar months, Beijing's streets and lanes bloom with scholar-tree flowers. The Chinese scholar tree is one of Beijing's main landscaping trees; people who have long lived in Beijing must feel affection for the groves of scholar trees by…