Even if you can't travel far, I will lend you my legs and arms to show you the outside world.
On November 6, Luo Shujian finished the Xinanjiang Marathon in Zhejiang Province with Luo Zhibo, his 13-year-old son who has been suffering from Cerebral Palsy, by pushing him in a wheelchair. This has been the fifty-four marathon that Shujian has completed by running with his son.
Upon stepping into Shujian's home for the first time, I see Zhibo stumbling around with a crash helmet. There is a training room covered with rubber flooring, containing rehabilitation equipment inside. Yet what is most eye-catching is a wall covered with medals for marathon finishers.
Shujian works as a courier, and his son, Zhibo, grew up suffering from cerebral palsy along with autism and pediatric epilepsy. To bring a smile to Zhibo's face and show him the wide world, the father has traveled with him through more than 20 cities and crossed the finish line of one marathon after another.
By chance, Shujian came across the story of "Team Hoyt" of the United States on the Internet, where the son, Rick, was also a patient suffering from cerebral palsy, and the father, Dick, pushed his son's wheelchair and completed more than 1,000 races. "This story inspired me so much that I also wanted to run a marathon and show Zhibo the world out there," says Shujian. In July 2015, he started to practice running, from 5km, 10km to 15km, progressively increasing. Starting at 4 a.m. every day, the training has never been interrupted.
When Shujian pushed his son to Hangzhou in November 2015 and stood at the start line of the marathon for the first time, Zhibo, who was sitting in a wheelchair, felt a bit nervous at the beginning. "I had been observing his reaction, and then he gradually adapted and poked his head out of the wheelchair, glancing left and right. So, I knew he should be having a good time," says Shujian, recalling the scene of their first marathon. Next, it was Beijing, Shanghai, Wuxi, and Xiamen, and since then, they have embarked on a father-son marathon journey.
"Aren't you going to affect others if you run with him?" "Are you making a show?" In the face of questioning voices, "As long as I can still run, I will always do it with my son. Aren't we parents the backbone of our children?" Shujian replies with a smile. As time went on, there were other runners who would offer a smile of encouragement and bring greetings of caring in the course of the race.
"How could it be a bother? No, not at all. Whenever there is a race, we are more than happy to change the shift with him as long as it conflicts with his work. His persistence is actually quite an inspiration to us, and often, we educate our children with his good example," says Shujian's colleague. With gratitude for the kindness of his colleagues, Shujian expresses his hope that Zhibo can experience the spirit of perseverance through marathons, "Whether he gets the idea or not, all I can do is take him out for a run and let him feel the outside world happily."
Despite Zhibo's inability to play like other children, the family still treats him with great affection, especially his younger sister, who often spends time with him playing rehabilitation games after school. "There were unusual glances from others when I brought my brother to school for the first time, but now everyone likes him so much," explains Zhibo's sister. Zhibo and his sister are both students of Luodian Elementary School in Jinhua, and the teachers often visit him at home specifically in order to provide tutoring. Occasionally, during activity classes or at the beginning of the school year, he also attends school, and the teachers and classmates will always regard him as a little star whenever he comes. "I don't feel inferior for having a brother like him. On the contrary, my mom, dad, and brother have taught me to respect everyone and care for those around me, and I will take on the responsibility of taking care of my brother when I grow up," says Zhibo's sister in the interview.
In fact, as of October 6 this year, the 11th World Cerebral Palsy Day, more than 17 million people are suffering from the disorder worldwide, of which in China, in particular, the prevalence rate for those aged from 1 to 6 is 2.46 per 1,000 children. For more people to understand and accept these children with special needs, Shujian will also put on his customized outfit and pass on the kindness and love of everyone far and wide.
Run for love, and show a little more care, more smiles, and more kindness so that people with special needs will feel lonely no more and face the world with courage.
Liu Jian
Nov 7, 2022
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