A book by a Wenchuan earthquake survivor shows her passion for life after a tragic loss

Liao Zhi, Wenchuan earthquake survivor, dances with her husband in Chongqing on May 4, 2023. Photo: VCG

Author Liao Zhi spent nearly a decade preparing for her 2023 book Alive: Like Light and Salt, and she has made a creative journey interwoven with her memories of surviving the devastating 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, which left more than 80,000 dead or missing.

The 23-year-old dance teacher was rescued from a collapsed building, but suffered the loss of both her legs and her baby.

Liao notes that she touches on the experience in the introduction to her new book, and told the Global Times these memories no longer hold her back. She now hopes to “warm and light others” despite the fact that “the pain will never go away” deep down.

The six-chapter Alive: Like Light and Salt touches on topics such as “Finding Your True Self” and “Relationships”. Like an assortment of stories selected from Liao’s diary entries, the book reveals how the writer came to terms with pain to set career goals as well as find the courage to become a parent again.

With the trauma of 2008 not far from her mind, Liao has gone through many ups and downs on her way to regaining her faith in life. In the book, she recalled that while trapped under the rubble of the building, she was able to distinctly and slowly hear her father’s voice when he called her name.

In her book, Liao writes, “I held my daughter’s blanket tightly despite her death. I felt my heart being torn apart by feelings of grief.”

The writer seems to have the gift to see both sides of a situation even in the worst of times. Her desire to live seemed to be bolstered by her near-death experience, she told the Global Times, which is probably why it took her less than a year just to get back on track again.

Swimming, running marathons, and participating in charity dance shows, were just a part of Liao’s daily schedule that helped her see the light again.

She said that the “light” and “salt” in the book’s title are metaphorical, indicating her drive to “bring positivity to people” as well as learning to balance her relationship with others.

“I find that if I always try to be a shining light, people around me may get burned by the heat, so salt, which is a seasoning, describes how I have adjusted my relationships with others,” Liao said.

Acceptance of imperfection

In the chapter titled “Rebuilding Healthy Dignity,” Liao shares the “three-column” technique developed by psychiatrist David D. Burns. Through this assessment of self-deprecating thoughts, she was able to regain her lost confidence.

While Liao told the Global Times that she lost her emotional grip several times while writing the book, those tears had nothing to do with grief, but her gratitude to her friends, herself, and her husband, someone she thought she would never deserve. in her life again.

“I cried so many times and had to rush to the bathroom to catch myself,” Liao said, adding that she finally discovered that the path to freedom is to accept imperfection.

Hayy: Like Light and Salt isn’t all about dealing with setbacks. As a woman, Liao devotes a few chapters to topics such as “becoming a communication expert in intimate relationships” and sharing her thoughts on love and parenting.

An accompanying photo in the book shows her wearing a white wedding dress while her husband, Charles Wang, bent over to help put on her prostheses.

Liao told the Global Times that she met Wang, a prosthetic engineer, when she was getting her new prosthetic legs. Although she was reluctant to remarry due to her insecurities, Wang assured her that she was the girl, even telling his parents that “I will never meet such a good girl again”.

“Her life-loving nature, her common sense towards her disability as well as her willingness to speak up for people who have had the same experiences as her, such things make me see a different side of life. I was deeply touched by her,” Liao’s mother-in-law wrote in a letter.

Being surrounded by love, Liao founded Chenxing Home, a rehabilitation studio in Chongqing Municipality for people with disabilities, in 2019. Running the studio with her husband, the couple has now helped more than 100 people walk again with prostheses.

The 38-year-old woman again became a mother and gave birth to two children with her husband. However, being a father is only one role that Liao has managed to juggle in her busy life.

As an internet influencer, Liao often shares her dance videos on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. She is also the leader of a charity group called Vision and Change, which advocates for more public care and well-being for people with physical disabilities.

She told the Global Times that charity is not a “nice gesture” but a way of life.

“Society needs education to see this specific group of people; we are part of the value of society,” Liao noted, adding that she is planning a new picture book while continuing her “Chenxing Baby” project to help physically disabled children with family difficulties.

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