The most important thing is to sharpen the original intention and inspire us to run the “baton” on the new journey.
Visiting the Zunyi Conference site, climbing Loushan Xiongguan, walking the Trail of Truth, seeing the new look of the ferry… On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army’s Long March, the third New Era Youth “Re-Walk the Long March” event was held. More than 300 people from all over the country participated in the event, including youth representatives from all over the country, descendants of the old Red Army, and experts on party and military history. Ninety years ago, a team with an average age of less than 20 years old measured half of China with their feet and found a path to victory in a desperate situation. Ninety years later, more than 300 young representatives from all walks of life gathered in Zunyi and walked along the footsteps of the Red Army. Such a major ideological and political course is not only full of ritual and attraction, but also has deeper educational significance.
Express deep remembrance to the revolutionary ancestors, review the oath of joining the party, and visit the exhibitions in the venue square and exhibition hall… In the golden autumn, young people from all over the country attend this major ideological and political course that spans 90 years. While walking, they realize the great years and understand that today’s happy life is hard-won. Why should we “restart the Long March”? Why did they leave then? Why are we leaving today? Starting with questions, thinking and sensing while walking, and resonating with personal witnessing and personal experience, answering and telling revolutionary stories well, such a major ideological and political course reaches people’s hearts, is palpable, vivid and real. “Upgrading to the new” is more “careful” and taking “walking ideological and political courses” will help inspire the younger generation to take on their responsibilities and allow the red revolutionary “fire” to continue to be passed on to the younger generation.
“Re-walking the Long March” is essentially a spiritual relay spanning ninety years. It is a very meaningful thing for young people to re-enter the land that their ancestors have walked. From textbooks to real scenes, a silent bridge has been built between history and reality. In fact, young and middle-aged people, including those born in the 1980s and 1990s, often only understand the story of the Long March in the classroom and from the narrations of the older generation. The Red Army team that embarked on the Long March was a young team. Chen Shuxiang was heartbroken and determined, and Zhong Chibing persisted in completing the Long March despite three amputations in half a month without anesthesia… What supported them through desperate situations was their firm belief that transcended personal safety. Similar ages, but completely different circumstances, just because they were born in different eras. Starting from Zunyi, Guizhou, the majority of young people revisited the Long March sites and participated in the propaganda. In the experience of taking one step at a time and seeing the world at a glance, their hearts were deeply touched, and they better understood the hardships and difficulties of the past, as well as the suffering and glory of the red history. “You can understand the Long March in textbooks only after you have stepped on the footprints of the Red Army.” As a young man who participated in the event said, this is the meaning of walking again.
Walking again is for a better start. It is the spirit that can reach far. The Long March was fought step by step through the mountains with faith. The qualities of seeking truth from facts, being independent, considering the overall situation, and being closely united contained in the spirit of the Long March are exactly the fertile spiritual soil that today’s young people need to cultivate. Why go to “reality”? Today’s working and living conditions are completely different from those 90 years ago. Contemporary teenagers have no worries about food and clothing, and have bigger dreams and a broad stage. However, the road is taken step by step. Whether they are young scientific researchers who are deeply involved in basic fields, or “new farmers” who are sinking in the vast countryside, or young talents who teach and educate on three-foot podiums, or “young faces” in the community… they all need to be down-to-earth, work hard, internalize the spirit of the Long March in their hearts, externalize it in their actions, and walk their own Long March path in the journey of the new era. If we go deep into the grassroots and take root on the front lines, we will always maintain the drive to not avoid hardships and go forward against them. By practicing and growing our skills in small matters related to people’s livelihood, we will be able to turn every step we take into a road of hope for the future.
