Survival of the Fittest

Survival of the Fittest 

During the period of Reform and Opening up, China’s economy had developed rapidly, and many people’s lives improved and declined. The Reform and Opening of China were put forward and implemented by President Deng Xiaoping in 1978. The central idea was to reform inside of the country and opens to the outside world. The biggest impact was on the economy, and it accelerated the development of China's economy. For example, the government relaxed the restrictions on individual economy’s policy. More and more people chose to go into business, and my grandfather also decided to. There were many changes and influences that came from the people’s choices. The Reform and Opening allowed the country to develop further, and let my grandfather change his family. His choice influenced my mother's life. 

 

At the beginning, my grandfather’s business developed very well, which gave my mother a good environment to grow up in, and the environment helped her different from other small town girl to see outside world. As his business slowly developed, my grandfather earned some money from his little factory. He bought a new house, a new car, and new machines for his little factory. Moreover, his business slowly became famous in that small town. He had more chances to go other cities and more meetings in the town. When he went to different cities, he would buy many famous things from those places, for example, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing etc. That enabled my mother to have a bold and novel vision and thoughts. When my grandfather had a meeting in the town, he would take my mother with him. It made my mother not be nervous or afraid to talk to strangers. Once, my mother and her friend went shopping, and her friend’s purse got stolen. Luckily, my mother found who stole her friend’s purse. She asked the people who stole the purse to give it back. There were many people around them, so the thief gave back her friend’s purse. Then, he ran away. When people have seen a lot of novelty and strange things, this will make people bolder and powerful to a certain extent. 

 

However, for my mother, happiness and luck were short lived. My grandfather died of a hemorrhage because he was too busy with his work, so my mom needed to learn how to be independent. When my mother lost all help from her father, she also needed to learn how to live a very different life than she had imagined before. My mother is the only daughter of my grandfather, so my grandfather gave her more love than the two brothers of my mother. The death of my grandfather was like a big shock for her, so it was hard for her to accept his death. She closed herself in, and even rejected to speak with others. This situation was maintained for some time, and one day she figured it out suddenly. Another thing happened when my mother had not thought about her future life. The death of my grandfather affected his business, and the business could not continue. Then, my mother decided to close it. Despite this, there were still some liabilities. Mom sold the factory, the car, and the house that to pay off the debt. My mother’s family went back to their old house, and my mother started to work hard for her study, work, and live. She knew she needs to be strong because she could only rely on herself, and only herself strong that meant she was really strong. When the point that supports people falls, people should learn how to stand up and not lose their desire for the future. 

 

Moreover, my mother has tried to change the present situation all the time so that her life is not the same. She likes to use her own power to change although sometimes it is not so smooth. However, she never gave up. She often says, “It doesn’t matter. We can start again”. In 2005, my mother tried to open a store in her hometown. However, after several years later, she did not get a good income, so she decided to close it. My mother does not like always being the same because she likes to control all the things in her own hands. For example, when she heard that she would have a chance to go abroad, she had a new idea. She decided to go the U.S. because she wanted me to have more chances and better education than before. My mother has been working hard to make her family better in her own ability. She has always been my role model to move forward. 

 

People will be influenced by different things. People need to learn how to face problems, and try to create new chances for future, not just enjoy the life that other people was provided. Under the influence of the Reform and Opening, my mother's growth experience makes her own independent thoughts and bold behaviors. When she lost her dependence, she learned how to become strong, and always puts her strong and innovative spirit into her life. Her life is really like a roller coaster that has peaks and valleys. In fact, when people face the cruelty of the life that there are choices: being defeated or survival of the fittest. On the other hand, I know it will have many problems are waiting for me in the future, but I want to tell them that you will make me stronger.