Count Their Blessings

"Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind."
--Bruce Lee, martial artist and actor

Today we drove into Hong Kong from Zhongshan, and I snapped this shot just off the highway when we stopped at a tollbooth. There are so many images like this in Southern China, but as they flash by us on our race along the highways, I seldom get a chance to capture them before they pass by me in a blur. Someday, hopefully before we leave here and before these farms disappear altogether, I will find an opportunity to meander slowly through the rural plains of the Pearl River Delta and take some closer shots of what life is really like on these farms.

Most of the farms that remain in this area are fish farms, and I'll try to capture a shot of them this Fall when we're back. This is a vegetable farm of some type, and with all the rain we've had this Spring, the plants appear to be thriving. These farms used to cover the entire Pearl River Delta region of Southern China, but are now quickly being replaced by large scale factories, electrical plants, housing complexes, even sports arenas and universities, all sustained by the water that comes from the canals and waterways twisting and turning throughout the Delta region.

To me, it's the definitive commentary on what's happening in China today. Once these farms were a way of life, sustaining families for generations; now the cities are fast encroaching, and the younger generations are leaving the countryside to find well-paying jobs in manufacturing and industry. The norm is that these children (many of them factory workers) send approximately 2/3 of their paycheck home to the family, which has resulted in farms like these being replaced by concrete structures, often built in stages according to when the money comes in. It's a strange and disjointed path to progress, but it is a path nonetheless.

When people back home ask about what's happening in China, I tell them it's their industrial revolution, not all that different than what occurred in England and the U.S. at the turn of the 20th Century. A country formerly supported by agriculture and farming is now an industrial powerhouse, quickly becoming one of the strongest economies on the globe. Although the price being paid is great, and not unusual or unexpected with such drastic and rapid change, there's also been a continuous attempt in China to maintain a balance between the traditional ways of life and the newly found freedoms of economic success. It's a fascinating, sometimes frustrating, but always thought-provoking (and conversation-inducing) transition to watch; above all else, it's a rare opportunity to see changes normally only described in textbooks now taking place right before our eyes. For that, despite the hardships of being thousands of miles away from home, we can only count ourselves fortunate.

As you can see from this shot, there really are no defined roadways leading to these farms, so perhaps seeing them from the highway is my best opportunity. It's hard to believe people actually live in these shacks, and it's a stark reminder that not everyone in China is benefiting from the vast economic boom sweeping the country. That being said, it's also a glimpse into China's agricultural history and a reminder that farms like this still feed the nation. In that regard, these farmers still have every reason to count their blessings.