Xiaoyu

Xiaoyu is one of the long-term young volunteers connected to the Laojun Mountain conservation station. She began attending its nature classes in fourth grade. A photograph of her as a child still hangs on the station wall: wide-eyed, encountering the forest with an early sense of curiosity. Over the years, she has grown from a child sitting in nature classes into a young person taking part in conservation work herself.

When she heard that Shanhe Garden was forming a village volunteer team, Xiaoyu was the first to sign up. Over the past two years, she has rarely missed an activity, whether searching for a site, planting alpine species, watering, or carrying out routine maintenance. Two years ago she was still in middle school; now she is entering high school. She already knew these mountains and village life intimately, but the garden allowed her to see them differently. “Shanhe Garden gave me a completely new way to rediscover the mountains,” she says.

Her growth also reflects the layered cultural identity of a younger generation in Shitou Township. Her family lives near the Sanchahe church and older relatives are Christian. At home she moves between languages: Mandarin with her mother, Lisu with her grandmother, and the Lisu hymns sung by older family members.

Asked whether she will continue the family’s religious tradition in the future, she does not give a fixed answer. She says only that she might “try.” In her life, tradition, nature, and modern education are not mutually exclusive choices, but parts of an identity still taking shape.