他把全部积蓄捐出来，三年里为留守儿童建了73座书屋 | For left-behind children

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With the acceleration of China's urbanization process, huge waves of people are leaving rural areas for the city, creating a special group of people: the left-behind children.

由于中国城镇化进程的加速，大批青壮年农村人口进城务工，催生了一个特殊的群体：留守儿童。

Left-behind children refer to kids under the age of 16 whose parents work elsewhere, or are left with a single parent who doesn't have the ability to look after them. For various reasons, they either can't live a normal life with their parents or their parents can't bring them to the city where they work. These children are often left with their grandparents.

留守儿童，指父母双方外出务工，或一方外出务工另一方无监护能力，无法与父母正常共同生活的不满十六周岁的农村户籍未成年人。由于种种原因，他们的父母无法将他们带在身边。他们只能留在农村，和爷爷奶奶辈生活在一起。

According to statistics from the Ministry of Civil Affairs, there were approximately nine million left-behind children in China in 2016. This is a huge group that urgently needs material help and psychological assistance from society.

据民政部统计，截至2016年，中国留守儿童的总数约为901万人。这是一个相当庞大的群体。他们在物质和精神方面，都亟待社会各界去扶助与关爱。

In Longhui County, in central Hunan Province, 80 percent of the population has migrated elsewhere for work, leaving children and the elderly behind.

在湖南省邵阳市隆回县就有这么一群孩子。这里80%的人都外出打工了，村里只剩下老人孩子。

"The children have nothing to do after school. Sometimes their grandparents have to go about looking for them," said Ouyang Encheng, a retired teacher. 

“他们放了学没有事情做，有的爷爷奶奶要到处找他们。” 欧阳恩城说。

Ouyang has taught for decades, starting his career in 1964. After retiring, he decided to continue his work helping those children. 

欧阳恩城从1964年就开始当老师，做了几十年教育工作。退休之后，他决定为这些留守的孩子们做些什么。

"I love books. I’ve collected more than 3,000 books," he said, "it would be great if I gave them to the children."

“我最喜欢的是书。我积存了3000多本书，”欧阳恩城说，“我想，如果我们把这些书送给孩子们看，那该多好呀。”

Ouyang’s wife sold their 150 kg pig for money. Together with the some 30,000 yuan Ouyang had saved for housing, they bought cabinets and bookshelves. 

于是，欧阳恩城的爱人把家里三百多斤的猪卖了。他们用得来的钱，再加上欧阳恩城的三万元公积金，购置了一批柜子和书架，乡亲们都义务来帮忙。

With the help of volunteers, they built 73 libraries in three years. The children can now read whenever and wherever they want.

在3年多的时间里，他们一共建了73座这样的书屋，让孩子们随时随地可以读书。

The rural libraries are popular among the children. "We spent the whole vacation here," said one of the children. Activities include reading and practicing calligraphy with Ouyang Encheng. 

农家书屋很受孩子们欢迎。“我们整个假期都在这里。”有的孩子说。欧阳恩城和他们一起读书、练书法，充实了他们的生活。

For Ouyang and the children, their hometown is beautiful, though it suffers from poverty. Their hope is that through reading, they can change the fate of the county and their own futures. "If the children were properly educated, they would gain unlimited strength," said Ouyang.

对欧阳恩城和孩子们而言，他们的家乡很美丽，但同时还很贫穷。他们都寄希望于读书来改变他们自己和这个地方的的命运：“如果孩子们可以把书读进去，就可以产生无穷无尽的力量。” 从丑小鸭到华罗庚，从地球到太空，这些书为孩子们打开了新的世界，让他们的心灵因梦想而充盈。也许，他们能从农家书屋起步，走出大山，走向更为光明的未来。

Cameraman: Fang Zhijun

Film editor:  Wang Na, Xia Xiaojun

Story written by:  Zhu  Siqi  

English editor: Xuyen Nguyen

 

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