Diary of Yemeni student Fares Alahmadi
(english.jsjyt.edu.cn) Updated：2020-03-13
The campus of Nanjing University of Forestry is adorned by full blooming cherry blossoms on March 11. [Photo by Fares Alahmadi/jschina.com.cn]
The diary of Yemeni student Fares Alahmadi was inspired by a walk he took around the campus of Nanjing University of Forestry and discovering that the pink-and-white cherry blossoms had come into full bloom.
The young man wrote the diary as the number of people testing positive for COVID-19 was at a very low level and everything seemed to be returning to normal. He said the scene of crowds of people enjoying cherry blossoms on the campus might be a scene from the past, but it put him in a good humor, as if blooming with the adorable flowers.
Alahmadi said he also felt good about China, where he has been living for 10 years and has enjoyed many happy times. He said he felt a duty to stand in line with China during the outbreak, just as his Chinese friends and teachers helped him during his initial days in China.
When his Chinese friends askied why he was still in China, the young man wrote: "Don't we say 'Go ahead China', 'Go ahead Wuhan' every day, so why are we leaving China? I want to stay in China, protect it, and fight against the coronavirus."
He added that Chinese people have been standing at the front line and investing massive amounts of manpower and money to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. He said felt honored to be an international student in China and he appreciated the efforts made by China and its people.
