My rocket factory

My Former Rocket Factory
My former military factory once played a part in China’s modernization drive. It was founded in 1865 by Li Hongzhang, a prominent statesman, as part of the Self-Strengthening Movement. Today, it has been transformed into the 1865 Creative Park. While some key sectors remain, other parts, including my former work unit that produced gauges and measurement tools, have been turned into media companies, design studios, creative industries, and, of course, restaurants.
This morning, after a delicious dim sum, my daughter, my niece Catherine with her husband and son, and I strolled around the grounds of my old factory. To my amazement, I found the very building where I once spent ten years greasing machine parts. In one photo, the gun stands just around the corner; in another, my daughter poses at what was once the entrance to my work unit.
The factory I knew was a place of noise, sweat, and drudgery. Now it hums with music, art works and ideas. Walking through the old gates, I felt time folding in on itself: the young woman I once was, oil-stained and weary, seemed to glance at me across the decades. The creative park is a lively, enchanting place — almost unrecognizable, yet rooted in the same bricks and beams.
I am glad the old factory has been given a second life. And I am glad, too, that I have found mine.

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Published on October 03, 2025 21:46
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