Summary of the Core Content
Wang Jibing, a food delivery rider, won the 9th Lu Xun Literature Award for his poems about everyday life, becoming the first food delivery worker to receive this prestigious award. His journey has been full of challenges: as a young man, he burned his manuscripts due to his father's opposition to his writing; in middle age, he took various jobs to make a living (selling goods from a stall, collecting waste, delivering food), while secretly continuing to write. His poems are rooted in real life—the frustrations of delivering food, the silence between fathers and sons, the hardships and warmth of everyday experiences—bringing the voices of the “silent majority” to the forefront. Even after winning the award, he remains true to his original aspirations, continuing to deliver food, believing that he is just “a grain of sand that has been illuminated by the light.”
Detailed Analysis
1. Why did a food delivery rider’s poems win such an award?
It wasn’t because of the label “food delivery rider,” but because his poetry was relatable and heartfelt. Wang Jibing’s poems lack fancy rhetoric; they are simply reflections of his own experiences. For example, he wrote about the frustration of climbing the wrong building three times while delivering food (in the poem “The Person in a Hurry”) and the coldness of pushing a broken-down cart for over ten miles at midnight (in “The Midnight Cart Pusher”). His poems capture the pain, warmth, helplessness, and hope of ordinary people. The judges saw the “power of authenticity” in his work—he turned the hardships of life into words that touched people’s hearts. As he said, “The stars are more fascinating than the sun and the moon; the stories of ordinary people have their own brilliance.”
2. Barriers on the writing path: Family misunderstandings and compromises
In his youth, he was so obsessed with writing that he dressed in white to immerse himself in the atmosphere of novels, which led to criticism from his villagers. His father, worried that he would “have mental issues” or “not find a wife,” secretly burned his manuscripts. He promised his father to stop writing and focus on living a normal life, but after marriage, his wife also viewed writing as something “suitable for women,” which discouraged him. However, he never truly gave up; he would write in secret when he felt pain, then discard the papers, using writing as a way to release stress. It wasn’t until he won the award that his wife began to understand its value (for example, using the 3000 yuan prize money to buy her a 5000 yuan mink coat). Even his father later admitted that he had delayed his progress for many years, and the barrier between them was finally broken down.
3. The pen name “Shifang” (Collecting Waste): Remembering where one comes from, turning hardships into poetry
His pen name has two meanings: first, he actually collected waste; when he first arrived in Kunshan and couldn’t make enough money from selling goods from a stall, he made a living by recycling cardboard boxes, which sometimes brought him more income than selling goods. Second, writing is like transforming “junk” (frustrations, loneliness, hardships) into valuable poetry. He uses this as a reminder to never forget his humble origins. For instance, when he collected trash, he would secretly read books and tear off their covers to make it seem like the books were found, turning those difficult times into material for his poems.
4. Literature as a “pain reliever” and a “ladder to success”
Literature serves both as a soothing balm for his soul and a tool for personal growth. When he faces setbacks while delivering food, he writes a poem; when he misses his father, he sends him verses on WeChat (he continued to do this even after his father’s death); when he feels lonely, he writes in QQ Space (out of his wife’s sight). Literature has made his life more meaningful. He joined a poetry club to exchange ideas with other writers, gradually improving his skills from writing casual verses to winning the Lu Xun Award. Literature has helped him “grow upward.”
5. After winning the award: Still just that food delivery rider
After winning the award, friends called him a great writer, but he laughed and asked how many orders he had to deliver. When people added him on WeChat, he replied that he was busy with deliveries and might not respond. He says, “When a beam of light shines on you, you become a fortunate grain of sand; whether the light goes out or not, you’re still just sand.” He hasn’t stopped delivering food, nor does he consider himself superior to others, because he knows his roots remain in ordinary life. As a poetry critic said, “His achievements extend far beyond his food delivery poems,” but he always maintains a down-to-earth approach typical of an ordinary person.
Final Thought
Wang Jibing’s story shows us that literature is not exclusive to the elite; there is poetry in the lives of everyone. With observation and documentation, even the most mundane days can be turned into touching words. His story inspires us to believe that even in a busy life, there is always room for growth and progress.