With her long tresses casually curled, she does not appear to be different from any XJTLU student. Jing Lu, who joined the XJTLU Library as a member of the Academic Liaison and Reference Division less than half a year ago, is energetic and passionate about her work and her life.
A typical artistic young female
Jing Lu hardly had any leisure time when she first started her new job. There was much work she had to familiarize herself with, and she devoted most of her time to it. But as a member of the “post-85 generation”, Jing Lu has various hobbies. “In my spare time, I would paint, write, and sometimes travel.” The hobbies of the “artistic female youth” are also Lu’s. “When I was studying in America, I always travelled alone and have gone to many interesting places like Yellowstone, and New Orleans, though there’s no barbecued wings there,” Jing Lu quipped (Fig1).
Of dreams and plans
As an undergraduate, Jing Lu had specific ideas about her future, as with many XJTLU students. Once she had set her goal, she would do her best regardless of the difficulties she encountered, until finally her “American Dream” came true. Her dream might not necessarily be a grand one, but it did lay the foundation for her future, and left her with memories of the bygone youth.
Jing Lu chose to study in America after graduation. Although armed with an undergraduate degree in environmental engineering, she found herself less than interested in it, so she decided to apply to study Civic Design at the University of Virginia. “The idea of studying abroad occurred to me as a sophomore. From then on, I was bent on devouring the intricacies of my major and the English language,” Jing Lu recalled her student days with the same gusto she had then. After two years of graduate school, Jing Lu worked in a small enterprise as an urban planner for eight months (图2, South Charlottesville Design, by Jing Lu). At the request of her parents, however, and succumbing to her deep longing for her hometown, Suzhou, Jing Lu made the painful decision to resign and returned to China this year.
My view of XJTLU
While her job does not afford her many opportunities to interact with XJTLU students, every time she sees them walk past the corridors, Jing Lu reminisces her school days. Those days when she had to strive for a chance to study abroad were as satisfying as they were rough. Perhaps many people imagine that XJTLU’s students are different: they aren’t at a loss, and can afford to relax after their college entrance exam. Indeed, a fresh beginning awaits them, allowing them to adjust to their new roles and a new life. Jing Lu believes that there are two reasons for it. First, these students know themselves well. Because many of them desire to study abroad, they ready themselves to surmount another mountain peak. Secondly, XJTLU offers them an unparalleled abundance of resources and springboard from which they can study creatively and independently. “By way of illustration, the conduct of the exams impressed me. Because the punishment if caught is strict, there was no cheating in the exam halls. Even when the students had finished writing ahead of time, they would check rather than turn in their script.” Jing Lu admires the students’ honest behavior.
“Actually, students all have a mind of their own. We should listen to them more in our work.” Jing Lu has been busy working on “the Library User’s Manual”, and she plans to invite several students to join her at next week’s meeting to hear what they have to say. “Only by considering the students’ points of view can we serve them better. Many jobs, such as the purchase of a database, are the same; they all have specific processes, of which soliciting opinions is the most important step.” Her memory harkened to the days of her old job, she continued, “Civic design is alike. Before we make any plans, we have to take into consideration the inhabitants’ opinions so as to increase their sense of participation and ownership.”
Jing Lu is committed to her work. She mulls, “Whatever you do, you should devote yourself to it.” There is a chance you may influence someone unintentionally. “Take for instance the Living Library series, which is a remarkable repository of the collective wisdom among us. Students need only allow a mere couple of sparks to settle in their heart to enlighten and edify them.”
Jing Lu mentioned a story of herself in America. “Before I left America, at a gathering, my friends made me go on stage to say something about my experience of living and studying in the States. I didn’t have strong feelings about it then, but later that afternoon, while in a café, a stranger came up to me and told me, ‘Hello, Jing Lu, nice to hear your story and it’s a pity not to have known you earlier. Hope everything goes well for you!’ What I’d thought little of clearly had an impact on someone else, and his simple act of coming up to me to say hello moved me so much that I still remember the incident to this day.” Influence is mutual; so long as you’re sincere, you’ll find its rays enlivening your life and work. As Jing Lu put it in a parting shot, “We overlook the impact we may create through a chance meeting at our peril.”
Contributor: Xianshu Meng
Editor: Yuhui Wang, Yajuan Hu