Piggyback siblings
To most eleven year olds, piggyback is nothing new. It's the warm feeling on Daddy or Mommy's back. It's the game that helps shorten the long way to the gym. It's the friendly gesture between buddies. But few have tried piggyback for longer than a couple of minutes. Ji-Wan Zhang, an eleven year old Beichuan boy, just did piggyback for twelve long hours. On his back was his three and half year old baby sister.
When reporters found Zhang, he was among the few who survived the earthquake and on his way running away from the center of the disaster. His house was in the mountain area. On a normal day, walking in that part of the country is already no picnic. After the earthquake, he joined some people from his neighborhood and had been on the run for twelve hours since 5 am on May 16, 2008. With parents working in other parts of China and only senior grandparents around, little Zhang took on the responsibility of taking care of his baby sister. When talking to the reporter, exhausted Zhang simply said, "I love my baby sister very much."