Son follows fallen mother's aspirations by joining police academy

"Dear mother, this is my admission letter. I was admitted into a police college!" These were heartfelt words of 18-year-old Zheng Xiaoyun as he stood in front of the statue of his departed mother at Yunnan Normal University.

Zheng's mother He Zhihong lost her life at the age of 35 when a 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti in January 2010, while serving on a UN peacekeeping mission.

In 2007, He, an officer with the Kunming frontier checkpoint of Yunnan border police, joined the anti-riot police team to Haiti as a liaison officer. She left behind her one-year-old son.

Before her departure, He wrote a letter to his son, "We are about to leave. What I care most about is you, my dear son. Keep in mind that your mother is a UN peacekeeping officer."

He wrote in her diary, "In this vast world, I may be just like a small feather. But even so, I want this feather to carry the wish for peace." This was her wish, and it also represents Chinese peacekeepers' commitment to peace.

Recalling his mother, Zheng said, "My mother is more like a blank space in my memory. But as I heard her story from people around me, and flipped through her photos over and over again, the blank space got filled up, clear and vivid."

During high school, Zheng focused on rigorous physical training as well as his studies to qualify as a police academy candidate. His efforts paid off. In late July, he received an admission letter from Yunnan Police College.

For Zheng, becoming a police officer represents not only continuing his mother's aspirations but also his own dream.

"I will follow in my mother's steps, and strive to be an outstanding police officer and complete her unfinished work," Zheng said.