When life is an uphill battle

Postman Song Xianchen delivers mail to a Taoist monk on top of Taishan Mountain. Ju Chuanjiang / China Daily

The 46-year-old postman Song Xianchen has been hiking up 1,545-meter Taishan Mountain with mailbags weighing up to 40 kg for the past 16 years.

Since Song took up his job at Tai'an Post Office in 1996, he has climbed more than 6,600 steep steps and tramped 40 km over hill and dale every two days to deliver mail to residents and merchants scattered over the mountain.

Living in Yanxie village on the outskirts of Tai'an, Shandong province, Song leaves home at 5 am and bikes for more than an hour to the post office on workdays.

After cramming two large mailbags with newspapers, magazines, letters and parcels, he rushes to Red Gate - one of several gateways to the mountain - before 8 am and starts work.

"It is impossible to deliver the mail by any other means except by foot," because of the terrain, says Song, whose daily route involves nearly 100 stores, hotels, villages, and service departments that are found from the foot to the top of the mountain.

"It is real drudgery, especially on scorching summer and freezing cold days. My legs and knees often ache for days because of walking for a long time," Song says, wiping the sweat off his tanned face.

Besides being exhausting and tedious, the job can, at times, become dangerous, such as when there are heavy rains, dense fog, snowstorms, landslides, or venomous snakes.

Just a few months ago, Song was nearly killed in an accident that left him scarred. "I fell off a cliff as the mountain paths became extremely slippery after a heavy rain. I rolled a few meters and fortunately a large rock stopped me from falling farther," Song recalls.

"A blast of pain swept over me but my mind was still clear. Realizing few people would pass the remote place, I slowly crawled along the ground and hobbled to the next stop."

Song was sent to the doctor and was advised to rest for at least three months. However, he returned to his job just a few days later.

"They couldn't find anyone to replace me even for a day. No one wants to do this job," he says.

During a thunderstorm in July 2007, when Song climbed to Four Locust Tree, a scenic spot on Taishan Mountain, he was nearly struck by lightning.

"To be honest, these lethal risks make me want to quit the job, but the smiles on people's faces when they get letters make me persist," Song comments.

Cheng Guodong works at the mountain's fire prevention station and calls Song an old friend. "Thanks to Song, who brings us letters and newspapers, our lives are enriched. He is the one who keeps us in touch with the outside world," Cheng says.

Besides delivering letters and newspapers, Song brings daily necessities to those who work on the mountain and helps them pay their mobile phone bills.

"During the five years that I have been working on the mountain, Song has helped me a lot with daily things such as sending packages to my family. I trust him like an elder brother," says Geng Lin, a waitress at Nantianmen Hotel located at the top of the mountain.

Song believes trust is a hugely important factor and it is this belief that has earned him respect, in addition to the long hours he works, often up to 8 pm.

Song calculates that he has walked about 60,000 km over the mountain and has not failed to deliver the mail once.

Though Song suffers from leg and spine pain because of the work, he says he is determined to carry on and keep his customers happy.

Contact the writers through zhaoruixue@chinadaily.com.cn.