Fascinated by the unique charm of China's traditional culture, Podareva Anastasia, a young Russian woman, gave herself a Chinese name, Tang Xilan, which literally means "orchid during the Tang Dynasty (618-907)." While writing poems depicting her poetic life in China, her love for the country has grown steadily deeper. Tang hopes, through her online stories and/or poems, an increasing number of people, from around the world, will gain a better understanding of China — and the essence of Chinese culture.

'Falling in Love' with Chinese Language, Culture

In 1995, Tang was born in Ryazan (in Russia), hometown of the pastoral poet, Sergei Alexandrovich Yesenin (1895-1925). Tang has been particularly fond of Yesenin's poems since she was a little girl. By growing up in the cultural city, Tang developed a keen eye for discovering beauty, and a strong desire to explore the world.

Tang Xilan loves drawing.

Influenced by her father, who collected movie discs and the world's classic literary works, Tang enjoyed watching movies starring Bruce Lee (1940-1973, a Chinese American actor, martial artist, philosopher, screenwriter and director), when she was a little girl. She also learned the philosophical ideas of ancient Chinese ideologists and educators.

In 2013-2014, Tang studied Chinese in the Confucius Institute, in Changchun (capital of Northeast China's Jilin Province). In 2014, she began studying the Chinese language and literature in Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang Province. Tang says she has based her values and outlook on life on Chinese culture and Chinese literature. For example, she appreciates Confucius (551-479 BC, Chinese philosopher, educator and founder of Confucianism), who advocated "The benevolent loves others." Says Tang: "If everyone becomes a benevolent, virtuous person with a loving heart, we'll live in a peaceful and beautiful world."

In 2017, she began studying in the postgraduate arttheory program at the School of Art and Design, under Zhejiang Sci-Tech University. Tang participated in various school activities, and she enjoyed reading, acting and writing poems in Russian, Chinese and English.

"Traveling offers one the best opportunities to study and use a language. I have been to many urban and rural areas (in China). The rolling Yangtze River, and many beautiful views in both northern and southern China have plucked the strings of my heart," says Tang.

She believes every culture, which has its own value, changes with the times. She appreciates Chinese, who respect and treasure beautiful, valuable things, especially historical remains and cultural heritage.

Passion for Chinese Poetry, Life

Since she was a little girl, Tang has had a keen interest in poetry. In her eyes, poetry is like an abstract painting, which might arouse one's imagination. She believes a poet is a natural romantic, who writes poems to express his/her emotions and perception of life.

Since she began studying contemporary Chinese literature several years ago, Tang has been fascinated by the unique charm of modern Chinese poetry. Intoxicated by the elegant, implicit poems, she began writing Chinese verses to express her feelings.

Tang Xilan

Tang takes delight in looking at her poems; each is like a diary, which records not only her emotions, but also her "footprint" along her road to success (in her Chinese studies). "Poetry writing brings joy to me," says Tang. "The verses embody my vitality, wisdom and emotions. I live a colorful life in China, appreciating beautiful views, and studying the Chinese language and culture. Through writing Chinese poems, I have had a better understanding of and deeper love for China."

Tang is pleased to see her efforts to improve both her Chinese-language studies and her poetry-writing skills have yielded fruitful results; in fact, she has had her Chinese poems published in prominent Chinese literary journals in recent years. Also, several Chinese publishing houses have published collections of her poems. In 2018, Tang was named an international spokeswoman for Pujiang (a county in Zhejiang Province). In 2020, she became the "International Poetry Ambassador" of the Silk Road International Poets Federation, a nongovernmental organization in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Tang has been impressed by the devotion of Chinese, under the leadership of the Chinese Government, to end the novel coronavirus outbreak in China. She says she admires both the government, for its efficiency in uniting the people to fight the epidemic, and the people, for their courage and great willpower to overcome the virus.

During the past year, she has been using self-media (independently operated accounts run by individual users, posting self-produced content on social-media platforms, such as WeChat and Weibo) to share her poems with netizens. Many of her poems, which depict China's beautiful views and urban and rural residents' affluent, stable lives, have been well received by Chinese readers.

Photos Supplied by Tang Xilan

(Women of China English Monthly September 2021 issue)