爱上金华（45） | Omuralieva Meerzat: My story with Jinhua

In Kyrgyzstan, Omuralieva said, it is common for a child to become independent at the age of 18, whether they go to college or start working. She also started to live her own independent life after going to college. Her school offered scholarships, and she worked part-time for a clothing company, earning enough to pay her living expenses.

米卡说，在她的祖国，每个孩子18岁就要独立了，要么去上大学，要么去工作，米卡也在上大学后就开始了独立生活。学校提供了奖学金，米卡上学的同时还在一家服装公司工作，挣自己的生活费。

Once in China, being already independent, she adapted quickly: "The first year, I invested a lot of time in learning Chinese. Soon I had no problem with oral communication, so I started to visit the market." 

来到中国，原本就独立的米卡适应得很快。“第一年，时间全都花在学习汉语上，口语沟通没问题了，我就开始逛市场了。”

Being a person who always finds something to do, she has set foot in every stall on every floor of the International Trade City. So when a friend from the Ukraine asked her to help find something at the market, she happily agreed. 

She was enthusiastic, but in the face of a full range of products, the problem was how to distinguish the different materials and quality. Omuralieva was very puzzled. Eventually, under the guidance of her friend and patient explanations from the vendors, she has gradually changed from a layman into a professional buyer.

米卡说，她是个坐不住的人，国际商贸城每层楼每个摊位都有她的足迹。所以当一位乌克兰朋友委托她帮忙到市场找货品的时候，米卡爽快地答应了。热心归热心，但是面对琳琅满目的饰品，怎么分辨材质、品质，米卡起初也很头疼。最后在朋友的指导和商户的耐心介绍下，米卡渐渐从门外汉变成了专业采购。

After graduating last year, Omuralieva established her own foreign trade company, which is small but performing well. Some of her friends who want to do business worry about not being able to find customers, but she feels that she never needs to find customers; instead, customers look for her. "Friends talk to friends, customers make recommendations to other customers; it all comes naturally, doing business in Yiwu." 

去年毕业后，米卡就开了自己的外贸公司，虽然规模不大，但生意不错。周围有些想做生意的朋友愁找不到客户，但米卡却觉得自己从来不用找客户，都是客户找上门。“朋友之间介绍，客户之间推荐，在义乌做生意，一切都水到渠成。”

As an entrepreneur, Omuralieva can't stand having nothing to do. She walks around the market and the factories every day.

当了老板，米卡仍然坐不住，她每天行走在市场、工厂。

In college, Omuralieva participated in many volunteer events. In her first year in Yiwu, she joined the Yiwu International Family, and contributed, with other international business people from all over the world, to organizing 12 social activities. On weekends, they would visit orphanages and nursing homes. This program also raised funds among members to help vulnerable groups of people living in Yiwu.

在学校里，米卡参与过很多志愿者活动。刚来义乌那一年，她加入了义乌世界商人之家，和来自世界各地的外商组织了12个公益俱乐部活动，每周末会去孤儿院、养老院看望慰问，俱乐部还每年在会员中募集资金，用于帮助在义乌生活的弱势群体。

In addition, she took part in volunteer activities related to the Yiwu International Commodities Fair and the international students' volunteer service team for law popularization. Last year, Omuralieva became a member of the People's Mediation Committee of Yiwu for foreign-related disputes to mediate conflicts and participate in the settlement of pandemic-related trade disputes. 

此外，义博会志愿服务活动、义乌市外调委联合组建的国际学生普法志愿者服务队都有米卡的身影。去年，米卡受聘成为义乌市涉外纠纷人民调解委员会涉疫矛盾纠纷调解工作小组成员，参与解决涉疫贸易纠纷。

"It's hard to mediate, partially because you have to learn to think about problems from someone else's point of view, but it's also a way to learn to solve problems of one's own." She always keeps a learning attitude in taking part in these activities, and she never feels tired, no matter how busy she gets.

“调解工作很难，学着站在别人的立场上想问题，如果自己遇到这样的问题也能学着去解决。”米卡说，她参与各种活动都是抱着学习的心态去的，所以再多的活动也不会觉得累。

(Text and photo by Sheng Zan, translated by Marco Lovisetto, edited by Kendra Fiddler)