Wooden Statue, Don’t Move

Ji Mingjian had autism. Every time I saw him, I would play the most childish game with him: “One, two, three! Wooden Statue!”

The Wooden Statue was always very good, standing perfectly still as he waited for me to release him.

Just like when we were little, I would stand on tiptoe and touch his face. “Okay, you’re free.”

Until one day, I saw him kick down a male classmate who had been pestering me. “You’d even bully someone slow, huh?”

Me: ?

The next time we played Wooden Statue, the Wooden Statue was not good at all. His breathing was uneven as he said, “I can’t move. You haven’t released me yet.”