Poetry born of a mother's sacrifice

Huang Xinsheng starts every day early. By the time the sun peaks over the horizon, she is already cleaning a 1-kilometer street in Changsha, Hunan province.

After finishing her shift, the 53-year-old goes home to read books and write poetry.

"Whenever I feel depressed or anguished from pressure at work and life and cannot find ways to alleviate the pain, I pick up a book, and my heart starts to calm down,"Huang said.

She has encountered great difficulties in life. "I can be humble during hard times, but I need to be able to find self-respect while doing so," she said.

As a creative outlet, she writes poetry. She has written hundreds of poems over the years.

In one of her poems, Huang wrote: "Why do you have a low voice, because you keep clean the city day after day; why do you have a calm smile, because you have seen the passage of time in falling leaves, blue skies and white clouds. You have seen so many faces and heard so many stories of happiness and sadness."