[Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Institute] Veteran Drilling Worker


Standing atop the derrick in the setting sun

Left behind a verdant, unspoiled plain.

A giant-like figure

Gazing at the well site that is about to bid farewell.

Gazing at Fate

 

Looking Back on Thirty-Five Years of Exploration

Condense a lifetime into that spark‑filled drill bit.

Thus, the years have grown arduous and weathered.

 

Thus, life becomes both unregretful and glorious.

Legends and Longings of Exploration

Extending into the wind-carved wrinkles and the leaf tobacco sticks of the handscroll.

And so you earned yourself a catchy nickname: “Old Drill.”

 

And so you become the very embodiment of one high-quality hole after another.

Becoming the memory of countless wells

One by one, the honorary certificates of top-tier “experts” and “masters” in drilling.

 

Embedded in your haunting treasure-hunting dream

The work chants you shout on the machine

Forever echoing across the vast mountains and fields.