Email sent by the student to her mother

Dear Mum,

My mailbox is full of messages from our university and teachers everyday, so don’t worry about me, Mum, everything is okay here.

Despite the increasingly serious epidemic of SARS in Beijing, our university has taken timely and effective measures and precautions at all levels, and the information and updates concerning SARS cases are managed in a quick and transparent manner. Therefore, we are becoming more and more relaxed. Nowadays, we are given shortened lectures in small groups; we have meals in our dormitory and have developed the habit of washing hands more frequently than usual. In addition, every place on campus smells of the disinfectant -- quite a pleasant smell! More interestingly, we are sparing no cost to buy a variety of fruits such as apples, strawberries, oranges, and muskmelons, so as to have more nutritious food. Also, we are taking our temperature every day. Today mine is 36.42 degrees.

Anyway, we are becoming more and more optimistic now. In a few days, when it gets sunny, I will take some photos, which I will send to you soon after I scan them.

Dear teachers,

Recently, people across the country have expressed their deep concern over the SARS epidemic in Beijing. As parents of a child studying there, we are also closely observing the evolution of the epidemic.

During the past week, our child has felt nervous and uneasy, partly because of her poor understanding of the actual situation of the SARS epidemic which had something to do with the inaccurate reporting of SARS statistics by the authorities. As a result, I transferred money for an air ticket to her bank account so that she could leave the university in case of an emergency.

However, the condition has greatly improved over the past week, due to the great efforts made by the Tsinghua staff; to them we would like to offer our heartfelt thanks. Confidence has been regained, and a relatively safe working and living environment for all faculty and students has been preserved as a result of your effective measures to prevent and control the spread of SARS on campus.

These days, the daily updates about SARS at Tsinghua are available to us through the university Web site and BBS, both of which assure us that it is quite safe at your university. This eases the worries of those of us parents who live far away from Beijing.

Meanwhile, the improved outlook of our child also reflects the effectiveness of the SARS monitoring system which has been set up at the university. After reading the e-mail she sent us yesterday which was titled "My happy life despite SARS", I feel greatly relieved.

Therefore, no matter what happens, we support the measures being taken at Tsinghua, where there are such responsible and highly efficient faculty members; we stand with you in fighting against and prevailing over SARS.

Finally, I hope all of you continue to be safe and sound, happy and healthy!

Yours Sincerely