The autumn breeze has swept across Beijing, and the season has settled over the campuses of Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT).

At the Zhongguancun campus, the light falls quietly through the trees; along the lake at the Liangxiang campus, the woods have turned to layers of color; on the coast at the Zhuhai campus in Guangdong province, the breeze stays warm and the greenery holds; and by the water at the Jiaxing campus in Zhejiang province, the morning light ripples clear.

A gust of wind, a path of golden leaves, a lake of clear water, a tree of crimson — each quietly tells its part of the autumn scene at BIT. Yet the season is more than a change of scenery. It is also a time for reflection and for steady, patient work, and on these campuses, given over to study, it reads as a picture of autumn that belongs to the university alone.

The wind moves slowly through the branches, where persimmons hang heavy and ginkgo leaves fall in golden layers. It passes over the treetops and seems to hold on to the hours spent in quiet study; it crosses the water and breaks the still colors of the campus into ripples. Between that movement and that stillness, the season gathers strength for the road ahead.

Autumn is both a settling and a prelude. May the students of BIT keep their warmth of purpose and make the most of these years — gathering strength in the season and setting out toward their ideals.