1、1Rebuilding Shattered FamiliesWHIEN we first met in Gangou Village ofGaochuan Township,Lin Xingcong hadjust returned from his hillside farmingplot.Seeing he had worked up a sweatand was still in his dusty elothes,his wife Li Yunxianghurried to fetch a basin of water and scolded him:“You are not goin
2、g to meet the reporters like this.Wash your hands and face and change your clothes.“ Lin Xingeong and Li Yunxiang both lost theirspouses in the earthquake on May 12,2008.Nowthey have built a new family together and are takingcare of three children and five seniors,including Linsformer parents-in-law
3、,Lis parents and Lis formermother-in-law. After the quake toppled their hometown,Lin ear-ried his dead wife down the mountain,becomingdrenched in her blood.The disaster also snatchedLis husband from her,but she never found his bodydespite going to the site numerous times. They struggled helplessly a
4、ndalone with their grief,until monthslater when Lin helped Li withsmall housekeeping matter. That day,Lin Xingeong was incharge of distributing bottled LPGgas.Since Li Yunxiang was notpresent to pick hers up,Lin 2carriedthe cyclinder to her home as an actof neighborliness.Some neighborsjoked: “Lin,y
5、ou must have a crushon Li Yunxiang.You two wouldmake a perfect match.“ Thesewords brought the two lonely hearts together. The more contact they had,the closer their relationsgrew.“I knew little of her before,but I often heard peoplespeak well of her when we lived in the same village.“ Linsaid.“She t
6、akes good care of her husband and mother-in-law.I see my first wife in her.“ In September 2008,Lin proposed to Li.But he worriedabout the ten-year age difference and the financial un-certainties that nagged at him.“What I appreciate is yourpersonality,“ Li reassured him shyly,“We can work hardtogeth
7、er for a better life.“ On the Spring Festivals Eve in 2oo9,Lin and Li fled theknot.They agreed to place photos of their former spouseson the bedside to commemorate their first loves. Xingcong designed and built a two-storey wooden houseon the site of Yunxiangs former home.Yun-xiang embroidered a cur
8、tain with the saying:“If the family lives in harmony,all affairswill prosper“ and hung it on their balcony.Yunxiang loves embroidery and gardening,so their front yard is in blossom for much ofthe 3year. “I thought he had forgotten my birthdaylast year,“ she pouted.“But at bed time,hegave me a pair o
9、f golden earrings.“ Li wasmoved,“Hes not romantic really,but he isconsiderate and sometimes gives me a surprise gift!“ Talking about the future,Lin is very optimistic.He plansto build another log cabin next to their house to run an agri-tainment operation (farm-based tourism).“In the begin-ning of t
10、he year we planted some 10,000 trees on our two-hectares of foresfland,and we are going to plant some ediblewild herbs.We believe we will prosper in the future.“ The family of Lin Xingeong and Li Yunxiang is just oneexample,but a touching one,of thousands of families re-building their lives in the disaster zone.Bearing in mindthe loved partners who have passed away,they warm them-selves to newloves and new lives.
