Reborn after Earthquake

In a rural courtyard near Bomu River in Puxing village, Juyuan town in Dujiangyan city on Oct.14, 2010, Dou Yongjun and his wife are playing with their twin daughters. Dou Yongjun has moved into the new house after the earthquake. With the lovely daughters, this family becomes lively and meaningful. The sisters are healthy and cute, with different characteristics, the older sister Dou Mingwei energetic, and the younger sister Dou Mingrui charmingly naïve. After losing their child in the earthquake, Dou Yunjun and his wife had these cute twin daughters in August, 2009. Joy returns in this family. “After the babies got born, their mother lacks breast milk, and the babies had to depend on powered milk, which has cost tens of thousands Yuan, pressing huge economic pressure to the family.” 39-year-old Dou Yongjun becomes quite talkative speaking of the daughters, “Children are our biggest hope though, and we are willing to pay as much as possible.”

In Dujiangyan, there are many families with children injured or killed in the earthquake, and they have got help from the birth control bureau. Xiao Fangyu from Shibei village in Xiang’er town gave birth to a son in the obstetric and gynecologic department of Dujiangyan medical center in Sep. 13. Staff from Dujiangyan birth control bureau sent a bunch of flowers with their sincere blessing to Xiao Fangyu. Doctor Li Xiuli from the rebirth technical service section of Dujiangyan birth control bureau who has been in charge of Xiao Fangyu’s service tells reporters that Xiao Fangyu is a special cadre for birth control and officer for women section in Shibei village, and she lost her child in the earthquake. “It’s deeply touching that she went around the village to help other rebirth women while pregnant. She actually suffered a lot.” Reflecting on these events, Doctor Li Xiuli got extremely moved. “Each rebirth family has a moving story, encouraging us to do our best to help them.”

According to Yang Tao, general director of Dujiangyan birth control bureau, there are more than 800 household who lost their children in the May 12 earthquake willing to give birth again. The bureau has taken the lead in trying whole rebirth service and helping the families with their good wishes of having another child. They provide whole service before, during, and after pregnancy, to pass on love in each period of the new lives. By Oct. 14, 2010, there have been 434 new babies born among the 437 household who lost children in the earthquake. There are 6 pairs of twins among them.

He Bo reports
Photo by Zhang Ming