New year, new beginnings for quake survivors

Take convenience store owner Lei Sanduo, who was once a carpenter. He now uses his spare time to fix furniture for his neighbors for free.

The most touching scenes were of children taken to other provinces, retuning to squeals of delight from friends and excited observations of how much taller they had grown.

Volunteers at the Beichuan Earthquake Relics said that on the first day of the New Year, more than 1,000 visitors came to make offerings of incense to the dead.

Most were locals or relatives of those who died, but there were also those from outside Sichuan such as Cai, a doctor from Beijing who helped with relief work.

"I have come here to tell the dead that their relatives and friends are okay and that they have every reason to rest in peace."

Wu Fang, a native of Wenchuan County, came back home dressed in cheery colors of pink and yellow, saying:

"I believe a positive and optimistic attitude toward life is the best sacrificial offering we can make to the deceased."

Editor:Liu Anqi