Fang Zhixing, now 61 years old, got divorced in 2000 when his ex-wife emigrated to New Zealand. His daughter went to join his ex-wife abroad, and so will his son.

After retirement from a State-owned enterprise, Fang didn't have to work busily any more, but he seemed to have lost the focus of his life. Like many elderly people, he had high blood pressure, but what troubled him most was depression and loneliness. He often had nightmares, and began to wonder what he was living for.

Fang took a trip to Mount Wutai in North China's Shanxi Province, which is a famous Buddhist mountain where many temples are located. Fang hoped that Buddhism could bring some peace to his mind, but having been an atheist for all his life, he found himself unable to enter the world of religion.

Fang could only sleep after taking sleeping pills. He began to collect sleeping pills, until he had enough of them that could end his life.

He might have chosen so had he not learned about the "love delivery hotline aiding centre for senior people with the intention to commit suicide." Then he dialled the number 010-83620393.

Staff of the hotline invited Fang to come to their office for an interview. There he was introduced to a volunteer of the hotline named Lin Xiufen, a lady of his age. Staff of the hotline said Lin would help Fang by calling him every day.

From then on, Fang talked to Lin on the phone every day, and Fang found that they shared much in common. Lin also got divorced one year ago, as her ex-husband had affairs with other women.

The court decided that each of Lin and her ex-husband owns one room of their house. When her ex-husband comes back with his new lover, Lin feels hurt.

She lived in tears every day. Life was so sorrowful for her that she thought of committing suicide. Fortunately she found the "love delivery hotline." It was also through their arrangement that she met Fang at their office.

Then Fang realized that they were both objects of the "aiding centre for senior people with the intention to commit suicide," and had both become its volunteers. Besides talking on the phone, Fang also invited Lin to go out together. "We just chat every day, but now I no longer isolate myself in pain," said Lin.

It was the hotline's initiator Xu Kun's idea to let Fang and Lin meet and help each other. Now Xu calls them regularly to watch their spiritual situations.

"The problems with most senior people who have the intention to commit suicide are caused by loneliness," said Xu, a former professor of philosophy at the Capital University of Economics and Business and now the deputy editor-in-chief of the Contemporary Manager magazine. "Only love can cure loneliness, and that's what we try to deliver through the hotline."

The hotline was launched in March. Now they have received over 400 calls, not only from Beijing, but also from Tianjin, Shanghai, Shandong and other places. Every day, Xu and some volunteers listen to problems of senior people and try to comfort their lonely souls on the other end of the line.

There is no charge to call the hotline except the telephone fee. Xu provided an apartment of her own as its office, and all the staff members are volunteers.

According to data from Beijing Suicide Research and Prevention Centre, an average of 100,000 people above 55 years of age commit suicide every year in China, accounting for 36 per cent of the total number of people who commit suicide in China.

Xu has been doing psychological research for a long time, but it was a personal experience that made Xu decide to establish the hotline to help senior people inclined to commit suicide.

At this year's new-year party of Xu's magazine, the behaviour of a retired editor attracted Xu's attention. When everybody else was chatting and eating cheerfully, 78-year-old Zheng Limin stared blankly and kept silent. He only ate a little when someone brought some food into his plate.

When Xu tried to talk to Zheng, he suddenly asked Xu, "Do you think I should die or not?"

A year previously, Zheng's wife passed away. He had two sons, but they did not live with him. Zheng told Xu that he had bought 200 sleeping pills and a bottle of wine, and was ready to leave the world at any time.

Xu became worried about Zheng. She called him the next day. To cheer him up, Xu asked about his achievements in the past. It worked. Zheng kept talking about his various work and experiences, and one hour passed before he noticed it.

Just when Zheng was in high spirits, Xu stopped him and promised that she would call him the next day. She did call him the next day, and again she didn't let him finish and promised to call again.

It took only 20 days, when Zheng said he did not want to die any longer.

"After retirement Zheng felt a loss of values, and the passing away of his wife made his life emptier," said Xu. "For many senior people, loneliness causes depression and in the worst situation the idea of committing suicide."

After helping Zheng come out of his psychological crisis, Xu felt that she could do something to help more senior people, and decided to found the "love delivery hotline."

Actually most lonely senior people would not go so far as to have an idea of committing suicide. Among the hundreds of people who have called the "love delivery hotline," only 10 have the intention of committing suicide. After treatment from the hotline's volunteer psychological counsellors, two of them have given up the idea of committing suicide, while psychological counsellors are still talking to the other eight each day.

Apart from these 10 people, most others who called mainly wished to find someone to help them shake off their loneliness.

"Senior people need very little in terms of material, but they need much psychologically," said Wang Xiaohong, one of the voluntary psychological counsellors at the hotline. "Listening is a very important part of our work. The more these senior people speak, the better they feel."

When Wang came to Beijing from her home in Gansu Province 14 years ago, she firstly worked as a nurse for an 88-year-old lady, who remained single for all her life. Past nurses couldn't get along with her very well, for she was thought to be somewhat eccentric.

Wang tried to communicate with her spiritually, through reading the newspaper for her, discussing TV programmes with her and accompanying her to parks on wheelchair. As a result Wang became a close friend, and the experience was a good memory for both of them.

Since then, Wang has liked to be with senior people. When she learned about the "love delivery hotline," she decided to join as a volunteer. Since Wang has a psychological counsellor's certificate and the experience of working with senior people, she works very well at the hotline.

Besides psychological counsellors, various people volunteered to help. Dong Kangjie, an army officer, called to say that he could provide desks and filing shelves for the hotline. Cai Xiangming, director of Shichahai neighbourhood committee, wanted to co-operate with the hotline to hold activities for senior people. Lawyer Zheng Minjie, Li Shuo and Zhou Xia offered to provide legal consultation for senior people.

"Though we don't have any financial support, I believe the hotline will carry on with the help of so many volunteers," said Xu.

(Some names have been changed in this story to protect identities)

(China Daily 04/19/2006 page14)