Woman gives up job to work for street kids

A resident of Zhejiang province quit her job and moved to Chongqing municipality to look after six street children.

Pan Shuangshuang used to live on the streets herself, but with the help of local police she managed to get a new life and secure a well-paid job.

"I got help from a lot of people and I want to give back something to society," Pan said.

She has been providing financial support to poor students in a mountainous area for years.

In March, she learned from a TV program that a volunteer named Jiang Lin in Chongqing was looking after street children. She contacted Jiang and sent him 1,000 yuan ($143) for the children. On Thursday, she resigned from her job and moved to Chongqing to help take care of six children being looked after by Jiang.

(Chongqing Morning News)

Love of large family rouses man from coma

A retired worker in Qijiang county, Chongqing municipality, was woken from a three-month coma by the love of his doting progeny.

Wang Zhizhong, 80, fell down while out walking and lapsed into a coma on January 19. Doctors told his five sons and daughters that Wang's chances were slim because of his advanced age but none of them lost hope and kept trying to rouse him.

On Sunday, Wang's 30 children and grandkids were uplifted to see him open his eyes and move his head to look at them.

Doctors said their love was responsible for waking him and that his condition was improving.

(Chongqing Commercial Daily)

Xi'an residents have world's smallest farm

Lu Shifu, 70, a resident of Xi'an, Shaanxi province, probably tends to the world's smallest "farm".

A tree used to occupy the 2.32 sq m plot by the side of a road, but it died 9 years ago.

Since then Lu and his wife have planted wheat, sorghum, maize, millet, Chinese toon, rape, persimmon, mint and beans on the plot.

Recently a resident posted pictures of his farm online and it aroused much interest.

"Many residents wanted to know how I had managed to grow so many crops on my little farm," Lu said.

(Chinese Business View)

(China Daily 05/15/2008 page7)