Letting their light shine on our lives

The profiles of valiant heroes and a compassionate public are emerging as the dust begins to settle in the wake of China's most devastating earthquake in three decades.

The valor of those who sacrificed their lives to save others, and the concern and sympathy of people from home and abroad, are nearly as earthshaking as the quake that has unleashed so much woe upon a nation rapped by calamities since the year began. Surely, the catastrophic blizzards of this January, and the collision of two trains in Shandong province and spread of hand-foot-mouth disease this month have made 2008, so far, a year in which many Chinese feel they are being tested.

The disaster that struck on Monday seems to be the latest page of that test, and the verdict seems to be in: The quake shook the ground but not the Chinese spirit. Instead, it has brought out the best of it.