The great earthquake brought grief to many people last year, but to the Tans it brought a "grandson."

This tiny village is open to all people, and the residents are kind and neighborly. This is not some imaginary Shangri-La. It is Chienkou Great Love Village, built by Tzu Chi for the victims of last year's earthquake.

Neighbors like relatives

"We are grateful to the Tzu Chi Foundation for building such wonderful houses for us," said Tan Feng, the retired principal of Chienfeng Elementary School. He and his wife Chuang, a schoolteacher, are residents of this village. They are concerned about every villager, especially children and lonely seniors.

Chuang says that because of the earthquake last year, people living in different parts of the mountains have been brought together. It is as though they have to share their misery together. Although it will be difficult for the villagers to become independent again in less than two years, Tzu Chi's Great Love villages can at least make life a little easier for them.

At the end of last December, sixteen households moved into the village. Chuang was asked by Tzu Chi volunteers to record basic demographic information for the whole village, so she knows everyone there. Her impression of the villagers is that they are plain, nice folks. To make a living, some do odd jobs and some plant fruit or flowers in the mountains. To make a living and to protect their crops, they have to fight against nature. Whenever they go back to the mountains, they stay in their original ramshackle homes. But whenever it rains, they always "escape back" to the village to avoid any further mudslides. Their resolute attitude clearly displays Taiwanese people's tenacity and their willing acceptance of fate.

Their days are hard, but they are willing to share their food with each other. This is the type of happiness that city-jungle dwellers are unable to experience.

Two homes

There is an old couple in the village. Their son works in Taipei, and the old couple look after their five-year-old grandson. Chuang says that she and her husband call the boy "Grandson," and the boy calls them, "Grandpa" and "Grandma."

In the daytime the boy's grandparents have to work in the mountains, so Chuang picks the boy up and takes him to kindergarten on her way to work in the morning. In the evening, when the little boy finishes school, Tan brings him home on his motorcycle and takes care of him. He gives him some cookies and allows him to play computer games until his grandmother returns home.

Every day Tan looks forward to the little boy's arrival. He and his family feel that the boy's adorable behavior is hope for the future. The boy is now curious about everything, so the Tans read him stories or play games with him when they have time at night.

Last year's earthquake brought disaster and grief to many people, but to the Tans it brought a happy "grandson." The boy is well taught and very smart. He once represented his kindergarten at a county arithmetic contest for children and won a prize. It surely was a wonderful record for his childhood.

An altered perception of life

It has now been eight months since the Tans moved into Chienkou Great Love Village. The old principal still remembers vividly when the earthquake struck. In his sleep, he heard rocks of all sizes colliding against each other and rolling down the hill behind his home with a noise like firecrackers. His roof tilted to one side and the walls caved in...

The old principal and his wife crawled out from the rubble. Everything in their home was completely destroyed. It was fortunate for them that they were not injured by any of the roof tiles, which weighed seven pounds each. It was also lucky that their car parked outside their home was not damaged by the fallen tiles, but the ignition lock on the steering wheel was shaken so severely by the earthquake that it was bent out of shape.

The retired principal said, "It's a blessing that my two daughters weren't injured in the quake." At the time of the earthquake, his oldest daughter [DS1]was still a student at a high school in Taichung. She still shivers at the memory. "I was scared. I thought that a major earthquake would only happen in eastern Taiwan [where most earthquakes in Taiwan strike]. I never thought it could happen right next to me."

She remembers that it was completely dark when the earthquake struck and the students, led from their dormitories by their counselors, sat in the sports field and held hands. They were very frightened, but their hearts were together. They felt they would live and die together.

Her school was closed for a week after the earthquake. She was too frightened to go back home, so she wandered from place to place, staying at classmates' homes.

"I was so happy when school started again. I never enjoyed going to school so much." She used to complain often about the stress of schoolwork, but after one week of that "homeless life" she completely changed her attitude.

"I want to face my life more positively," she said. She revealed that a friendly music teacher was another important factor that enabled her to change. The teacher often told her, "As long as I work hard and have no fear, heaven will show me the way. My life is always filled with gratitude." Such encouragement from a good teacher allowed her life to become more fulfilling.

Children who grow up in hardship often know that they have to be more thoughtful towards other people, and this is what Tan and his wife have been hoping for. Becoming more mature by enduring suffering allowed their daughter to change from someone who complained all the time to someone who always cared about other people.

The earthquake created a great deal of torment and suffering, but it allowed a lotus flower to bud in the heart of every villager and to emit fragrance throughout Chienkou Great Love Village.