CRI听力：An Ordinary Tibetan Family's Happiness

Anchor: Today on "Inside Tibet," we'll bring you to the story of a poor Tibetan family that harbors dreams for the future. Our reporter Chen Zhe has the details.

Reporter:
It's around Tibetan New Year, and sacrifices are arranged in an orderly manner on a cabinet. Dawa and her seven children are sitting around a long table for dinner.

The family moved from neighboring Qinghai Province to Tibet in 1998 to cure the father's cataract.

Back then, because the children were too young to work and the parents were too sick, the family survived by begging. (www.hXen.com)

Danzhen is the oldest child in the family.

"I was twelve. Every day I begged adults to give us money on the street. At the very beginning, I felt embarrassed. Later, I got used to it. Sometimes we got 40 to 50 yuan a day."

That's some 5 to 6 US dollars. And they begged for seven years.

In 2004, the family moved to the regional capital where the father received his operation. The government paid for half of his medical fees. Here is the father, Gabei:

"I can see clearly now. We get financial support from the government every month.The government also provides subsidies to other poor people in other areas such as in Qinghai. Our life has been good, especially in the last two years."

Since 2007, Tibet Autonomous Region has provided subsidies for low-income families whose per capita income is less than 800 yuan. Last year over 230,000 families received the subsidy.

Now that his eye problems have been cured, the father sells handicrafts on Bakhor Street, the busiest commercial street in Lhasa. The family has settled into a small apartment nearby.

Danzhen now works as a salesperson at a shoe store for a monthly salary of 800 yuan.

She plans to earn enough money to buy a larger house for her parents, and then find a boyfriend.
Rencai is the second oldest child, and his wife does the same work as his sister.

Rencai is confident that he will be able to afford a car in five years.

"I'm going to run my own shoe store next winter. Lhasa is more beautiful now and tourism has developed a lot. Thanks to the Qinghai-Tibet railway, many tourists come here. I think my business will go very well. The economic situation is promising and it ensures we can earn money through various means."

The father now hopes his younger children, who have access to school, can receive more education than their siblings and find good jobs in the future.

Chen Zhe, CRI news.