Disabled man devotes himself to beekeeping, a dream of prosperity flies out of the beehives
Liu Wenbin, disabled but strong-willed, started a beekeeping business and also wants to lead special groups onto the path to prosperity through farming.
A middle-aged man in his forties, he suffered a lifelong disability from a leg ailment in childhood and walks with axillary crutches. Yet on the road of life, he still strides forward strongly. Now he has a new entrepreneurial dream: to be a good beekeeper, not only to prosper himself, but also to lead people with disabilities in his whole village, the whole town and the whole district onto the path to prosperity through farming.
Never admitting defeat on the road of life, starting a sweet career
Walking into Liu Wenbin's home in Tongmu Village, Lianhua Town, Yuelu District, the reporter saw him busy beside his beehives. Six beehives were neatly arranged on the ground, and he carefully opened them one by one to check whether pests or diseases had invaded and whether the honey in the combs was full. Drenched in sweat, his face was filled with happiness.
Liu Wenbin's family was poor. At the age of 6, because rheumatoid arthritis was not properly treated, the resulting complications left him with a lifelong disability. But Liu Wenbin is full of fight: relying on a small carving knife, he managed to marry, have children and buy a home. He still wants to strive to realize his self-worth through starting a farming business. In early 2014, during the "Link a Thousand Villages, Help Ten Thousand Households" activity carried out by the Changsha Disabled Persons' Federation, after rounds of screening, he was finally selected as a target for assistance.
"Keeping bees requires special care. If you don't know their temper, you'll get stung." Liu Wenbin said as he carefully picked up these "treasures" to show the reporter. He said that not long after he started beekeeping, these little creatures had a big problem: their abdomens swelled, they crawled slowly, and their bodies kept trembling. After the Municipal Disabled Persons' Federation learned of this, it immediately sent people to check, and only then did they find out it was paralysis disease. The technical instructor said: "Choose antiviral Chinese herbal medicine or medication, and while using the medicine, combine it with feeding rhubarb and sodium bicarbonate tablets to promote the bees' excretion." Sure enough, before long, this group of little creatures regained their vitality.
From then on, Liu Wenbin took even more care of the bees, regularly checking every day for disease, and often waving bamboo strips around the hives to help drive away natural enemies. He not only firmly remembered the breeding essentials taught by the technical instructors of the Municipal Disabled Persons' Federation, but also taught himself a great deal of beekeeping knowledge. Turning his dream into reality, he had too many feelings to express: "You may think it's just a few simple boxes, but they take a lot of thought. On rainy days you worry they'll get soaked, on sunny days you worry they'll get too hot. I care for them even more attentively than for my own children."
"Link a Thousand Villages, Help Ten Thousand Households," becoming a leader in prosperity
After nearly half a year of careful tending and gradually summing up experience and lessons, Liu Wenbin's beekeeping path gradually got on track. "There's no worry at all about selling the honey produced at home. The all-natural honey is of very good quality. This year's osmanthus honey has already been pre-ordered by many people, and each jin of honey can sell for about 70 yuan." Liu Wenbin said proudly. The fresh fragrance of honey filled the air, and a satisfied smile appeared on Liu Wenbin's face. Perhaps what he saw in his eyes was not just bees, but also the vision of a future as sweet and happy as honey.
"People with disabilities, especially those with some ability to work, should get rid of the mindset of 'waiting, relying and asking.'" Liu Wenbin said, "The assistance from the Municipal Disabled Persons' Federation has raised my family's standard of living. I hope more people with disabilities can join our ranks and realize their self-worth through starting businesses." Liu Wenbin plans to build a "courtyard-style economic cooperative" in Lianhua Town to lead people with disabilities in the whole village, the whole town and even the whole district who are interested in farming to prosper together.