Sitting in the ophthalmology hospital in Lhasa, Pelkyi is counting her beads and waiting for rehabilitation examination after cataract surgery. In a few days she will recover her eyesight.

"I will be able to continue my ritual walks as before，" said Pelkyi, a 68-year old Tibetan, with tears in her eyes.

According to Pelkyi, her vision began to decrease gradually since the beginning of last year, and with floc on her left pupil, she lost her sight at last. But taking ritual walks has become a part of her daily life, so she still kept doing it everyday, until she felt down one day and hurt seriously.

After this accident her children suggested her to stay at home, concerning her security, but blindness and life without ritual walks made her distressed.

At the beginning of August, her daughter learned about "Bright Project", a charity project carried out by Tibet Development Fund, which treats cataract patients in Tibet for free, and she applied for free cataract surgery for her mother.

"I never dreamed that I could see things again, Thanks to the doctors, they are as kind as Bodhisattva to me," said Pelkyi, kept expressing her gratefulness to doctors.

Along with Pelkyi, the 72-year-old Sonlha Lhazom also benefited from the charity program and recovered her eyesight. Her son Tenzin revealed her goggles under doctor's guide, and asked whether she can see him. "Yes, I can see you," said the old excitedly.

Due to high altitude and strong ultraviolet rays, Tibetan farmers and herdsmen are easy to get eye diseases, especially cataract. To help them, a series of charity program have been carried out.

Take the "Bright Project" as an example, now there have been over 30,000 Tibetan cataract patients having been treated for free and regained vision through the project since it was launched in 1993.

Tibet Development Fund, which carries out the charity project, is the first non-governmental charitable organization on Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Founded by Tenth Panchen Lama Choskyi Gyaltsen and Ngabo Ngawang Jigme in 1987, the fund keeps expanding funding resources and aid projects, and has spread all over Tibetan areas in Tibet, Sichuan, Qinghai, Gansu and Yunnan. In recent years the fund has received donation and helps from more and more people and social organizations.

In addition, China's Ministry of Civil Affairs has planned to appropriate a sum of 1.5 million yuan, and entrusts Tibet Development Fund with 1,500 free cataract operations in Tibet, to aid poor patients suffering from eye diseases and bring light to them.

A cataract patient is waiting for unlocking goggles.