Deep Justice Project : I Shine
Here are some thoughts and reflections from some of our youth volunteers:
Candy Lee:
I remember feeling quite lost about how to engage my own buddy and her group members. There were times when I wasn’t sure how to talk to them! But the camp made me realize that there are so many things in life that I had taken for granted: my sight, my hearing etc. It is a blessing to be able to perform tasks such as walking on uneven pavements and catching a ball. Once during sports, I wanted to return a ball to a student. Without thinking, I just rolled the ball back to his feet. But he didn't know that I returned the ball to him until I picked up the ball for him to touch because he had low vision. Immediately I felt so guilty about not putting myself in his shoes and not being observant enough. But through this incident, I have learnt to appreciate the ability to see clearly, something that I had taken for granted. Despite the challenges that the students face, they are constantly smiling and that made me stopped and reflected on how I often frown over the smallest things.
Esther Toh:
I was filled with apprehension days before the camp, but not long after meeting the students, my nervousness melted away. Despite their disabilities, I was very inspired by their cheerful dispositions and willingness to participate in the day's activities. It took awhile to get accustomed to communicating with the students with hearing disability, but they were very patient and understanding towards us; always responding to us with a smile. I was especially impressed by the students' mindfulness, they were enthusiastic to lend us and each other a helping hand, taking turns to make sure their friends had their fair share of fun. It was definitely a very rewarding and encouraging experience to see how people with disabilities can live with such a positive attitude. I'm glad that I was given this opportunity to interact with people that I wouldn't meet on a daily basis and get to understand them better.
Evelyn Lee:
This is really an eye-opening experience and what a privilege it is to be a part of this deep justice project. During our preparations for this camp, I was thinking if I could really handle situations and be of help to the visually impaired student that I would be paired with. After a day of interaction with the students, I noticed that most of them are very independent despite their disability. The student that I'm paired with is fully blind and I'm challenged by how she can be so optimistic of her life. This is what she said, "I don't know about others but as for me, although I'm fully blind, I feel that it's very bright.” (She was referring to her aspect of vision and life) If life is so vibrant and hopeful for a disabled person, what more for someone who is fully functional with his or her complete 5 senses?
Jaclyn Yeo:
The moment I came in contact with Lighthouse, the little world I lived in expanded. I started to notice things I had never noticed before. The road outside this special school was steep and uneven; there was no proper pavement to walk on. Why did we need to press a button for the traffic light green man to come on? And then the green man disappeared too quickly! To enter Caldecott MRT station, there was one step more from the left than from the right. And these are non-trivial matters when it comes to pedestrian who is visually challenged, my buddy for one. And that was only the beginning of our journey from Lighthouse to Toa Payoh. I am sure the Evangel buddies for the 14 visually/hearing impaired kids have similar experiences to share. We overcame every obstacle to complete with fun and excitement the day’s task of getting 5 items from NTUC supermarket – an activity to develop life skills. Of course NTUC could have helped with Braille signage of aisle and product category for this supposedly simple task to not take an hour and more.
Kudos to SMRT for their all-friendly features: tactile ground surface indicators and top-up machine that flashed BIG font-size for my buddy to find out his way to the restroom and that his card has low value. Bright signage for Red and Yellow lines are thoughtful too. But SMRT can surely improve on the quality of the audio announcements.
Double kudos to Lighthouse teachers and staff. They demonstrated such passion and patience in every aspect pertaining to the wellbeing of these indeed special students. The cleaner that mopped the floor with disinfectant, the guardian that sponsored our nasi briyani lunch, and the heartfelt guidance of each teacher. How true is the Nigerian proverb "Ora na azu nwa" which means it takes the community/village to raise a child. My salute to Mr. Lam who has devoted 30 years of his life teaching in Lighthouse where he ran his class like his own household.
I dream for the day to come when our entire community becomes caring, giving equal opportunity for all born unequal to be Champions in our own rights. For now, Region A youths plunge deep into bringing justice wherever we can. And this camp at Lighthouse is a fulfilling journey we have just started.
Jasmine Chang:
Camping without a campfire sounds like swimming without water… that definitely was not the case for “I Shine” camp! Pastor Ming Tian (our camp commander), Pastor Quee Beng and the male volunteers painstakingly prepared and set up the campfire, which was undoubtedly a highlight of the camp. The student campers performed different items, including playing different musical instruments, break-dancing, and even performing feats of magic! Watching their performances, we were in awe of how their talents and skills could be nurtured despite the challenges they face.
For majority of the students, this was their first time attending a camp. There was a palpable excitement in the air as we were constantly greeted with smiles on their faces, peppy and lively responses during our conversations with them. As much as we hope we have been a blessing to them through this camp, it is beyond question that they have been a greater blessing to us.
Recognizing the needs of the students of Lighthouse School, convinced that it is not all hopeless for them, and doing our part to help them maximize their potential in life. This has truly been the greater blessing to us.
Preston Wong:
I was assigned to a group of six hearing-impaired students, one of whom was to become my buddy. He is 14, scrawny and slower than his peers in mental processing abilities. Due to his partial hearing impairment, his speech is also affected. Right from the start, I knew that we were from different worlds. Physically, ethnically, intellectually, socially different we were. I tried hard to break the ice by asking him questions about his life and his interests. He often either mumbled something I did not understand or kept his responses curt. There were times when we stared at each other perplexed, times of frustration and times when even a slight nod of affirmation from him made me over the moon. The process of communicating with a hearing-impaired person was actually not at all simpler than with a visually-impaired person.
In a span of 20 minutes, I believe I scribbled and asked two to three A4 sheets worth of questions. I could sense that he was opening up to me, albeit slowly. But I did not want to give up. Alas, the ice was broken the moment we found something in common - we actually stayed in the same neighbourhood estate! Following that discovery, our conversation evolved into a more casual and natural fashion, bearing less semblance to an interview. He even started to ask me questions about my family and university, and even shared with me his interest in gym. The lesson was precious: finding commonality is the best ice-breaker among disparate identities. I guess this principle can be applied not just to kids with disabilities, but also to connecting and relating to every newly-acquainted individual who might seemingly be different from us. What impressed me most was that many of them, though born with some disability, had impressive talents. One autistic hearing-impaired student had the gift of comic art, another could play the piano despite losing his sight and nearly all his hearing, and yet another could perform simple poker card tricks. The campfire night was an excellent showcase of the kids' talents and God's grace for these kids, and it left me thinking how at times I do not harness my own talents and abilities to the max and for God's glory. Just as the name of the camp, "Camp I-Shine", suggests, every individual can shine in life as long as they find their bright spot and be courageous to face up to their difficulties and obstacles. This camp is not only a reminder to the kids to shine; it is also a reminder for the volunteers how their seemingly big challenges in life pale in comparison to the kids.
page 1 | page 2
