Korea : Learning from people with severe disabilities
Monday, 25 January 2010 00:00
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Susan Dong houses 27 people with severe physical and psychological handicaps. Hardly any of them can speak at all, and 6 of them cannot walk. They can only communicate with one another through the heart. My job was to give them a bath, sometimes feed them, take them for a walk, or simply sit down and play a game with them. No matter what I did, I was so happy just to be with them. |
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The interesting thing is that I feel each one of them is so beautiful. Those with unformed hands or feet, those who can neither stand nor walk, and those who have to sit on a commode in the living room, they are just beautiful as they are. The common characteristic of these friends is that all of them look so peaceful and content. Whenever I meet them, happiness fills my heart. Even when they can’t speak at all, their warm and gentle expression soothes my heart, gives me relief from my tensions, and tells me the fundamental truth about life. I can easily get upset when I find that I’m incapable of doing things well; yet these friends who are content to be themselves told me I was so stupid to behave that way. |
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Sometimes I think how nice it would be if I could be more elegant; yet these friends showed me that physical beauty is not what makes you happy. Sometimes I think that having a good image and formal courtesy is important in relating with people, yet they told me that those things could be obstacles in a sharing and authentic relationship. In this way, they helped me get rid of all the obstacles buried in my heart, so that I could embrace them and myself freely and comfortably as I am. |
| I just have to say how wonderful it is to meet another individual in the essence of one’s being. Hence, I understand how precious we images of God are in His eyes. And I was able to taste the joy of a healing experience while I was giving them a bath. In fact, it was the first time I had given anyone a complete bath. I felt so shy and embarrassed at first. As time passed, I began to have a religious talk with them in my heart. It seemed that they were telling me: “I surrender my body to you and I believe that you will give me a really good bath, just as I would like.” They conveyed this simply by lying or standing in front of me in silence. When I saw them, sometimes it was so painful that I wanted to cry, and sometimes I said happily that I would give them a good bath and make them feel refreshed. From time to time, I felt the one in front of me was Jesus my Lord, and there were times that I felt my own body and heart were cleansed while I washed their bodies. |  |
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Each time I saw them going back to their room after their bath, I felt so relaxed and satisfied. And the image of Jesus when He cured the sick came to my mind. Jesus said to the sick person: “Go, your faith has saved you.” I felt the same thing happening in my life. For a seriously disabled person, a bath is a small miracle in their lives. Whereas to become the hands or feet of those disabled friends and be able to participate in the miracle of their life is also a small miracle to me. Just as Jesus cured those who believed in him in his time, I found out that there is healing power within me through relating with those special persons. They are the ones who reminded me of the meaning of my existence. They also made me more like Jesus, and they helped me meet God and my real self. |
Some of the novices at the RSCJ Korean noviciate
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From a 2nd year Novice |
English : Wow... What a very cute babies... I love it..
I really like your stories in relation to our Savior God... God bless… Enjoy eating...
Français: Ouah ! Quels bébés charmants ! Je les aime. J’apprécie beaucoup votre histoire en relation avec Dieu notre Sauveur… Que Dieu vous bénisse… Et savourez !
Castellano : ¡Qué bebés encantadores!, los amo!. Aprecio mucho tu historia en relación con Dios nuestro Salvador. ¡Que Dios las bendiga!,...y saboreen...