The time I have spent here at St. Nicholas Home for the Blind has been an incredible learning experience. Until now, I had never worked with any handicapped people or anyone with a learning disability. As soon as I heard we’d be serving at a home for the visually impaired, I must admit, I immediately got nervous. With my lack of experience in this area, I thought there was no way I could do well here. I knew it would be a “growing” month, aka a challenging one!
On top of stepping into an unfamiliar ministry, I was also placed on a new team for the month of August. The World Race does something called “manistry” one month on the race in which all the men on the squad are placed together on a team. There are 8 men on our squad and 35 women. I’d say they are pretty outnumbered, so trust me…they need their bro time! Bless their hearts! Thanks to manistry month, I finally got to be on an all-girls team. So I am serving alongside 7 new girls and together we are Team Diaphora!
Upon arriving to our ministry in Georgetown, Malaysia, our team was welcomed with open arms by everyone at St. Nicholas. The staff and residents all seemed excited for us to become a part of their community. It took some adjusting to living and working with blind and low-vision residents. Simple things like keeping everything in the same place so they don’t have trouble moving about the area; or being understanding when they accidentally run into you. It has really made me become more aware of my surroundings.
I have gotten very acclimated to being here and am enjoying the lifestyle here. I have been blessed with the opportunity to work in several different areas on the campus. I started in the office, helping with administration, then worked with the deaf-blind & multi-handicapped children several times. I was able to go on a few home visits in the early intervention program to work with very young children who were born blind. I have grown to love these kids and feel extremely blessed to simply interact with them each day we are here. Many of them are so full of joy and hope!
Basketry is another thing I tried. It was fun but it is definitely not as easy as it looks! One of my favorite things to work with is Braille. It is neat to see the production process and to see people using it. Braille is helping provide so many education opportunities to people all over the world.
I am very impressed with the way they have things set up here. They have a very knowledgeable staff that truly cares about the residents living here. They find it very important to treat everyone with equality and to include the blind residents in all of their activities. They have a passion for the blind and want them to experience a seemingly “normal” life.
It’s been really cool watching how the residents go about their daily life. Things that seem so simple to us can be a big challenge for them. But I have never seen them get frustrated or upset. Not once. They all seem content and accepting of their disability. It has made me appreciate my vision more than ever before and I can’t imagine what life would be like without it. I know that if I were blind or had low-vision, I would want to be somewhere like St. Nicholas. I know I’d be in good hands here.
I am thankful for my time here in Georgetown working with St. Nicholas Home. I wish I could stay a little bit longer and learn even more. I have several memories that I will cherish for a very long time. I am no longer nervous to work with handicapped people. I now look at it as an opportunity to share the love of God with them and embrace them just as I would anyone else!
