As the trees put forth new leaves and beautiful flowers begin to blossom, the best season of the year comes again. On a warm and bright Sunday in this spring, staff of AFD China Intellectual Property Law Office once again came to the Chenguang Rehabilitation Center and volunteered their services.
In 2019, we raised funds to cover Little Zhuang Zhuang’s rehabilitation, living and accommodation expenses of the whole year. Caring about his rehabilitation, this time we paid a visit to this 8-year-old little boy and brought him and other children some milk, books, schoolbags, toys, fruits, balloons and color pens, etc..
In the activity room of the Center, we saw many familiar faces. Those children have made remarkable achievements in their rehabilitation. In just one year, the child who once relied entirely on wheelchairs is now able to walk with the assistance of walking aids, the child who was not able to stand upright can now walk even as fast as normal children, and the little girl who loved learning still likes to immerse herself in the world of books and practice her reading and writing, though it takes her dozens of times longer than it would take a normal kid to read and write. The children here are enthusiastic and have various hobbies. Some of them like cars, some like to blow balloons, some are obsessed with painting, some like singing, and some enjoy doing sports. They have a great desire to explore the unknown and often ask unexpected questions which make us overwhelmed.
During the 2-hour visit, we accompanied the children to blow balloons, ride bikes, do handwork tell stories, and sing songs together, etc.. Some of our colleagues’ kids who came to the Center together with us brought their own toys and favorite snacks to share with the children here. In the Center, older children have been able to give some help to their teachers. When some naughty boys "bully" others, they will immediately stop them. The Dean and the teachers told us that these children seldom have the opportunity to see other people, and thus they are eager to have companions. We can feel deeply about their desire to communicate with others and their kindness to and affection for every one of us.
Rehabilitation training is boring, and a single move often needs to be repeated for many times. It takes a lot of hard work for both the children and the teachers. Since its establishment ten years ago, the Chenguang Rehabilitation Center has helped a large number of children and families regain their hope. With the continuous improvement of their living conditions, now the children have more opportunities to show their talents, such as performing a play, arranging a painting exhibition, streaming a live show, etc.. Seeing the bright and cheerful smiles of the children, we have great respect for the teachers who have been taking care of these children as considerately as their mothers do. It is their selfless dedication that makes these autistic children open themselves up to the world, face up to the injustice of fate and be able to live a more meaningful life. Compared to the dedication of the teachers, what we did for the children is nothing to speak of, but just as the saying goes, many a little makes a mickle, so we believe in the strength of persistence and will continue to do what we can to help these children. We sincerely hope that these children can grow up happily in the big family of the rehabilitation center and have a wonderful future of their own.
Charity is never confined to a specific manner. For people living in poverty, we can donate money to help them, while for others like these children, in addition to money, we can also devote some time to accompanying them. Sometimes, time is more valuable than money. We hope that our words and deeds can influence more and more people to join in charity activities. Joining together, we can use the strength of our society to help these children build a bright future, and make them feel love, warmth and hope despite the hardships and misfortunes in their life.
During these years, such activities have received great support from our colleagues. They not only participated themselves but also brought their spouses and kids to join in. Through such activities, their kids get to know the life and thoughts of disabled children, and realize how precious health is; they start to understand that disabled children are no different from healthy people and each life is of the same value and shall be treasured and respected, and they also learn that our care and companionship could bright warmth and happiness to others. As they start to feel the power of giving, the seeds of love are quietly rooted and sprouting in their little hearts.
A total of 20 volunteers participated in this heart-warming trip. Taking this opportunity, we would like to thank them for sharing their spare time to join this charity activity. As the saying goes, penny and penny laid up will be many. If every one does a small act of kindness, we believe these small acts together will make a big difference. AFD China will continue to participate in such charity activities and we hope you could also join us to pass on our love to those in need.