2017年10月18日星期三

Casual thought



When I first entered this unusual rehabilitation center and saw these old patients, their hands and feet almost disabled, walking like the wrapped-feet women of the Tang dynasty, slowly and swayingly. Some of the faces have been lethal corroded with face deformation. They are taciturn, only with long sigh when first met them, like they are not ordinary people of the community, how can I live with them in the days ahead? Looks scary to people but in the days after, what I see in these patients are a dedicated heart struggling for life. Although their hands and feet are not good, they use these numb hands and feet to work continuously without any stop. Their tenacious perseverance and tenacity for hard work are our admiration and comfort.

Like patient Wan Xiao Yan who was infected at age of 23, and suffered with shrinking and deformation of left hand and face. He cannot stand the alienation of his family and neighbors and hence came to this center when it was first opened. He is very intelligent and very smart, in his past time he likes flowers, and will repair trees and haircut the flowers with a broken scissors with his disabled hands. Slowly he got familiar with the barber, and started to practice barbering his brothers in the courtyard after buying a haircut scissors and utensils. Nowadays with his haircut skill he became our professional hairdresser of our rehabilitation center. He also served as the gardener of the center. He is very modest, and whenever someone says he is good, he always responds, "I'm still learning".

There are several elders who cut some reeds and weeds in the lake, to weave basket, mats and other things to earn some money. Some will plant some kind of cotton broom seeds in spring, and when ripe in October, use their disrespectful hands to make a broom so as to sell for a few change. They are not lack of money, but just do not let themselves idle.


About 20 days ago there is a patient named Xiao Jun who is a humpback with a strange temper and walk inconveniently. We have to deliver every meal to him and get water to clean the dish. Nevertheless he still complains about the sisters and sometimes even give us tantrums trouble. Suddenly he felt intense stomach pain and wanted to eat the noodles. "Because rice is faithful served in every meal.” So we give him noodles to eat instead.

We often talk heart-to-heart with them, only to know that each of them have a lot of bitterness due to the bacteria of leprosy. Some of them just finished high school, ready to take test for university and found infected with leprosy because of physical discomfort. Once you heard of this disease, all your qualifications, identity, money, and status seems to be totally lost in an instant; all the dreams are gone with the cloud and mist, then comes the idea of committing suicide in the river. One day a patient gave me a talk about his experience with burst of tears, and finally he said: “This leprosy disease is ruining my life. I was the school's top students, if not this disease, I may also be a professor of an university.

For the patients, their greatest pain and frustration is the alienation from their family and loved ones as well as discrimination from the others. What is even not acceptable is the long-term spiritual pressure. Seeing them through a pair of helpless eyes, one can know that each has a lot of bitterness, homelessness, broken family and death. Each has gone through such painful experience. They did not want to live along life, just live a day at a time! They do not know whether there is a second half of life a different experience in each conversation. Now with the service and help from our sisters, they feel very happy to live.

There is an old man that told me the conditions now are better than before and even they are getting older, they live like 20 years younger! We heard with a kind of comfort. They did not want to live before, and now says their leisure lifes too fast. Oh! thanks to God! - Thanks to the government for their care! - Also thanks to all the friends that console and care!

2017年8月22日星期二

Life of elder





There was an old man with sudden osteoporosis. The pain was very powerful hence the head of the village head quickly hit 120 to call the ambulance. I accompanied her to Dechang County hospital. After a through inspection, then there was a drip injection until the end of nine o’clock. The pain lasts for three days without any sign of reduction, therefore on the night of the third day, I went to see the doctor-in-charge to re-consider the case, the new drug has a curative effect and the pain of the elder is reduced. Finally she can slowly sleep. In the morning after, I bought some food for breakfast. After eating the elder chatted with me about her life: At the age of seven, she studied for half a year before her mother died and the schooling interrupted. At eleven, her sister also died. At twenty-three years old she suffered from leprosy. When her father also infected with leprosy, both of them came to rehabilitation center for people affected by leprosy. Unfortunately, she was later suffered from rheumatoid arthritis, and became almost like a useless person, with pain all over except the eyebrows and the hair. Her father died in 1998. We live without living, and die without dying…such life is so miserable!


I listened with a heavy heart and do not know how to comfort her. But still said to her: there will be result if you have confidence in God and rely on the help of God for a good treatment. And she said, "There used to be a lot of people farming in the land outside. Since coming of the lepers, they have all gone away until the sisters are willing to live in and the former people come back to continue farming. Her greatest joy now is to call the rehabilitation center her home, to became the children of God, no more emptiness with the belief in God, and feel with the dependance that there is hope. With the help and care of the priest, sisters and benefactors, today life is a reality."


The elder is so simple and observant that she can feel the love of God through our slightest care and also from the priest and benefactors. How pleased it is ah!


2017年6月29日星期四

Learning for Better Services





Learning is a very interesting thing, and can be a topic with meaning of a mission. No matter what kind of services one can constantly learn and practice, while improving the quality and attitude of the service, and most importantly to self-purification along the way. As in November 8, six nuns from different rehabilitation centers under our organization, who were sent to Yá Xī to learn from Fr. Tonetto how to take better care of ulcers. First of... all is to understand the ulcer is the body becoming numb due to lost of feeling, hence the patient do not have conscious to protect one's body. Also limb deforms because of drug effect that hurt the nerves. Leprosy is an infectious disease that spread through saliva, blood, and air. The only “drug" to prevent the infection is to attach importance to nutrition that enhance the body's immunity.

Ulcers Care: first of all to take into account measures that prevent trauma is to observe for the appropriate shoes. Most ulcers are caused by pressure, friction and scalding on the feet and buttocks. We also specially learned from the priest and the workers how to do insoles, so that when we return to our own rehabilitation center for the elderly we can make appropriate insoles that fits the shape of their feet. These will help ulcers heal.

In particular, we also studied the use of aseptic cloth. When I returned to the rehabilitation center I started practicing everything I have learned. So every day I started to do wound disinfection, cleaning, applying drug and bandaging with aseptic cloth for the elderly people. Sure enough I can see the wound becoming smaller day by day, and the edlerly becoming with a cheerful mood to see their own wounds become smaller and smaller. From their smiles I feel the trauma of their hearts have been cured. Also our team works together with patience and perseverance. The most important thing is confidence. When we try hard to work with God, the more you pay, the more you feel joy and tranquility.

2017年2月8日星期三

Breaking One's Limitations

Sharing of small story by sisters working at the Ricci Social Service center for people affected by leprosy.

On Christmas and New Year's Day, the nuns planned one month ahead of schedule to rehearse programs for the rehabilitated ones, because every year the Hanzhong Central Centre provides a variety of programs, and the rehabilitated are rarely involved. This year the sisters advocated the personal participation of the rehabilitated people in the celebration of cultural activities. Sisters took the Yangko, Square Dance, Allegro, comic and comedy information, and went out to find suitable candidates. However, their excitement was greeted with cool response as they either escaped or looked for a variety of reasons to reject the invitation. The sisters came back with disappointment.




We also understand that since they have been diagnosed with leprosy, they have been abandoned by their families and discriminated against by society. This has become a lingering shadow of their lingering mind. In order to allow them to build self-confidence and eliminate their fears, the sisters mustered courage to go out and find the potential actors again. When the sisters went into the sick patient area, there was a group of young people. The sisters went to each door to invite, giving them mental support and arranged the   rehearsal program to be hosted in their hospital. In fact, their lonely heart is eager to sympathy, friendship and affection. The sisters went to accompany, support, appreciate and encourage them every afternoon from 3 to 6 o'clock for the middle-aged yangko dance rehearsal, and 7 to 9 pm for the young people rehearsing square dance. The rehabilitated people were all in high spirits, and the program was smoothly carried out.








Applauses and cheers added to their self-confidence, so that they broke through the deep self-limitations set in their hearts, lifted the chains tying them, and regained the inner freedom and joy!

2017年1月18日星期三

Below are the reflections of Sr. Liu


Seeing the road in front of our door today, brought back my memory of seeing the same road in December 21, 2003.




At that time the road is amidst the river. With Yunnan spring weather all year round, the flowers and trees along the roadside grow lushly, making it difficult to find the road. Walking along often have scraping clothes, with long worms, mice, birds, crickets as the companion. In rainy days, the small ditches from the mountains gather water into the river, and walking is like a boat against the current, making it very difficult, and sometimes there is no way out. I remember one time our house guests (including a priest) had to go back early, but the river water was up to the thighs.  Fortunately the dumb son of a rehabilitation person carried us on his back to go across the river, sending the guests to the car. We usually travel in and out of the rehabilitation center by walk, for example buying vegetables for the rehabilitation people. There is no road, no car, no phone, we have to walk 15 Km to the road to catch a public transport. Road is for the people to walk, and everyone has no choice but walking.



In January 2014, we saw the road being built along the hillside, a winding winding narrow road, but you can ride a car. I am surprised there are roads here now, thanks to God, and also to Ricci Social Service (RSS) which supplies the rehabilitation center with a car. Now we can help the rehabilitation people to buy food, send them to see a doctor, do a lot of things they need, all thanks to the contribution by the benefactors of RSS. Every two weeks we will take the rehabilitation people to Shiping to buy food, meat and daily necessities, because there are 30 people in the center that cannot take care of themselves, including eating, drinking, and toiletting. There are 46 people that can do their daily necessities, every time when we go out these old people will give 2 yuan, 5 yuan to buy things for them. I was using a book to write all the things that need to buy, and running the city non-stop to get them till sunset. Every time we fill the car full. There are several times we bought too much and overloaded the car. Traveling on the public road is fine, but on the winding path at the steepest place, the car suddenly turn off and started to slide back down. I was frightened , I shouted loudly asking God to save us, the car slowly stopped. I started up again fiercely added the throttle finally came up, thanked be to God. Sometimes the elderly have to get down car so I can drive the car up the slope, because the road is narrow and slippery during raining days, hence difficult to travel especially with debris flow down the hillside.




On one occasion when I picked up the priest, he said, "When you see the director, tell him that the priest says, “Fr. Fu said that the road was becoming narrower and narrower.”  I replied: “When the director came, Fr. Fu said the road is getting more and more narrow, and what to do?”. The Director promised "We repair."

Today we are so happy to see the white cement road in front of our door! The elders are sitting in a wheelchair every day to play on the road, watching the mountains, watching the water… there are walking exercise, leisure walk etc., they are so much happier. We get more convenient access, and are not afraid of landslides, not to mention shopping, we can drive those rehab people who would like to go out to buy their own needs. They can also feel good to have a road, and experience that they are not abandoned, but live in the moment to be taken care of, really feel alive in the happiness and thanksgiving.