We still have to stay inside
“It’s completely absurd. Now, while everyone slowly gets their old lives back and people are allowed to go out again, there is a rule that says that old people, people with a disability, and we the blind have to remain indoors.” Lorena starts to laugh loudly, “Are we, the blind, more vulnerable because we don’t see the virus?”
Lorena Acula, a kanthari graduate from 2013, is the founder of “future Vision”.
She comes from the Philippines and runs a commune in Taguig City to integrate blind children and youth into regular schools. Since her childhood, Lorena is driven by questioning unnecessary limitations, specifically for the blind.
She writes: “As the youngest of six siblings, and the only blind person in the family, I can say that I had all the affection I needed. I always felt very much loved and cared for.”, But Poverty was the first limiting factor. “My brother should first finish his education and that meant we could not join the highschool… Whenever the teacher asked if anyone of us was interested to study in high school, I raised my hands. If only I could have raised my two feet as well just to show how interested I was, I surely would have done that!”
One day, an opportunity came to study in an inclusive high school in Manila. Her father was against it because at that time, Lorena’s eyesight became worse. He was worried about her and was firm in his decision not to send her so far away.
Lorena remembers the episode and smiles mischievously: “I convinced my father in my own way. I cried and rolled on the floor whining and pouting. And then I was jumping and clapping when my father was finally convinced to let me go! Hadn’t I cried so hard, I don’t think I would be in a place where I am right now!”
Today, she lives together with 12 blind children and youth in a small house, in Taguig city, which is part of the greater Metro Manila
The children come from remote areas where they don’t have access to schooling.
They cook and eat together; they learn how to clean and how to run a household.
And when the children come back home from school, they are assisted with their homework.
Lorena knows how important it is to give the right guidance and additional training: “high School for me was not easy. I could not participate in all activities. I really didn’t perform so well, especially not in Math and Science.”
She learned from the challenges she had and makes sure that her beneficiaries have all the help they need to perform well in school.
“We have children in all different schools. The little ones, the 5 years old are soon going to first grade. The oldest is in University. But doing well in school is not everything. It is as important to live independently.”
After her own graduation from high school, she was almost blind. Thus, she returned back home again. But this home turned into a prison. “I never had freedom to do anything in the house by myself. Everything was snatched from my hands, they wouldn’t let me do any chores and would you believe this; Even until eighteen my sister had to bathe me, horrible isn’t it?”
No one had ever trained her to cook, and to clean, and one day she started her silent protest and cooked some noodles. “When everybody went out, food was always prepared and placed on the table. I remember one time; my parents and sisters went somewhere and I was all alone at home. I was told not to touch anything in the kitchen especially the stove, but the food they had left me was so dry so I wanted to add some soup. I boiled water after I found instant noodles. Actually, it was my first time to light a stove because I was never permitted to do so. I felt delighted to eat what I had cooked for the first time. Intentionally, I did not wash all the utensils and when they arrived, everybody was surprised. Of course, I didn’t get applauded, but I didn’t care, at least I now had tasted a bit of independence without the sighted controlling me.”
Even though she had a white cane, her family didn’t like her to use it and always asked her to hide it. She could only use it away from home. All in all, she did succeed in her own way, using crying, cooking, and walking with a cane as acts of protest. This paved her way starting her own organisation.
“These children also have to jump out of their comfort zone and being independent in all aspects.”
“And what about mobility training?” I asked.
“Minors are not allowed to be trained, they say, there is too much traffic in the streets. And now, during the lockdown, we are all restricted. Even going out to get groceries, no blind person is allowed to walk by themselves. That is discrimination! But my neighbors tell me, it is too better not to say anything about this.”
From the international press I learned that the Philippines, on a global scale had by far the most rigid Lockdown rules. While disobedient persons here in India are occasionally beaten up with a bamboo cane when being caught on the street without a pass, President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines is considering to even shoot lockdown sinners, just like drug dealers.
Lorena and her beneficiaries are safe at home. But, with or without crisis, she always lives at an existential minimum. The entire house with two staff members and 12 children is financed through her teacher’s salary only. To receive funding, she would need a website that informs about her important activities and donation possibilities. Raising funds locally is nearly impossible, because everyone is now concerned about their own basic survival.
Challenging times for so many people, but being blind, you get a few extra burdens packed on your plate…