The volunteering experience
View(s):Meet Ayanthi. She’s a 29 year old student in the English class I voluntarily conduct for teachers of special needs children. She’s tall, has a sweet smile that lights up her face, a very serious face when she’s involved in a lesson, and she dresses impeccably: blue earrings for her blue top, hair neatly pulled back in a low ponytail, and a watch she pays strict attention to. She’s a keen student, asking me for situational lessons: English at the bank, mall, etc.
She is also the mother of a 5 year old Piumi, a child with Cerebral Palsy. Cerebral Palsy is an umbrella term for various conditions affecting motor neurons that can take root in a child from anywhere between pregnancy to infancy. It can also cause mental retardation and learning disabilities but not necessarily. So quite a few of these individuals are intellectually fully functional but inside bodies that won’t move the way they want.
Ayanthi comes to class a little late after feeding her daughter spoonful by spoonful of mushy assorted vegetables. Piumi needs a nap after lunch but Ayanthi won’t let that compromise her opportunity to learn. On her left arm she rocks Piumi to sleep while her right hand composes the essay I’ve asked them to write. The slightest change in rhythm in her left hand causes Piumi to wail but she’s soon appeased when Ayanthi resumes the rhythm.
She works from 9am – 2pm, 6 days a week, and attends my class twice a week. Amidst all this, she is only away from her daughter during the two hours a week she has physiotherapy. There doesn’t seem to be a man in this picture of two.
My heart broke when Piumi wailed for the first time in class. I knew I could never be of help to Ayanthi – I can’t cradle Piumi while Ayanthi studies, I can’t make studying any easier for her. It humbles me every day that I have the honour of teaching someone like Ayanthi. Anything else I could be doing in those hours I volunteer could not compare with the impact that teaching Ayanthi makes on my life. This is why I volunteer.
This article was written by a Stitch volunteer. For more information visit ww.stitchmovement.com or find us on Facebook or Twitter (StitchMovement)
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