Journal 38: Winter Holiday

In this winter break, I had one of the most mesmerizing experiences I’ve ever got throughout my whole life, and that all started in Yilan.

I partook an Eden foundation program to serve disable and down’s syndrome patients in the Yilan Home of the Disabled for a week. At first, I reckoned this program as another typical volunteering program. However, such belief vanished immediately at the moment we stepped into its main campus. A flock of aging people who looked somewhat diffident and their clothes looked dilapidated just dawdled about on the hallways. I was petrified, standing there for at least 30 seconds not moving. Although I have read posts and information about these kinds of people, it’s still a great shock when I actually saw them through my eyes and touched them with my fingers. Saying they were normal must be a lie at that moment. Then a veteran volunteer led me to a convalescent who is of relatively good condition and told me that I would be responsible to him for the next 7 days. His name is Guan Shu Jan. He needs a wale chair for movement. I touched his hand; his skins felt like rubber band that has been continuously used for hours. I looked at his face, wrinkles sprouted from the corners of eyes and months. (To be continued.)