Warm & Love Home：Never Give In to Destiny

Warm & Love Home works with people with disabilities in the rural areas in China by means of online chat groups. The online chat groups give them courage and respond for their needs.

The living conditions in the village were poor so my mum did not go and see a doctor. I got a high fever when I was 6 months old, and my superstitious grandmother did not allow my parents to take me to the hospital, instead, she cut a yellow paper figure and put it beneath my pillow. The high fever damaged my brain, which resulted in mixed cerebral palsy. My body could not keep its balance, and I could not walk. 

Mum was cursed and looked down upon by relatives, friends, and neighbors because of me so she had to stay with me at home. My dad had to work for the whole family, in order to pay my medical bills. Sometimes, we could not afford daily necessities.

I was not able to go to school, so my mum taught me words at home. I like embroidery and I learned to do cross-stitch and bead embroidery with feet. I don't remember how many times my toes have been pierced. Later my works were selected to be shown in a provincial competition, and then they were chosen to attend the World Expo. I would like to let people know I am not a useless person. I want my parents to be proud of me.

Now I have found opportunities via internet. Since 2012, I began to use Qzone and Micro-Blog to help deliver helpseek messages. In order to provide better help, I started a QQ Group for disabled people. Our group received attention and support from more and more people. Now the group has 200 members- we started with only 20! Some of these people are unable to move at all, they have to use their nose or mouth to hold a chopstick to type, or they have to seek help from their disabled friends. Some of these people have hemophilia, and some of them were disabled by an accident, but could not afford treatment. Some people experienced family violence or were dumped by their spouses. I feel pain and sorrow whenever I hear these situations.

Latest work of Haizhen—the luck embroidered by a pair of strong feet

I think of this group as my destiny. I think I am lucky to know so many disabled people. There are so many people that have even more difficult lives than me. At least, I have a family who cares about me; I do not always have to suffer in pain; I can sit up and do things with my feet. The mutual help among disabled people and their continued persistence always moves me. I would like to do something for people who are tortured by illness because I hope they can seek opportunities from the internet and achieve independence. We seek support for people who need medical help or are in difficult circumstances. We also recommend disabled people to do part-time jobs or to display handmade crafts. 

Our QQ group provided an internet platform for disabled people to help each other. I grew up being loved by my parents, so I hope I can help people and pass on the love among disabled people. With more and more people contacting me, I hope I can help them. Sometimes, I felt helpless, because we only have a few core members and this is not a paid job. Getting enough money for the internet, power, and PC maintenance are problems for us. I hope more NGOs will notice us and give us help. Almost all our members are disabled persons from all over the country. They are not able to come out and help, so there’s no opportunity or possibility to cooperate. We hope more people pay attention to them, giving them love and warmth, as well as seeking a way for them to develop.

Original article written by Haizhen Wang, translated by Maggie Li, edited by Yanyan Zhang