Hello. I want to share a short story of mine. I hope it will inspire all the visually impaired people out there.

I admit that I’m not the best student when it comes to academic studies. However, when it comes to leadership programs, technology workshops, and music-related classes, I’m really passionate. I’ve been able to achieve what I have and pursue what I want because of my mum. She always supports me in everything I’m passionate about.

One day, or more precisely, last December, I attended an inclusive leadership program (one of the largest national programs run by the government) with my mum. When we arrived, all the participants, except for one 16-year-old girl, looked at me as if I had done something to upset them. My mum said they were staring at my white cane as I swung it around to get a better sense of my surroundings.

Well, this sort of thing happens to me whenever I go to a new place, so I wasn’t too surprised. My mum left to go back home since the program would last for three days. From there, things got worse. An unknown lady bumped into me intentionally and walked off as if nothing had happened. "Wait a minute, can’t you see I’m holding a white cane? It’s not possible you didn’t see me," I whispered to myself.

As I was trying to find a wall to guide me, the leader of the program yelled at me, telling me to hurry up or I’d be late for the first session. I walked in the direction of his voice.

"Are you going to hit me with that thing you’re carrying?" he asked. "Wait, what? I wasn’t planning to casually swing my white cane to hit someone! I need this to help me navigate. Didn’t my mother tell you a blind person would be joining this program?"

"Yeah, she did, but I wasn’t expecting a blind person to cause me this much trouble."

"How did you expect a blind person to behave?" I didn’t want to argue with the program leader, but I was too upset at the time to hold back. Didn’t he know that a visually impaired person either can’t see well or has completely lost their sight?

"It’s okay, sir. I’ll help him," the 16-year-old girl I mentioned earlier intervened.

They spoke in another language, possibly Mandarin, which I didn’t understand. But from their tone, it was clear they were having an argument. I just stood there, not knowing what to do. It was obvious I wasn’t welcome here.

Then I heard the heavy footsteps of the leader walking away. I wasn’t sure until the girl said, "He’s gone."

"I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause any trouble, and I haven’t even been here for an hour," I said.

"I’ve been assigned to assist you during this program. My name is Ms. Wilson, but you can call me Crystal. Everyone does."

"Thanks. I’m Nelson. Wait, wasn’t I supposed to be assisted by a man?" I didn’t mean to question her, but curiosity got the best of me.

"Yeah, it was supposed to be a man. But since no one wanted to take responsibility, I volunteered. Don’t worry, this area isn’t that big. I’m sure you’ll get used to it. By the way, can you tell me more about the blind community? What’s it like being blind?"

Her genuine interest surprised me. It was the first time I had met a sighted person, other than my mum, who was curious to learn about someone with a visual impairment.

So, everyone, don’t feel down or give up if someone says you’re useless because you’re blind. And remember, not everyone behaves horribly toward us. There are still good people out there.

Don’t let negative words be a reason to give up. Instead, treat them as encouragement to improve yourself and live a better life.