Mother Love Conquers Everything
    Ji Peng-fong, studying at the second grade of Taichung Municipal Taichung Special Education School was diagnosed with Down syndrome three days after he was born. The single mother, Wu Yu-mei, was shocked and afraid to face the reality.
    Ji was weak and sick when little. Born with strabismus, astigmatism, amblyopia, ventricular septal defect, and intellectual disability, he was not walking when three and speaking when four. It even took him twelve years to recognize the colors of traffic light.
    In school, he was isolated and discriminated against by peers. However, he never gives up himself, trying hard to learn diabolo, ocarina, electronic keyboard, swimming, and running to witness the value of life!
    The greatest helper for Ji to go upstream is his mother, Wu Yu-mei, who takes care of her son in daytime and works to make a living at night. She shoulders the responsibility to look after her children and fights against breast cancer alone as a role model to live in hope.
    Ji not only won the first place for the diverse performance of diabolo at the preliminary in central Taiwan of the 9^th “National Talent Competition for the Mentally Retarded,” the first place for breaststroke 200 m in National Championship for the Physically and Mentally Disabled” in 2016, and the first place for 100 meters on the school anniversary sports day of Zhong Ming Junior High School in 2017. He also got the electronic keyboard street artist certificate and 11 ocarina street artist certificates and won the first place in the junior high school group of President Educational Award.
    After becoming a member of Down Syndrome Da Qi Ocarina Orchestra, Ji has participated in more than 100 charitable actively—sending love to campus, sharing life education in remote townships, and sending love to the homes for the senior citizens, the disabled, and the orphans.
    Therefore, Ji, brought up in poverty and adversity, turns mother love into power. Through the darkness in a single-parent family, he grows stronger in hardship, strives to overcome obstacles, and creates the unlimited possibilities in life, winning the first places in the competitions of diabolo, swimming, and 100 meters. He specially cherishes the opportunities to pass love on at home and abroad, inspiring life with his life, giving love without fear, spreading positive energy, and proving that everyone is born with a mission in life. No wonder, as a child with Down syndrome from a single-parent family, he wins so many first places.
Unknown Life
    Ji Peng-fong, now studying at the second grade of Taichung Municipal Taichung Special Education School, was diagnosed with Down syndrome three days after his birth.
    His mother was frightened and shocked, especially when she thought of the child’s future. She felt sorrow and pain and often cried her heart out.
     Growing up on the barren mountain of Zhongliao, Nantou, Ji’s mother experienced and survived all kinds of hardships, but she still couldn’t accept her child’s uniqueness at that time.
    Even with perseverance, the mother couldn’t bear the blow and fell into the unprecedented despair with dull eyes.
    Parents always expect a child full of hopes.
    Parents always expect their child to be the pillar of the country, social elite, or an ordinary happy office worker.
    However, the result of the doctor’s diagnosis turned every hope into nothing.
    The child was going to be one month old. The mother had to collect her broken heart.
     As a strong mother, she actively looked for the special education institutes and brought Ji to the early intervention and rehabilitation, shouldering the responsibility of a mother.
    As Ji’s early intervention sessions were in daytime and the family financial burden was heavy, his mother had to work the graveyard shift with the higher pay so that there would be more resources for Ji and she could accompany him in the rehabilitation sessions.
Miracle from God
    In the infancy, Ji was weak and sick with strabismus, astigmatism, amblyopia, ventricular septal defect, and intellectual disability.
    Every step on the way of rehabilitation was difficult. Despite the little improvement, Ji’s family still spared no effort to seek more medical assistance such as Qigong and physical therapy.
    When Ji was three, a cold turned into pneumonia. The weak physical condition even caused severe pulmonary edema.
    With the tortured weak body, Ji had to be hospitalized in the ICU. The doctor even issued the critical condition notice once …
     His mother was helpless and heartbroken at that time, praying the God for a miracle to save Ji. She would like to endure all pains for him!
    The God seemed to answer the mother’s prayer—Ji miraculously turned peril into safety and survive the difficulty in life.
Educational Challenge
    Life is full of challenges and difficulties.
    At the kindergarten age, Ji studied for one year in the affiliated kindergarten of Taichung Special School for the Students with Hearing Impaired and transferred to study in the inclusive kindergarten of Taichung Special Education School for two years.
    It was expected that Ji could complete the kindergarten education successfully. However, the learning gap between him and other children of the same age was getting large!
    He didn’t make any improvement in oral expression, which made his mother worried about whether he should go to elementary school or delay school entry?
     After some twists and turns, Ji’s mother consulted the speech therapist, and the suggestion was to start with word recognition!
     Afterwards, Ji started to read the Mandarin phonetic symbols and even knew how to spell.
     Such good news was indeed the encouragement to his mother!
     Therefore, his mother had more confidence in accompanying him when he kept practicing. In Ji’s process of learning, she also realized that there was no shortcut for a special child. To see the child achieve something, “the only way is practice, work hard, and work harder.”
Live One More Day
    Then Ji was admitted to the resource class of Shang An Elementary School, Xitun District, Taichung City.
    The purpose of a resource class is well-established, but there are also shortcomings.
     After Ji entered the second grade, the class was rearranged and the homeroom teacher was changed. The classmates at the first and second grades were kind and lovely. However, as he entered the higher grades, the self-consciousness of the peers gradually increased.
    At that time, due to overwork and insufficient sleep every day from working the graveyard shift for a long term, Ji’s mother had the bad physical condition—breast cancer!
    The panic and torture came to her mind again. Her concern was what Ji should do if she left the world?
    Ji’s mother made a quick decision to face it bravely and live one more day for the physically and mentally challenged child. She determined to undergo the surgery. Only by doing so would she have the opportunity to keep accompanying her son in facing the future life path.
Impact from Peers
    After Ji recovered his health, his mother chose to be the parent volunteer at school and assist with the extracurricular activities of the class to understand more about Ji’s learning environment.
    On the one hand, she wanted to relieve the homeroom teacher’s burden. On the other hand, she hoped to understand Ji’s learning at school at a close distance.
    She didn’t expect that Ji was isolated and discriminated against in the class.
    Once, in the classroom Ji’s mother borrowed the communication book from a classmate and intended to teach Ji how to sign and write on the communication book.
     After Ji’s mother returned the communication book to the classmate, he threw it backward from the front row!
    Ji and his mother were shocked and still haunted by that incident until now.
    The homeroom teacher designated a helper to assist Ji, but it didn’t work well.
    Not understanding how to deal with such situation well and worrying that too much reaction would make it harder for Ji to fit in, she only guided and consoled his son privately.
Wave Goodbye to the Darkness
    At the sixth grade, the class went to Tsou Ma Lai Farm for the graduation trip.
    At night, the school held a campfire party for the graduates. The classmates happily held hands in a circle.
    But no one was willing to hold Ji’s hand. His mother took his hand immediately and helped him interact with the classmates.
    However, Ji kept asking his mother anxiously: “Do we have class today?” Out of fear, Ji hid himself instead of entering the classroom.
    Then his mother realized how unfriendly the learning environment was. But the mother chose neither to speak up nor to complain, just letting the last part of elementary school life come to an end …
Help Others Happily s Make His Way with Diabolo
    Ji studied in the special education class in the affiliated junior high school of Chungming Senior high School, which enabled him to fit in the group life successfully.
    A classmate with the rare disease had a mental age of about five years old. Ji was so kind as to help him brush teeth and wash face every day, protecting and looking after him.
    Through Ji’s trait of being kind and helping others happily, the professional special education teachers, and the happy learning environment, he regained the bright smiles.
   At the third grade, seeing his elder sister practicing diabolo, he often imitated her when his sister took a rest. Afterwards, he gradually developed the interest and joined the diabolo society.
    In junior high school, to extend the developing interest and confidence, Ji’s mother searched online for Coach He Zhi-ming’s information and contacted him.
    Understanding Ji’s special condition and the difficulty of eye-hand coordination, the coach was willing to have a try!
    Ji finally had the opportunity to overcome the visual disability and made his way. He even got two street artist certificates.
    He won the first place for the diverse performance of diabolo at the preliminary in central Taiwan of the 9^th “National Talent Competition for the Mentally Retarded.”
Ocarina Mentor’s Assistance s 11 Street Artist Certificates
     At the fifth grade of elementary school, Ji came across Mr. Lin Qi-tong in the elevator when he went to the cognition class at Down Syndrome Foundation.
    Mr. Lin encouraged Ji to join the ocarina class together. His mother also accompanied him to learn to play the ocarina.
    To hold an ocarina and practice Do Re Mi in a short piece looked simple, but it was so difficult for Ji with the limited cognition!
    At the start, he found it interesting because the ocarina class was full of freshness. But, the teacher gradually had more requirements for the pitch and full cover of the holes. It was not easy at all for a child with Down syndrome by using his fat and short fingers!
     He would feel frustrated whenever there were bottlenecks. However, Mr. Lin patiently taught the children and believed it is not that they can’t learn but that they learn slowly and forget quickly.
    Ji’s mother believed that since he could learn the Mandarin phonetic symbols in kindergarten, he would surely make it with more persistence!
    As Ji’s motto goes, “The only way is practice, work hard, and work harder.”
    After the hard work for six years, Ji has 11 street artist certificates of ocarina at present.
With Love, Without Fear s First Place Winner
    Ji learns to overcome the obstacles every day and face the daily life bravely and optimistically. With the active and positive attitude, he was recommended to be shortlisted for President Educational Award and won the first place of junior high school group as expected!
    Ji’s mother said it was the proudest moment for her to see her son receive the honor from the president at the Presidential Office Building after accompanying her son without regrets in the past more than ten years. At the same time, she also expressed her gratitude to every benefactor in Ji’s life—the teachers, classmates, and everyone who helped Ji.
Cross the Hurdle s Spread Positive Energy
    In 2016, Ji became a trainee of Down Syndrome Da Qi Ocarina Orchestra established by Mr. Lin Qi-tong. In 2018, he turned into an official member and participated in the charitable performances of the orchestra.
    The orchestra sends love to the campuses of elementary schools, junior high schools, senior high schools, universities, and remote townships for the sharing of life education. At the same time, they show concern for the homes for the senior citizens, the disabled, and the orphans and even pass love internationally from Taiwan to Japan and China.
    At a young age, Ji has devoted himself to over hundred charitable activities. With Mr. Lin’s encouragement, he also made brave attempts to get 11 ocarina street artists certificates.
    In the places such as Snake Kiln, Nantou, and Tianwei Highway Garden, Changhua, he stands on his life stage and becomes a street artist, not only donating his earnings to the charity groups for many times but also making his own living and supporting his mother!
    Growing up in adversity, getting stronger and working hard in hardship, Ji has developed the positive energy to cross the hurdle and created the unlimited possibilities in life, becoming the best model of life inspiring life.
 

 

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