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Home>Service> Awardees of Fervent Global Love of Lives Award> 19th Fervent Global Love of Lives Award 2016> Sunshine Ingenuous Angel – Yi-Jia Zhou
Sunshine Ingenuous Angel – Yi-Jia Zhou
[Return Sorrow to Heaven and Earth ‧ 18 Busking Permits]
As long as there are opportunities and positive attitude to affirm me, despite continued and repeated practice, I am willing to make every endeavor to learn and give performance, simply because I smile more dazzlingly.
                                                 —Yi-Jia Zhou
Return Sorrow to Heaven and Earth
        Among the artists sparing no effort to give performance, it is difficult for Yi-Jia Zhou, who plays the ocarina and dances, not to capture attention. In fact, in various performance venues for buskers, you can see her play the ocarina and hear her brisk tone. Although she is a patient with Down syndrome, she can stop people by music to listen to her touching life story.
        She came to this world with blessings of numerous friends and relatives, with everything being so perfect. However, two months after birth, in a cold, she was diagnosed by the doctor with varied symptoms of suspected Down syndrome, including the relatively large distance between eyes, easily putting her tongue out, single transverse palmar crease and saddle nose, which were caused by the nondisjunction of the human chromosome 21. The children with such symptoms suffer from growth retardation, severe mental retardation and congenital heart disease. Then, the doctor suggested Mrs. Zhou to take Yi-Jia to receive re-examination in large hospitals. After Yi-Jia was diagnosed as the baby with Down syndrome, Mrs. Zhou was heart-aching and all in tears.
        Though she was sorrowful and did not want to face the fact, what was coming would come and she had to move forward. Therefore, Mrs. Zhou had no choice but to accept the fact and changed her mindset. To enable Yi-Jia to shine in her own stage of life, Mrs. Zhou began to develop Yi-Jia's ability of daily living and independent learning. Ocarina is the accomplishment she is most proud of. Now, Yi-Jia puts on performance in Nantou Service Area every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and in Taichung Calligraphy Greenway on Sunday afternoon. During the performance, the audience speak highly of her and give enthusiastic response. The more people watch her performance and the more rapturous the applause is, the more enthusiastically Yi-Jia dances and plays the Ocarina and the more confident her performance is. She witnesses returning sorrow to heaven and earth, and filling the world with happiness, so she is worthy of "Sunshine Ingenuous Angel". Among the 2459 nominees for the medal, Yi-Jia Zhou has been award the 19th Global Fervent Love of Lives Medal by the Chou Ta-kuan Foundation.   
The Fact ─ Face Bravely
        Yi-Jia Zhou two months after birth, in a cold, she was diagnosed by the doctor with varied symptoms of suspected Down syndrome, including the relatively large distance between eyes, easily putting her tongue out, single transverse palmar crease and saddle nose, which were caused by the nondisjunction of the human chromosome 21. The children with such symptoms suffer from growth retardation, severe mental retardation and congenital heart disease. Then, the doctor suggested Mrs. Zhou to take Yi-Jia to receive re-examination in large hospitals. After Yi-Jia was diagnosed as the baby with Down syndrome, Mrs. Zhou was heart-aching and all in tears. Mrs. Zhou did not want to face this fact like a bolt from the blue, so she spent two years like a walking corpse. But when faced with the fact, she still needed to face it bravely, since after all, life had to go on. Therefore, for the child's future, Yi-Jia's parents began to read a wide range of books and coverage concerning the babies with Down syndrome, and stay in touch with physicians. They received correct guidance in respect of food, clothing, living, transportation, education and entertainment, and repeated and continuous training. Toilsome as the training was, her parents had infinite gratitude and appreciation when seeing Yi-Jia made progress every day.
        Mrs. Zhou took six-month old Yi-Jia to attend early treatment and education institutions to receive early rehabilitation treatment, intellectual development, sensory integration training and cognition. There were professional occupational therapists in the institutions. Their patient guidance profoundly impressed parents.
        Later, when she was five years old, she entered the Shi Fang Center in Dakeng, Taichung. The environment there is quiet and the center is engaged in admitting special children and children with multiple handicaps. Thanks to the teachers' patient guidance and encouragement, she made rapid progress, including living skills, intellectual development and interpersonal relationships, which proved that the babies with Down syndrome can be educated. Children in Shi Fang Center give innocent and lovely laughters like the angels sent by the God. As long as we actively teach and patiently accompany them, each innocent face will be a wonderful presentation of life.
Music Enlightenment ─ Find a Way out from Praise
        At the age of 14, Yi-Jia started to be exposed to music. Since she is a special child, the songs she learns is limited and cannot surmount study obstacles, but love of never giving her up from her parents and teachers causes her to love music from then on. Apart from studying music, Mrs. Zhou also let her learn dancing. With dancing and music, her life will be exceedingly colorful. After returning home, she will perform a dance, and her parents are her most loyal fans. In her grandparents', cousins and grandparents become her best audience. Never is she never bored with it, and performances dances one after another.
        Six years ago, through the introduction of Taichung Down Syndrom Foundation, Mrs. Zhou knew an ocarina teacher Mr. Chi-tung Lin, who is a volunteer of the Foundation and expert in instructing the babies with Down syndrome to play the ocarina. Therefore, Mr. Chi-tung Lin became the first ocarina teacher teaching of Yi-Jia. In a spirit of selfless love, Mr. Lin freely teaches this group of students with disabilities. The arduous process is ineffable. In addition to intelligence and communication barriers, the finger defects of the babies with Down syndrome also render their learning considerably hard. From beating and scale practice to playing a complete song, for these babies with Down syndrome, all these are challenges and require immense patience and perseverance.
        Yi-Jia received patience and loving guidance of Mr. Lin at school who constantly and repeatedly teaches her with great perseverance by words and notes. Additionally, she sticks to spending five to six hours practicing at home. For normal children, they may grasp a song in one or two weeks, but she must spend one month, or even two months practicing the song. At first, she did not know how to count the beat, gave the wrong tune, and did not know when to start playing. Sometimes, a song was finally mastered with great difficulties, but she forgot it the next day.
        After seeing these difficulties, Mrs. Zhou, aside from feeling heart-aching, really wanted her to give up! Confronted with this situation, Yi-Jia was also very distressed and thought why she was so stupid! So a painful learning stage probably lasted for half a year. Later, Mrs. Zhou gradually adjusted her attitude, told herself not to be too impatient, affirmed Yi-Jia's learning with a positive attitude to give her a sense of achievement and to gradually alleviate her frustrations. Later, Yi-Jia picked herself up from praise, from which Mrs. Zhou deeply appreciated her daughter's learning spirit, moving parents and finding the determination and toughness of life.
Where There is a Will, There is a Way – 18 Busking Permits
        Under the teacher's continued encouragement, Yi-Jia almost obtained the Busking Permits of counties and cities nationwide. So far, she has obtained 18 Busking Permits. Her ultimate goal is to challenge the most difficult Busking Permit of Taipei. This year is the fourth year when she attends the examination. She was not favored by the judges in the previous three years, hoping the judges can see her efforts this year and her spirit of never giving up. In order to obtain the national Busking Permit, Yi-Jia is seasoned. But she will also spend time watching the performance of other buskers, including dance steps, facial expressions and attitude to the judges in order to draw from others' advantages to overcome her disadvantages.
        In addition to the ocarina, music lover Yi-Jia is also interested in the keyboard. Mrs. Zhou hopes that Yi-Jia can develop a number of musical skills, becomes a versatile performer and makes more people happy. Therefore, making more people happy has also become her goal and the greatest motivation of making progress. In May 2015, she signed up for the Taichung busking permit of the keyboard, and successfully obtained the permit. This is her first keyboard permit. Yi-Jia smiled happily after gaining the permit and will make further progress in this aspect.
Affirmation ─ Driving Force for Progress
        In Yi-Jia's life, apart from street performances, classes and song practice, Mrs. Zhou also teaches her to do housework and living skills ─ including sweeping, mopping, cleaning bathrooms, cleaning the kitchen and even simple cooking, at which she is good. Surely, these living skills are mastered after countless failure and depression. The purpose of Mrs. Zhou is that she hopes Yi-Jia can be independent and autonomous, and does not rely on others.
        According to Mrs. Zhou, "Actually such simple housework, including homemade food, is not that difficult for the babies with Down syndrome as long as you allow them to practice and give them constant affirmation. After they grasp it, apart from easing parents' burden, they can acquire skills. Moreover, they will be increasingly fond of trying, even offer to help and thus develop the habit of hard work, which kills two birds with one stone. Consequently, as long as we offer the chance of training and practice, after they are adept at the skills, their ability will be immensely honed and their life will be more confident.
Spread Sunshine · Spread Love
        Yi-Jia spares no effort to play the ocarina and acquires almost all Busking Permits now, so she was invited to receive interview with the program "Praise Young People" of Da-ai TV. It is designed to encourage those suffering setbacks to bravely face challenges, entertain a positive attitude and embrace a brighter life.
        Thanks to Yi-Jia's optimism her family's never giving up, she started to put on performance and encourage the public in major scenic spots and venues since 2012. She gave performances in 2012 Miaoli Lantern Festival in Sunny Hills, a well-known sight spot of Nantou in 2013. Besides, she attended the 2013 Buskers' Performances of Taiwan Agricultural Fair, 2013 Changhua Lugan Lantern Festival, 2014 Nantou Lantern Festival and 2015 Taichung Fengyuan Lantern Festival. Also, on May 3, 2015, she was invited by the New Taipei City Chu Lin Junior High School to attend the ocarina concert organized by the school's Love Club. During the concert, she played a few popular songs, and many teachers and students sang and beat time with her, forming a warm atmosphere. The principal Mr. Chi said that this was a moving afternoon, and was the best model course of life education and moral education.
        Yi-Jia was greeted with enthusiastic applause from the audience in similar performance occasions. Yi-Jia once gave performance to the seniors in the Nightingale Nursing Home and Bali Nursing Home. After seeing Yi-Jia's performances, these seniors could not help beating time and clapping to rhythm, as if their sleeping heart awakened. Such a lively scene was really exciting.
        Aside from performances, Yi-Jia has also been widely invited to promote life stories. In March 2013, she was invited to promote life education and give performance by the Changhua County Puyan Elementary School, and warmly welcomed by teachers and students. She encouraged the children – "Life is filled with unlimited possibilities and never underestimate yourself". Additionally, in November 2013, she was invited to promote life fighters by the Taitung County Hai Rui Elemenary School – to share the course of life struggle and learning to play the ocarina. Her serious look impressed every teacher and student present.  She used her own experience and the learning spirit and attitude to encourage each student present. Also, she hoped that everyone could seize the opportunity to learn in healthy state, because people had infinite potential. Her sharing was the best model for children to learn, and she also translated advantages into disadvantages.
        In April 2014, she accepted an invitation from Taichung City Kun Shan Elementary School to share the learning process of ocarina. The principal Mr. Chang spoke highly of her, because she was a special child but with different stages of life, so she was indeed the model for teachers and students. He also admired Yi-Jia's spirit of learning, and believed that learning had nothing to do with intelligence and that achievement could not be judged by intelligence. Living to its fullest each day and helping others were the greatest values of life.
Love is Undiminished Strength
        As the sayings go, "There is always a way out" and "When God closes a door, he opens a window". Although Yi-Jia's pursuit of music is difficult, her extraordinary perseverance moved God. She bravely pursues, and enjoys the pursuit in spite of the twists and turns. Perhaps, the God silently gives her immense strength – wisdom and courage so that she can surmount the obstacles in life. Most importantly, her benefactors appear at the right moment, which must be the God's clever arrangements!
        Mrs. Zhou Yi-Jia is immensely indebted to all benefactors who give Yi-Jia great support along her growth and study – including teachers and friends from all walks of life who constantly give her applause and encouragement. It is exactly because of you that Yi-Jia is more confident and smiles more radiantly.
      Now, Yi-Jia puts on performance in Nantou Service Area every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and in Taichung Calligraphy Greenway on Sunday afternoon. During the performance, the audiences speak highly of her and give enthusiastic response. The more people watch her performance and the more rapturous the applause is, the more enthusiastically Yi-Jia dances and plays the Ocarina and the more confident her performance is.
        Seeing Yi-Jia is so happy and engaged in each performance, Mrs. Zhou gains greater confidence and motivations to accompany her daughter – in her performance, classes and practices. Mrs. Zhou is intensely proud that her daughter can express herself on the stage.