CHILD-to-child 437
A Story—to be used with the CHILD-to-child activity,
“Understanding Children with Special Problems”
HOW TOMÁS AND OTHER CHILDREN HELPED JULIA GO TO SCHOOL
At age 7 Julia’s world was so small that you could
throw a stone clear across it. She had seen almost
nothing of her own village. No one ever took her
anywhere. The farthest she had ever crawled was to
the bushes just outside the small hut where she lived
with her family.
Julia was the oldest of 3 children. Her family’s
hut was at the far edge of Bella Village. The hut was
separated from the main footpath by a long, steep,
rocky trail. Perhaps for this reason, Julia had missed
being vaccinated in her first year of life, when health
workers had come to the village.
In the beginning, Julia had been a healthy baby, and
quick. At 10 months of age she was already able to
stand alone for a few seconds, and to say a few words,
like ‘mama’, ‘papa’, and ‘wawa’—which meant water.
Her face would light up in a big smile whenever
anyone called her name. Her parents took great pride
in her, and spoiled her terribly.
Then, when Julia was 3 years old, a baby brother
was born. This meant her parents had less time for
Julia. Her little brother was a strong, happy baby, and
her parents seemed to put all their hopes into the new
child. They paid less attention to Julia, rarely played
with her, and never took her out with them into the
village. Julia had no friends or playmates —except for
her baby brother. Yet sometimes, for no clear reason,
Julia would pinch her baby brother and make him cry.
Because of this, her parents did not let Julia hold or
play with him often.
Julia became more and more quiet and unhappy.
Remembering how quick and friendly she had been
as a baby, her parents sometimes wondered if her
mind, too, had been damaged by her illness. Although
the doctor had explained that polio weakens only
muscles, and never affects a child’s mind, they still
had their doubts.
When Julia was 6 years old, a third child was
born—a baby sister. This seemed to make Julia even
more unhappy. She spent most of her time sitting
outside behind the hut drawing pictures in the dirt
with a broken stick. She drew chickens, donkeys, trees,
and flowers. She drew houses, people, waterjugs, and
devils with horns and long tails. Actually, she drew
remarkably well for a child her age. But no one noticed
her drawings. Her mother was busier than ever with
the new baby.
But at 10 months Julia got sick. It began like a bad
cold, with fever and diarrhea. Julia’s mother took her
to a doctor in a neighboring town. The doctor gave
her an injection in her left backside. A few days later
Julia got worse. First her left leg began to hurt her,
then her back, and finally both arms and legs. Soon
her whole body became very weak. She could not
move her left leg at all and the other leg only a little.
In a few days the fever and pain went away, but the
weakness stayed, especially in her legs. The doctor
in town said it was polio, and that her legs would be
weak all her life.
Julia’s mother and father were very sad. In those
days there was no rehabilitation worker in the village
or in the neighboring towns. So Julia’s mother and
father took care of her as best they could. In time,
Julia learned to crawl. But she did not learn to dress
or do much for herself. Her parents felt sorry for her,
so they did everything for her. She gave them a lot of
work.
Julia was 7 years old when the village school
teachers, guided by a health worker from a nearby
village, began a CHILD-to-child program in the
school. The first and second year children (who were
in the same class) studied an activity sheet called
“Understanding children with special problems.”
Most of the children knew of only one seriously
disabled child in their village. This was Tomás. Tomás
walked in a jerky way, with crutches. He had one
hand that sometimes made strange movements. And
he had difficulty speaking clearly, especially when
he was excited. But Tomás did not seem to need
any special help—or at least not anymore. He was
already in the fourth grade of school and doing well.
He had lots of friends. He managed to go anywhere
and do almost anything for himself, if awkwardly,
and nearly everyone treated him with respect. It was
easy to forget he was disabled.
disabled village children