THAT hands may learn to see, that is a phrase I once saw at a special school in Davao City while doing a legwork for my first civic journalism article last year.
“The Davao School & Rehabilitation for Visually Impaired (also known as the Davao School for the Blind), a private-run institution for people with visual impairment, embrace life despite its subtlety and emit brighter aura.
For them (visually impaired students), life did not stop when their eyes fail to give light, instead life for them has become brighter even if darkness has been their constant companion since birth,” I wrote in the article.”
Who wouldn’t be inspired by their stories? I was even more inspired after crossing paths with them again this year when I had the privileged to cover their concert at the Apo View Hotel’s Grand Ballroom last August 13.
They played the music by heart and this time they bear the name One Light Music Orchestra which was coined by Samahan ng mga Musikeros sa Davao, Inc. (Samadhi) President Sandra Carpio, who had cooperated with the school for the event.
The music they played was so alive that I could only think that those who will not be rocked by it are devoid by any sense of music appreciation.
Imagination has no limits and boundaries indeed, as the host of the event stressed, when the visually impaired performers conquered darkness with their bright music. All they emit during the performance are happy vibes that are quite contagious.
In an interview last year, the school’s principal Wilmo Capoy narrated how the school’s budget had been cut in half and this affects the students' budget for food and others which the school offered for free.
That is why one of the goals of the concert last August 13, according to Carpio, was to raise funds for the school.
Samadhi and the school had prepared for the concert for four months before it was staged at the Apo View Hotel. There are 24 members of the orchestra who dominated the stage with their lively performance.
Although, they did not hit their target of selling out all the concert tickets, Carpio said that they still consider the event successful because it was a chance for the children performers to unlock other doors for more opportunities.
“Don’t stop dreaming. If these visually impaired children were able to make this, how much more those who have been blessed with sight,” Carpio posed the question as a challenge, adding that people should not waste time on unwanted habits.