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My Special Life
Making waves
Being hearing-impaired from birth has not stopped Jane Lim
from becoming the team manager of a dragon boat team. Theresa
Tan reports. Jane Lim is a tanned, fit, young woman of 28 with a distinct
air of confidence. As you speak, she watches intently, and
with a mixture of gestures and speech, she responds.
She also carries a mobile phone and sends out over 1000
SMSes every month. Ms Lim has been fully hearing impaired,
or deaf, since birth. She has severe impairment in her left
ear and profound impairment in her right. The elder of two
girls, she is the only hearing-impaired person in her family.
“When I was only a few months old, my mum used to
call me to see if I would respond. But I seemed lost in my
own world,” says Ms Lim, describing how
her parents discovered
her deafness. “After trying
a few times, she got worried and decided to take me to the
doctor to assess my hearing.
“That was the lowest
point for my parents coming to terms with the fact that
I am deaf.”
Her father bought her a hearing aid that enabled her to
hear some sounds.
“When my father tried
calling my name, I quickly responded to his voice, which
delighted my parents. That was when I
started to accept my condition.”
Her parents were her pillar, going to great lengths to ensure
she received
speech therapy and a good
education. “They inspired
me a lot because they
took the big step forward
with love to see me through, despite the fact that I am
deaf. They never saw me as a burden, but
loved me.”
For Ms Lim, school was a relatively smooth journey. She
went from a hearing
kindergarten to a school
for the deaf at primary level, and then she was integrated
into the mainstream St Anthony’s
Canossian Secondary School.
“At first I was very
skeptical about my ability to cope in a mainstream school,”
she admits. “Many
of my classmates had to be very sensitive to my needs,
and tried their best to adapt to me.
I also tried to adapt to the fast-paced learning environment.
Some teachers spoke too
fast, so I was unable to catch what they were saying while
reading their lips.”
However, her teachers would take time to give her extra
lessons after school.
“That was the start
of my experience of integrating with hearing people. From
there, I went on to Ngee Ann Polytechnic,
where I studied and graduated with a diploma in building
services engineering.”
Since graduating from polytechnic, Ms Lim has been working
as a freelancer,
providing manpower for
events and projects. “I’d
like to try different jobs this way before settling down
to one good permanent job, she says. In fact, I am eager
to start business within the next two years.”
Every Sunday, you will see Ms Lim at Kallang Basin with
a bunch of fit, tanned
people: the HI-Raleigh Dragon Boat team. The team, comprising
nine hearing-impaired and 15 individuals who can hear, was
found by corporate trainer Chong Hai-Yen.
This year, Ms Chong handed the baton over to Ms Lim, who
now serves as team manager.
The HI-Raleigh Dragoon Boat team participates in dragon
boat races. In fact they are currently training for 10km
race on Saturday.
Ms Lim started out as a
row. “Initially, I had misconceptions
that dragon boat racing was too tough. But after two of my
friends kept persuading me to join
I finally caved in.”
“Jane has a great can-do spirit,” says Ms Chong. “I
saw that she was very spunky, and she takes initiative. She
never lets her disability get in the way.
Whatever others, even hearing
persons, could do, she always felt she could do better.”
Ms Lim now leads the team, which comprises an interesting
variety of hearing-impaired individuals ranging in age from
20 to their 40s. This is a very unique group in the dragon
boat community where hearing-impaired and people who can
hear come together, she says.
Apart from dragon boat racing, the team also takes part
in biathlons, triathlons and other races, and its members
regularly have meals together.
The team takes races seriously.
Training begins three to four months before the race. “We
have to coordinate the basic paddling strokes first on
land, because the deaf
members cannot hear the instructions. Then we graduate to
the different techniques to break the water and move the
boat.”
In the boat, the deaf crew must pair up with members who
can hear. And they row in coordination by feeling the sound
of the drum and following the beats, and as they feel the
boat moving with rhythm, they paddle harder.
Being in the team has affected
the hearing-impaired members positively – most of
them have become outgoing and positive, and have gained
confidence to try out other sports.
Dragon boat racing is more than just training and racing:
It helps the individual to develop his self-confidence and
to challenge himself to break limits. The principles in the
teamwork in dragon boat racing can be applied to work environments
as well, says Ms Lim.
And for her, dragon boat
racing has helped her discover her potential and challenged
her to turn her weaknesses into
strengths. “Instead of complaining that the world does
not make me happy, I rejoice that I have a life and a purpose
as a whole person with abilities and courage. Venturing into
the unknown elements has shaped my thinking and built my
character.”
For Ms Lim, who names Helen
Keller as her inspiration and teacher, she has never felt
handicapped. “If I did,
I would only be short-changing myself. I have 20 to 50 years
more to live. I’d like to leave a legacy of discovering
unchartered territory and to inspire others.
As Helen Keller said: ”Be of good cheer. Do not think
of today’s failures but of the success that may come
tomorrow. You have set yourself a difficult task, but you
will succeed if you persevere; and you will find a joy in
overcoming obstacles.”
If you are interested in finding out about HI-Raleigh, contact
Ms Jane Lim
at citrusbe@yahoo.com
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