I have to confess I've been struggling to write about this.

I guess it's because I couldn't condense the emotions that I experienced the day I went with our CEO to one of Hagar's projects- House of Smiles, where we serve children and young adults with physical and intellectual disabilities.

The sights and emotions are still so vivid. I can't put it all into words.

I am left speechless.

I remember my own siblings who, by some standards are considered 'limited' with the same disabilities (my sister has Cerebral Palsy and my brother has Autism). But they aren't limited. They live with disabilities as their reality. Every day they overcome the challenge to live and move. And the greatest miracle is their ability to SMILE. They remain cheerful and jubilant in the face of these so-called 'limitations'. No. They aren't limited. They are courageous and brave. They overcome. 

Seeing a client diligently sweeping the whole floor. Watching the teachers communicate with them through hand signs and pictures. Being approached by a child with Down Syndrome with a wide smile on his face. It's pure delight to behold. It is not superficial or pretentious, because real challenges are still there. Tempers and tantrums are not hidden.  Yet, you cannot help but feel tremendous love and pride for them. It's something you can only feel in a place like this.

The climax of our visit, I think, was when we met a client named Ly Heang who has Cerebral Palsy (CP). His fearlessness caught me by surprise. He was secretly listening to our lunch conversation with staff. Suddenly he raised his hands up in the air and commanded our attention.

"If I finish high school, can Hagar support me to study in the university?" he asked Hagar's CEO, Talmage.

"What Grade are you in now?" Talmage asked.

"Grade 8!" Ly Heang announced proudly. He loves studying math, computer and English and he wants to study IT in college.

Finally, Talmage said that if he could pass his Grade 9^th and 12^th exams, Hagar would send him off to college. This brought unexplainable joy to Ly Heang. He shouted and clapped his hands in sheer happiness. Like it was the greatest prize he's ever received in his entire life.

This visit had me contemplating the real work of Hagar. It doesn't shy away from the toughest of human conditions seen in each individual. It chooses to take great risks - walking the whole journey with the individual. Because it sees the potential - potential that even the most devastating tragedy cannot overpower.  

At the end of the day, the reason for Hagar is individuals like Ly Heang. His physical, intellectual, and emotional abilities, which could be interpreted as "limited" by some, are not seen as limitations at Hagar. Instead they become the backdrop for the potential deep inside of them. The potential we believe in and resolve to draw out.