Reuel the proud artist
In kindergarten, Eio liked to have his mother draw animals on scratch paper. He hardly talked, so his mother gladly obliged, to encourage him to ask for things and talk more. But later on, he became more interested in clicking the camera of the cellphone than having her draw stick animals, and preferred to play by himself.
It took Eio many years before he could write his name, do simple math, follow one- to two-step instructions, and express himself in simple words with his limited vocabulary. He still exhibits inappropriate behavior that would be described as being socially inept, like shouting or vocalizing loudly out of the blue. He repetitively jumps and skips around the house while listening to his favorite music on Spotify as his form of daily exercise. Eio wants to be supervised at all times because he doesn’t want to make mistakes. If he does, like accidentally breaking his oil pastel stick, he goes into a huge tantrum and hits himself or people around him.
At 22, Eio now responds to his formal name, Reuel, because he needs to get used to it as an adult for possible employment, or as an entrepreneur-artist. He was inconsolable at the start of the pandemic when he couldn’t go to his Being Home Training Center for the training in functional life and work skills. Isolated and bereft of the critical routines that ground persons with autism, his mother was going bonkers creating a daily rhythm for Reuel. During one of her video chats with co-parents of neuro-developmentally challenged children, they came up with the idea to have them come together online and do activities to keep them engaged during the pandemic. Hence, the online art journaling program with teacher Amos Manlangit was formed by Boundless Possibilities Foundation Inc. (BPFI), a group founded by like-minded parents to keep their neurodivergent young adults busy and happy in these trying times.
Peace
This special community is part of the neurodiversity movement that advocates the idea that our brains are wired differently, and that everyone (whether neurotypical or neurodivergent) should be treated equally by everyone, whether in school, the workplace, or in other external environments. The self-identifying label of “neurodivergent” originally focused on those who have autism. In recent years, a neurodivergent person has been described as one who thinks, behaves, and learns differently from what is typical or normal in society. Being neurodivergent should not be considered an inherent deficit or disability, but simply a difference in processing the world around us.
The neurodiversity movement advocates that our brains are wired differently, so neurodivergence should not be considered an inherent deficit
Examples of conditions or labels that come under neurodivergence are Asperger’s syndrome (high functional autism), autism spectrum disorder (with unusual, restricted or repetitive behavior, interests, and thinking), sensory processing disorder (difficulties integrating sensory and perception), attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or attention deficit disorder (ADD), Tourette’s Syndrome (motor and vocal tics), dyslexia (reading disability), dyspraxia (movement and coordination disorder), dyscalculia (difficulty with numbers), dysgraphia (handwriting and motor skills difficulties), hyperlexia (early reader with obsessive interest in letters and numbers during infancy), Meares-Irlen Syndrome (difficulties with fine visual tasks), and synaesthesia (such as seeing letters, numbers, or sounds as colors).
Over the past two months, 30 neurodivergent young adults have been hard at work, rehearsing and video-taping their numbers for their upcoming online musical concert My True Colors, Known as the Gentle Giants, the performers are beneficiaries of BPFI, a non-profit organization that seeks to provide neuro-diverse adults with venues for community inclusion and productivity.
My True Colors is the third virtual concert of the Gentle Giants, and follows last year’s highly successful Pana-panahon which had thousands of views from all over the world. While Pana-panahon narrated the story of the Gentle Giants from their parents’ perspective, My True Colors focuses the spotlight on the Gentle Giants themselves as they share their own stories, with the special participation of the special children of the QC Kabahagi Center.
The performers will use music, dance, and visual art to tell their individual stories. The concert theme recognizes that differently-abled persons have unique and interesting personalities, experiences, and talents that, when put together, become a beautiful kaleidoscope worth sharing and appreciating. My True Colors premieres on Saturday, December 3, 2022 at 8 pm on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/boundposs).
The Gentle Giants of BPFI, along with the special children of the QC Kabahagi Center, would like to show who they really are through music, dance, and the arts, and share that they are also just ordinary people with different ways of sensing and feeling the world. They struggle to fit into the pattern of a typical person and are at a loss on how normal people behave and express themselves. They want to be appreciated and loved for who they are, and especially for who they are not. They certainly are very grateful when they are not ostracized and bullied, when people endeavor to understand, have compassion, and treat them with respect.
Proceeds from the musical concert will be used for the program offerings of BPFI, consisting mainly of community-based activities in music, art, and sports while offering opportunities in entrepreneurship and supported employment. Over the longer term, the Foundation also hopes to put up a one-stop center which would offer broader services to address the wide-ranging needs of its beneficiaries.
They want to be appreciated and loved for who they are, and especially for who they are not
Reuel’s recent pastel rendition of a favorite subject, a pearl in a shell
As of this date, Reuel has proudly created numerous artworks in mixed media, with an obsessive preference for drawing and coloring pearls in shells. Now, he confidently can identify colors that most people don’t even know—cerulean, indigo, apricot, ochre, dandelion, mahogany. He has two online art exhibits and has already sold 10 of these artworks, and more, if we include the Gentle Giants artworks he has collaborated in. His room, as well as all the available walls in his home, is full of his art work, as he loves seeing them on display. His art gives him a sense of who he is in a world that still needs to recognize, learn about, and accept neurodivergent individuals. Through art, Reuel finds his true self and proudly displays his true colors.
Those who want to support BPFI in its programs and services can send their donation through Boundless Possibilities Foundation, Inc. BPI account no: 2791000079, Royal Place branch, Quezon City. Swift code: BOPIPHMM
