My Guide to Happiness… A Tour Guide’s Experience.

May 20, 2008 · Filed Under self-help, travel · 1 Comment 

I had a very interesting tour the other day, the best one since I became a part-time guide. All the while, I thought I would be handling employees and volunteers of a DSWD office in Rizal. When I finally met my guests, I was surprised to see about 20 people who are PWDs or persons with disabilities.

At first, I was hesitant. We were not taught how to handle guests with disabilities and I was afraid I would make a mistake or do something stupid because I’m not ready to handle their kind of group. After about a minute, I tried to regain my composure and prayed that God would grant me the wisdom to be of good service to them.

The tour took a longer time than what was expected because about fifty percent of my guests have mobility problems. All those time that I was facilitating the tour, there was a lump in my throat. I was smiling and attending to the needs of everyone but my heart was sad and full of compassion for them. There was a lady with only one leg, two men using canes to walk, a kid who caught a broncho meningitis after birth and was now unable to even recognize anyone, another who needs an assistance to move, and more with different disabilities.

Two of these PWDs had most of my attention. One was a middle-aged man who seem to be having a constant epilepsy attack and needed assistance to move arond. Despite his disability, he was a jolly person. When I brought them to the Riverbanks Center to see the biggest pair of shoes in the world, we had to leave him in a corner to sit and rest. We saw him anyway walking towards us when we came back saying jokingly that “he had to leave the bench he was sitting on because he saw others staring at him and thinking he was a monster on the loose.” It was his first time to go inside a mall and he was very curious asking questions like “are there elephants inside” and “why is the mall cold when there are no electric fans around.”

Now, I want you to meet the angel within the group who made my eye watery, Stephanie —

stephanie, a pwd

Steph is a lovely child who can only talk gibberish because of her disability. She was abandoned by her mother who took off with another guy. Fortunately, she still have her lola and lolo. At first, Steph was hesitant to even look at me but I kept on talking to her. After a while, she relaxed and her lola was surprised that Steph came to me and held my hand. Her lola whispered to me that Steph was an aloof child who do not get close to anyone, much more hold hands.

After the tour, Steph would not stop from waving and saying goodbye to me. The others were
very grateful too for the tour I provided them. It was the first time I had guests who made me felt very special. It was the first time I felt truly important in my life, that I was able to make disadvantaged people happy in my small ways. Read more

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