wfn.org | TCN: Schmidt demonstrates life can be fulfilling despite physical disabilities

["Taiwan Church News" <enews@pctpress.org>]

>      Taiwan Church News

>3007 Edition

>October 12~18, 2009

Schmidt demonstrates life can be fulfilling despite physical  disabilities

>Reported by staff

>Written by Lydia Ma

German Paralympic table tennis gold medalist Rainer Schmidt  arrived in Taiwan on October

15 and will begin a tour of the island lasting seven days. Schmidt  will share his experiences

through forums attended by special education teachers, seminary  students, and pastors. He

will also hold inspirational conferences all over Taiwan to share  his testimony and triumphs

>with Taiwan’s youth and adults.

According to reports, Schmidt will also have a table tennis match  with Taiwanese table tennis

Paralympians so as to illustrate his testimony through real  examples. Schmidt’s conferences

will combine other interesting activities such as lively  Aboriginal dance performances, music

>concerts, and book signing tours.

Just before boarding his flight to Taiwan, Schmidt had an  exclusive interview with Taiwan

Church News and was asked what he hoped to accomplish during his  tour of Taiwan and

Hong Kong. He replied, “I’m a curious person and I like  to observe different cultures. I’ve

toured and held conferences in Germany and Europe many times  before, so, I know what to

expect when I visit European countries. However, this is my first  tour in Asia and the first time I

share my life experiences and personal convictions with the people  living there. Therefore, I’m

curious to find out how Taiwanese audiences will respond to my  rallies.”

Asked about any personal goals he wishes to attain whenever he  embarks on similar tours,

Schmidt said he wants to share with others a different way of  viewing life and a different way

of living. He wants to let people know how they can learn to live  with their own limitations and

>still enjoy an abundant and interesting life.

“I hope that when people face life’s challenges, they  will not fall into self-pity or belittle

themselves because this kind of attitude will limit their  abilities even more and cause them to

leave behind a load of regret later on. I really hope to encourage  people through sharing my

own personal stories, perspectives, and Christian faith so that  they can be strengthened. For

those who are already very successful, independent, and strong, I  hope to convince them to go

out of their way to strengthen those who are weak and to further  challenge themselves to reach

>new heights.”

Schmidt’s daily life demonstrates what he emphasizes in many  of his books, namely,

“Disabilities are disabilities only when you see them as  such.” For example, during this trip to

Asia, he had to take a 15 hours long flight that included  transferring flights, but he managed to

travel without a personal secretary and handled everything in  stride. His Taiwanese hosts had

even asked him beforehand whether he needed their assistance  getting through customs, but

Schmidt replied he could manage everything like everyone else and  would not be shy to ask

>for assistance if he needed it.

Schmidt reminded his hosts not to idolize him or make him seem  like a superstar because he

didn’t want his rallies or conferences to become a celebrity  event and he wasn’t a

televangelist either. He merely hoped to share his story and talk  about how God uses what we

perceive as weaknesses to make beautiful things.

“I’m sharing my faith and my life story with others and  I hope to let them know about the

Christian values that greatly helped me in life so that I can  assist those who are searching for

life’s meaning to find it. I also hope to support Taiwanese  Paralympians through these rallies

and nudge Taiwanese society to reflect on social ethics and the  value of life,” said Schmidt.

Event organizers hope that topics covered during Schmidt’s  rallies will encourage youth and

disabled people to develop optimistic and constructive attitudes  when facing life’s challenges

and in so doing create new opportunities for themselves.  Organizers also hope that Schmidt’s

visit will raise awareness for Paralympic athletes in Taiwan so  that we can get to know them

>better.

Schmidt’s conferences will take place October 15~21 and more  than 10 conferences are

scheduled across Taiwan, with many Presbyterian Church  organizations sponsoring or

hosting his events in cooperation with other mainstream  educational or social organizations.

For more information, visit http://blog.roodo.com/s_npublisher.

During an interview with Soochow University’s Department of  German Studies Professor

Shieh Jhy-wey, who was formerly Taiwan's representative to  Germany, Shieh pointed out that

Nazi Germany despised Jews and disabled people alike and would  have exterminated them.

However, Germany began anew after World War II and began  championing human rights. In

fact, the first article of Germany’s constitution states that  every individual’s human dignity must

be protected. This allowed people with disabilities to enjoy basic  security and also paved the

way for government regulations and resources that would help them.  However, despite the

availability of resources and help, family support and personal  perseverance are still

instrumental in helping people like Schmidt succeed.

Shieh said that Schmidt’s life and triumphs despite his  disabilities can inspire others to think,

“If he can do it, why can’t I?” From a wider,  national perspective, Taiwan’s history is also

marred by disabilities and tragedies such as lack of national  consciousness and a history of

perpetual colonization and the country saw the birth of democracy  fairly recently. Taiwan as a

country shares many similarities with Schmidt and must learn from  his example by cherishing

what it has right now and not giving up on life under any  circumstance.

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