The gift of sight

This woman in Central Sulawesi is able to see clearly for the first time in years.

The new reading glasses are a gift from Marcy Summers, Director of the Alliance for Tompotika Conservation (AlTo), an NGO working to empower local communities to sustainably care for their own resources. Every sector of the community is engaged: men who used to poach maleo (a unique bird that nests in the sand) and turtle eggs are now employed to monitor them; innovative methods are used to educate children of their immense biodiversity and the importance of preserving it, and women with poor vision are given the gift of sight through reading glasses.

I do not know the age of this woman; and neither did she. It was not important. Our brief meeting made a lasting impression on me. As we departed she held my hand firmly, looked deep into my eye and wished me a “long, healthy and happy life”. Her sentiment could not have felt more heart-felt.

This entry was posted on Monday, February 15th, 2010 at 2:34 pm and is filed under Postcards from the field. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.