Physically Challenged

Tom Barnard

e all have friends that society has labeled “physically challenged.” They suffer from one or more problems that have affected their hearing, eyesight, speech, or physical mobility. They prefer not to call themselves “handicapped.” I honor their decision. I respect their right to be part of their world, even though they may not be able to enjoy it to the extent other people can.

Stories of how physically challenged persons have overcome their problems are legion. One of my favorite stories is about Linda Noble Topf. Linda is a gifted writer and artist who is better known for her writings of inspiration and encouragement than for her paintings. In her book, You Are Not Your Illness (Fireside Books, 1995), she wrote about a physical problem she suffered—a tremor that developed in her left hand that prevented her from writing, typing, and painting with oils. Over time she discovered how to deal with the problem that would have devastated a less-determined individual. Here is how she described her adjustment to not being able to paint with oils:

“I am learning to paint with watercolors, no longer trying to prevent my hand

from trembling, but using the trembling to create rhythmic strokes of color

and movement that somehow depict life the way it really is.”

In her struggle to overcome her handicap she was inspired by other artists who had overcome crippling illnesses. She read about Christy Brown, an Irish writer and artist with cerebral palsy who wrote and painted with his left foot—the only part of him he could satisfactorily control. She also read about Auguste Renoir—one of the world’s great artists—who dealt with crippling arthritis by strapping artist’s brushes to his hands and painting with longer, more fluid strokes. It turned out that these paintings are among his most treasured works.

She also discovered Henri Matisse who, while confined to a bed during the latter part of his life and unable to work with paints any longer, learned how to create large, stunning compositions from colored pieces of paper cut out with scissors.

History is marked by many similar achievements. There was Fanny Crosby, probably the most prolific hymn writer ever. Although blinded at six weeks of age, she wrote over 8,000 hymns in her lifetime. Then there was Ludwig van Beethoven, deaf in his later years and unable to hear some of his most intricate compositions. We should not overlook Helen Keller, both deaf and blind, who became one of America’s best-known political activists. Musicians will remember Tony Melendez, guitarist, who was born with no arms. And what about Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder, blind jazz pianists and singers of our generation? Overcomers, all of them.

Scripture has a way of encouraging people to achieve beyond their fondest dreams. God said through the prophet Isaiah (42:16):

“I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;

I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth.”