Sixty-five-year old Liu Kuei-lan in the northern city of Keelung has carried her 32-year-old mentally challenged son around for 30 years to ensure that he does not suffer the scourge of bedsores.
"He ain't heavy, he's my son," says Liu, who weighs 40kg, whenever she is asked how she can carry her 82kg son on her back.
Despite her seemingly superhuman strength, Liu has suffered several bone fractures as a result of falls when she has been unable to bear his weight.
Hu Jen-chuan was barely two years old when he fell from a table and went into a coma for six days. Since then, he has been unable to either talk or move.
However, he has continued to grow over the past 30 years.
Liu has not sent her son to any nursing home as has been suggested, because she cannot afford it.
In 30 years, as Hu has grown from child to man, his mother's love has remained steadfast.
Liu said she prays on a daily basis for a miracle that will turn her son into a normal and healthy human being, so that she need not carry him any longer.
She also retains a shred of hope that some day -- maybe even on Mother's Day -- Hu will open his mouth and call her "mom," just for once.
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