Artist Liao Jui-chin (廖瑞金), who uses his feet to paint, on Friday told his long-term girlfriend that he was ready to spend the rest of his life with her. The couple are to get married next Sunday.
The 36-year-old artist, who fell ill with meningitis at the age of three and lost the use of his arms, met his fiancee, Wu Fu-yu (吳芙妤), a 29-year-old graduate of National Taiwan Normal University, eight years ago at a table tennis competition.
Despite his disability, Liao played excellent table tennis with his feet, which caught Wu’s attention. The two then started seeing each other, and said that they enjoyed skating, playing chess and playing sports together.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
It soon became clear that they were meant for each other, said Hung Chin-fang (洪錦芳), a teacher at the children’s home in Pingtung County where Liao grew up.
Hung said the first time she met Wu she watched the couple together and realized how precious their love was.
Part of that is their uncanny ability to communicate, Hung said. Though Liao can only make hard-to-understand sounds when he tries to verbalize his thoughts, Wu has no trouble understanding him.
Hung said she contacted Wu’s family in the hope that they would give the couple some freedom and allow Liao time to prove his sincerity.
Hung has known Liao since he was 12, when she met him at the orphanage where she works. She said he was an ill-tempered child, who fought and got into trouble as he sought to express his anger and frustration.
However, Hung taught him to use his feet to paint, play sports and even fix bicycles, and after they realized he had a talent for art, Hung arranged for the budding artist to receive painting lessons from Hsu Wen-de (許文德).
Thanks to those lessons, Liao had made a name for himself by the time he was 18 and was later accepted as a member of the Association of Mouth and Foot Painting Artists.
Although Liao could not read or write, he managed to make a living and was able to take care of his mentally challenged brother by selling postcards and art with the help of the association.
“Love is patient, love is kind,” Liao said, citing his favorite passage from the Bible as an expression of his gratitude to Hung, whom he sees not only as his teacher, but also as a mother to him and Wu.
He also thanked Wu, saying that she had never given up on him and thanking her for being his soulmate and closest friend.
Though his mind is now focused on getting married, Liao has not forgotten his roots.
He has just donated two of his paintings to the Chinese Childrenhome and Shelter Association to help raise funds for children in need.
He said that in the future he would share his experiences to help guide other disabled persons to overcome misfortune and find the light in life.
A tropical depression in waters east of the Philippines could develop into a tropical storm as soon as today and bring rainfall as it approaches, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, while issuing heat warnings for 14 cities and counties. Weather model simulations show that there are still considerable differences in the path that the tropical depression is projected to take. It might pass through the Bashi Channel to the South China Sea or turn northeast and move toward the sea south of Japan, CWA forecaster Yeh Chih-chun (葉致均) said, adding that the uncertainty of its movement is still high,
TAIWANESE INNOVATION: The ‘Seawool’ fabric generates about NT$200m a year, with the bulk of it sourced by clothing brands operating in Europe and the US Growing up on Taiwan’s west coast where mollusk farming is popular, Eddie Wang saw discarded oyster shells transformed from waste to function — a memory that inspired him to create a unique and environmentally friendly fabric called “Seawool.” Wang remembered that residents of his seaside hometown of Yunlin County used discarded oyster shells that littered the streets during the harvest as insulation for their homes. “They burned the shells and painted the residue on the walls. The houses then became warm in the winter and cool in the summer,” the 42-year-old said at his factory in Tainan. “So I was
THE TOUR: Pope Francis has gone on a 12-day visit to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore. He was also invited to Taiwan The government yesterday welcomed Pope Francis to the Asia-Pacific region and said it would continue extending an invitation for him to visit Taiwan. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs made the remarks as Pope Francis began a 12-day tour of the Asia-Pacific on Monday. He is to travel about 33,000km by air to visit Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore, and would arrive back in Rome on Friday next week. It would be the longest and most challenging trip of Francis’ 11-year papacy. The 87-year-old has had health issues over the past few years and now uses a wheelchair. The ministry said
Discounted 72-hour Taipei Metro passes are to be offered to China Airlines passengers until Feb. 28 next year, the airline announced today. China Airlines passengers may present their boarding pass for a discount of up to 34 percent when buying a Taipei Metro 72-hour unlimited travel pass. The offer is available to international travelers on international flights bound for Taipei. Within seven days of arrival, travelers can present their boarding pass, passport and proof of flight payment at an EZfly counter in Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport or Taoyuan MRT Taipei Main Station to obtain the discounted passes, the airline said. One 72-hour pass
RSS