A Body with a Beautiful Soul The True-Life Story about an Unexpected Master Teacher At Mountain Shadows Outreach Services, our mission is to enhance lives, to encourage special needs individuals to reach for the stars, to achieve their highest potential. Many times, we may see ourselves as teachers; however, as demonstrated in the story below, we are, perhaps more often, merely students in this Master Class on Life. |
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Deepak Rao Mountain Shadows Outreach Participant and MSCH Resident |
By Sheryl Wilde One day, during meditation, she said to God, "You have given me a purpose - to take care of this young man. What purpose can You have in Your mind in creating someone with such a disability?"
The young man is her son, Deepak. And his disabilities are profound. Born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, he was left a quadriplegic. He cannot move.
"It was devastating," says Brinda Rao, Deepak's mother. "He was a very beautiful child - seven pounds, nine and a half ounces, 21 inches long at birth. But from birth until this day, 53 years later, he has to be bathed, clothed, fed, have his diaper changed. But he is very smart in his mind. That is the only part of his body that works." Despite the devastating circumstances, Brinda remained a woman of "extreme faith".
And God answered her question that very same afternoon.
Deepak came home on the school bus every day. But on this day, as the driver put him on the lift, and lowered him down off the bus, his mother noticed something odd.
"I noticed Deepak had one of those political-type buttons - the round, metal buttons that people wear - on his shirt. It wasn't there when he left home that morning. It was beige-colored, with writing on it."
And on the small, beige button were written four simple words: "I am a teacher." "That was my direct answer from God," says Brinda. "That was a teaching moment for me, that even with all of his disabilities, Deepak is a teacher. And he has taught me. He has taught me. If I told you all of things Deepak has taught me, you wouldn't believe it. It is so beautiful. So very beautiful." |
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"I told Deepak once," says Brinda, "I am praying very hard for God to heal you. I know he can do it, but you must also be willing to receive the healing. So tell God that you are willing to receive the healing. "I was so intent that Deepak would be healed - that he would be miraculously healed that very day by God.
"But Deepak looked at me and said, 'Mom, that's not important.' He just said to me, 'The healing is not important.'
"It was then that I understood everything. This is life. Disability and all. This is what life is. There is no need to change it!" |
"I have always been the primary caregiver for Deepak," adds Brinda. "And I was always in survival mode - providing care not only for my son, but for my husband, my daughter, my home, everything. After caring for Deepak's physical needs, there was no time for anything extra. It was impossible to do anything more than make sure he was bathed, dressed, well fed, comfortable, and not in pain." Living in survival mode, and not having enough time for Deepak, her family, or herself, brought Brinda to Mountain Shadows Outreach Services many years ago.
"Deepak going to Outreach for a few hours a day gave me time to take care of myself. It helped keep me fit mentally and physically so that I could take better care of him.
"And when I ask Deepak, 'How do you feel about going to Mountain Shadows Outreach day program?' He says, "Deepu is happy!' That's what he says, that he's happy there.
"Mountain Shadows Outreach is a beautiful place. It's a place my son, and others, can go to, and be joyful about going!
"At day program, they keep Deepak stimulated mentally, more than I could do at home. They teach him simple math and reading. He watches nature programs. He loves that!
"The people at Mountain Shadows Outreach do a very good job of not only mental stimulation, but physical care as well. They have to change him, give him necessary medications, feed him. They do a lot there. A lot.
"I am confident in sending my child to Outreach. I don't have to worry about what is happening to him there." |
"The most important part of Mountain Shadows Outreach Services is that everything we do is person-centered," says Flor Angel, MSOS Director. "We get to know each individual - what they like, what they don't like, what they need - so we can best support them. I think they value that."
Brinda appreciates that person-centered philosophy. "Deepak has an amazing disposition. He has always been very good at adjusting to everything. He has never felt - and I'm not saying this in a superlative way, it's an actual fact - he has never felt sorry for himself. We treated him as a normal person. A person first. A person with a disability. "I would like others to see individuals with disabilities as people first. They are people with a disability. They are not defined by the disability. Treat them with love and kindness, as individuals, as people. "They are a body that has a beautiful soul in it. The key is to see that beauty, the joy of the soul, within." |
"Deepak lived at home for 53 years," says Brinda. "My husband is 85-years-old now. He does the turning of Deepak at night. Because Deepak cannot move, he must be turned over several times during the night. My husband just had a defibrillator put in his heart. To lift the full weight of our 53-year-old son is hard on him. "I also developed swollen hands and fingers and there is pain. I can no longer do his bathing and diaper changing and all of the mundane daily things. So, we had to come to a very, very hard decision ... "I was talking with Flor one day and I told her I thought the time had come to have Deepak put in an institution, since my husband and I are unable to take care of him. She immediately contacted the people at Mountain Shadows. She knew what Deepak needed. "When we first visited Mountain Shadows Elm house, we took Deepak, because it is his decision where he wants to live too. He is a good and very sensitive observer of people. He saw the caregivers there at Elm house and he said, 'These are good people.' "When I heard that, I felt confident Mountain Shadows was the right place for him. He's a good judge of people." |
Deepak enJOYing an MSOS "Back to the 80's" party! |
"Deepak has been living at Elm house for several weeks now," says Brinda. "The move has been heart-wrenching. It is like I am missing a part of my limb. All my life I have lived for him. I was the body for him. I was his hands and feet. I lived through him. "But Deepak understands our inability as parents to care for him now, and he has accepted it. He is sad he is not at our home, but he understands why. Now he says, 'Oh my gosh! I have two homes!' He says, 'Deepu has two homes!' "We love Elm house. We love that it is a home, in a neighborhood. It has that normal sense of being a real home. It is a very special and beautiful place.
"Even in the short time he has been at Elm house, the supervisor told me they are so happy to have Deepak there, because he brings so much joy. He's such a happy person.
"Deepak is doing what he always does. He brings joy! That is one of the attributes of his life, to bring joy." |
It has been said that Master Teachers are ...
"The expert gardeners who can teach us how to tend to the seeds of our soul, so we can blossom forth into the spectacular flowers
God meant us to be." ~ SANT RAJINDER SINGH JI MAHARAJ Deepak Rao, you are truly a body with a beautiful - and joyful - soul within. And we are grateful as you sprinkle beautiful seeds of wisdom upon our Mountain Shadows Family - cultivating the joy that blooms in our hearts. |
The Mountain Shadows Foundation -Because We CARE |
The Mountain Shadows CARE program provides recreational and social experiences to residents, adding meaning and richness to their lives.
It's easy for you to help us continue to provide activities that improve the quality of our residents’ lives. Here are some ways you can help ensure these crucial activities can continue for years to come: -
Make a one-time donation today by clicking on the donate button below.
- Make a monthly or annual contribution.
- Leave a Legacy Gift.
To learn more about the Mountain Shadows Foundation Legacy Society, to include us in your estate plan, or to let us know if you have already designated Mountain Shadows to receive a legacy gift, please contact Mandy Huiras, Director of Development at: [email protected], or visit our website by clicking here:
Learn More About the Mountain Shadows Foundation Legacy Society
Please share this story with your family, friends and co-workers to help grow our Mountain Shadows Family! |
Mandy Huiras Mountain Shadows Foundation Director of Development Contact Mandy today to learn more about the Mountain Shadows Foundation and how you can make a difference in the lives of our residents:
mhuiras@mtnshadows.org |
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