Huu Canh Huynh

"One afternoon, in 1993, when the sun came down to the west, I hanged out with my cousin who was 4 years older than me. We went to the riverbank and found a heavy piece of metal covered by dirt. We decided to throw it to the ground to take the dirt and soil out. Suddenly, it was exploded.

My cousin died, and I lost my sight. From then I had to live in a dark world. Before the accident, I loved looking at the blue sky with diverse clouds changing figure all the time. I enjoyed the green field and colourful flowers. I loved drawing my family members and playing with my friends in the village. However, the blindness closed the life’s door. I was totally prisoned in the dark, no future, I felt completely disappointed and hopeless.

In 2018 I was awarded with a competitive scholarship to study in Australia. Firstly, I had to explore the physical environment where I live and study. There seems to be a lot obstacles on the way to classes, house and the sport centre. Secondly, coping with huge reading resources by listing to talking software and learning online system have been so challenging. However, those difficulties gave me chances to activate and maximise my personal power in terms of confidence and independence. I have found out the ways to cope with adversities by seeking appropriate services and advices. I have felt myself included by joining sports activities in the gymnasium and by playing music for events.

Overall, although I have a lot of challenges adapting to new life as a person with visual impairment, I perceive it as a great opportunity to improve myself.

I hope that with my knowledge I give back to Vietnamese people with disability when I return to my country and inspire international students, especially students with disabilities, to have more motivation studying and enjoying their lives at Flinders University and in Australia.