Jeremy Lim - Life ExamplesLife Examples

This is  the incredible journey of one person who has overcome tremendous odds to achieve personal success. 

We celebrate the triumph of the human spirit and we hope it will inspire you to reach for your dreams, too. 

This blog bring you Jeremy Lim, whose fragile condition has not stopped him from actively pursuing his dreams.

Each time one of his bones breaks, it's like a sword has pierced his body.

“The pain is as excruciating as it is traumatic,” describes 21-year-old Jeremy Lim, who was born with brittle-bone disease.

Yet when he was only 12-years-old, Lim held back his tears and told his mother that he was not in pain after breaking his arm and leg from a fall.

His mother, Wong Liang Ming, recalled, “In the car, he was the one comforting me, saying, ‘Don’t cry, I’m okay’."

“And as I carried him into the house, with the help of my husband, there he was holding back tears just so I won’t feel bad. 

And he told dad that it’s not mummy’s fault. 

There he is in pain and protecting me. … 

At that point, I have the highest respect for my son,” she said.

Lim’s reaction perhaps stems from a philosophy he holds close to his heart, that “nothing can change what happens to you but you can change how you react to an incident”.

“From an early age, my parents taught me to look at the bright side of life because if you look on the bright side, there will not be a dark shadow in sight,” Lim told Yahoo! Singapore in an hour-long interview.

Lim was born with Osteogenesis Imperfecta, also known as brittle-bone disease which affects one in some 20,000 births. 

As a child, his bones would break with a “pop” sound every other week as he rolled over in his sleep or tried to open a box of toys on his own.

His bones are sturdier now thanks to an experimental drug he has been taking the last 13 years to increase bone density. 

The last time he broke a bone,his collarbone was a few years ago.

Still, Lim’s delicate condition has not stopped him from reaching out to help the less fortunate or from steadfastly pursuing his dreams.

 ‘Only natural to help other people’

If he looks familiar to some, Lim was a young ambassador for the National Kidney Foundation’s children’s medical fund from 2.001 – 2.005. 

His stint ended after malpractices by former NKF chief executive T T Durai were uncovered.

As ambassador, Lim would collect cheques, give speeches, visit beneficiaries’ homes to cheer them up and check on their health.

When he was in Temasek Junior College, Lim participated in school initiatives to help the needy. 

He went with other students to collect newspapers and recyclable material from households to raise money for charity. 

If there was no lift at a particular flat, Lim, wheel-chair bound, would stay behind to look after the collected material, he recalled.

He would also visit old folks’ homes and talk to residents to cheer them up.

His mother recalls that his charitable nature was apparent from his younger days. 

In primary three, Lim would take the school-issued pledge card and enthusiastically ask his father’s friends to donate to charity.

“With my condition, I want to focus on what I can do, focus on making a positive difference in the lives of the less fortunate... 

I think God has been kind to me, he’s given me a lot of blessings. It’s only natural for me to help other people,” said Lim.

He listed several people who have helped shaped his life.

There was his then-principal of Pei Chun Public School Chen Keng Juan who offered him a place to study when many other schools rejected him because of his health condition. 

“Some even thought I was mentally ill,” said Lim.

Then in Temasek Junior College, principal Loke-Yeo Teck Yong had ramps retrofitted and a lift built in the school in preparation for Lim’s attendance there. 

During the orientation games, organisers made him a station master when he could not participate in the games.

“It’s not about the hardware, it’s about the heartware,” said Lim. “It made me feel very included.”

“I don’t think I could be where I am today without these people. 

There’s so many people in my life whom I’ve had the honour of meeting. 

They’ve touched my life, they’ve wanted me to succeed and helped me to achieve my goals,” he stated.

Pursing his passions

This year, Lim fulfilled one of his dreams to be a published author. 

He wrote and published his autobiography titled “Beyond Bone Breaking”, where he shared life experiences that he hopes will inspire readers.

The book contains a foreword by former President S R Nathan, whom Lim first met when he was 12. 

The pair have kept in touch through the years.

Other than writing, Lim counts Japanese animation as among his passions. 

He has shelves of Japanese anime figures at home.

The second year student at the National University of Singapore is now deciding between majoring in Japanese studies or new media communications.

He once had dreams of becoming a genetic engineer but realised chemistry was “too abstract” for him. 

He is considering writing, animation or even opening a toy shop selling Japanese toys as career options.

No matter what choice he makes, he has already shown many people the path to touching people’s hearts.

“Jeremy has made a difference in our lives,” said Lim’s mother, Wong. 

“People say society is less gracious (now). 

Maybe they are put here to remind us we must be humble and count our blessings.”

No comments:

Post a Comment

Tags

1961) is a singer and a Catholic church volunteer Scottish was released on 11 April 2009 (1) 1990 in Minnesota (USA) with a strange "anomaly" known as Policefalia (Polycephaly) (1) 2.007 (1) A few years ago so discovered that internet bullies cruelly voted her the "ugliest on the Internet (1) A formerly homeless teen has closed his designer bath products business in order to focus entirely on making and donating soaps to people with nowhere to live. (1) A Nigerian woman of 19 years old (1) Abandoned in an orphanage at the age of three (1) Abigail and Brittany Hensel twins Life examples (1) Adora became an object of national interest at the age of 7 when she appeared with Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America (1) Adora Svitak (1) Aimee Mullins (1) Aisha Mohammadzai (Bibi Aisha) (1) Aisha's father promised her to a Taliban fighter when she was 12 years old (1) Alexander Zanardi (1) Aliki Chrysochou (1) amazing (3) and at age 12 (1) and he fell into a severe depression (1) and he's the armless Romanian drummer who has been taking the world (1) and many risky things to do his work (1) and of working with her village elders to build a school for girls (1) and the first elected in a fully representative (1) April 1 (1) as a result (1) Between 1.963 and 1.980 Mrs. Feil developed Validation as a response to her dissatisfaction with traditional methods (1) Born around 1.975 in a nomad camp between Timbuktu and Gao (in the north of Mali ) (1) Born in Tennessee in 1.873 (1) Born with severe physical deformities caused by the drug thalidomide which was prescribed to her mother during pregnancy (1) but her will to live overcame all the difficulties that this "injustice" create with her (1) called congenitalgenu recurvatum (1) Choi claims that he ran away from the institution when he was 5 years old (1) Classically trained violinist and songwriter Gaelynn Lea has been bewitching scores of fans with her experimental and ambient takes on fiddle music (1) Cornel Hrisca Munn (1) disability (4) Donovan Smith (1) Each time one of his bones breaks (1) Ella Harper (1) Emmanuel Kelly (1) Emmanuel Kelly is a 17-year-old Iraqi young man who dreams of turning into a star of the music (1) examples (4) great people (4) had both of her legs amputated below the knee when she was one year old (1) Hamato then taught himself to hit the ball by holding the paddle in his mouth (1) has a message for those who believe that life expired. (1) he began painting with his feet (1) He gave an upbeat lecture titled "The Last Lecture: Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" on September 18 (1) he has attracted widespread praise for his return to competition in the aftermath of a crash in 2001 (1) he is the eldest in a family of thirteen children (1) he need to use a hammer (1) He received the Branson Entertainment Award for Best New Artist in 1.999 (1) He was the first black South African to hold the office (1) His job is juts amazing cause he need to use power with his legs (1) his lack of limbs made him a target for school bullies (1) His name is Cornel Hrisca-Munn (1) However (2) Huang Guofu (1) Ibrahim Hamato (1) incredible (4) is a Pakistani school pupil and education activist from the town of Mingora in the Swat District of Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. (1) It is not about beeing a religious person (1) it is only about having the feeling that you are able to help others (1) it's like a sword has pierced his body. (1) Jeremy Lim (1) Jessica Cox (1) Just a few years ago Aliki Chrysochou lost her coordination and her ability to speak and move when she was diagnosed with neurological disease focal encephalitis (1) Kakenya Ntaiya (1) Life examples (34) Lizzie Velasquez (1) Malala Yousafzai (1) More recently (1) Mother Teresa of Calcutta (1) Moussa Ag Assarid (1) Mullins was born with fibular hemimelia (missing fibula bones) and (1) multiracial election (1) n a practice known as baad (1) Naomi Feil (1) Narayanan Krishnan (1) Narayanan Krishnan was on his way to be an award-winning chef at a 5-star restaurant in Switzerland. (1) Nelson Mandela (1) Nick Vujicic (1) Ntaiya tells the fearless story of continuing on to college (1) Phan Thi Kim Phuc (1) Qian Hongyan (1) Qian Hongyan at age 3 had a car accident and lost both legs (1) Rahama Haruna (1) Randy Pausch (1) Sarah Bartman (1) Scotland (1) Sentayehu Teshale (1) she was born with an orthopedic condition that caused her knees to bend backwards (1) She was born without arms due to a rare birth defect (1) special humands (1) special humans (3) Sung Bong Choi (1) Susan Boyle (1) Susan Boyle Magdalane (West Lothian (1) Team Hoyt strives to help those who are physically disabled become active members of the community (1) That didn’t stop him from following his dreams (1) That terrified little girl is still alive today and has become an eloquent testimony to the authenticity of that photo (1) the "Inspirational Hero Award (1) The Hottentot Venus (1) The story of Rick and Dick Hoyt (1) The sweet and peaceful character of Joi Joi-South African to receive amicably led the Boers (farmers) installed (1) The twins Abigail and Brittany Hensel (1) Thomas Quasthoff (1) Tony Meléndez (1) unbelievable (6) With a degree in hand and future in sight (1)