He was nine when he arrived in Batang Pinangga. Strong, observant, amiable, frank, and yes, sensitive. If he did not like what he saw in you, he would tell you, like, “What are you wearing, you don’t look good in it”. In his elementary years, he easily got in trouble because he could hurt someone while playing. One day, a child was hurt because he threw a wooden stick that the child failed to catch and that instead went straight to the child’s head. The boy just looked at the dripping blood on another child; he did not run away and just stood there. This was just among many accidents. His teacher said that the boy was very good at making drawings, but she found out that these drawings were very vulgar.
Our boy’s name is Michael. Many said that he had heavy hands because he could easily hurt someone. Michael said that he was just playing. One day Papa Butch sat down with him and told him why not use his hands to make beautiful drawings, as he is very good at it. And, like a cloud was lifted, Michael started to represent his school in art competitions and emerged as the winner. His teachers would call on him to do something for the school projects and events, and he made beautiful pieces. Remarkably, this boy grew up kind, friendly, respectful, dependable.
Elementary years passed, then secondary, and onwards to university. Michael pursued Fine Arts major in painting. It was the same: his teachers would ask him to submit his artwork to competitions, and without expectations, he would win. He successfully defended his thesis and graduated in June 2022, a shining moment amid the uncertainties of the time.
It is said that hurt people hurt people. It could be said true in Michael’s case. A child who grew up in a traumatic home environment is a witness to something horrible happening at home. He was angry and sad at the same time.
Yet after 18 years, this boy is proof that a child flourishes in a nurturing environment and with willpower. Michael told the other children during his college graduation, to continue dreaming, be grateful, persevere, and finish education. Michael and his older sister lived with an aunt before they transferred to Batang Pinangga in 2005. His older sister is now married and both of them are in close contact.
Michael is establishing himself among the group of young artists and continually hones his craft. He joins exhibits from time to time. During his spare time, and after graduation, he comes home to Batang Pinangga to volunteer: cultivating the gardens, cooking, mowing the grass, and cutting and trimming here and there. The whole place his busy canvass. As a realist artist, Michael is producing real, powerful images, telling stories as he sees them, and from his heart, his beautiful hands create them to life.
Residential Care Program Head
(Article written with permission)
