Hồng’s parents took her out of school in Grade 5. They weren’t facing financial issues, her grades weren’t bad and she had no behavioral setbacks. It was just because she has cerebral palsy.

Hồng: Leaving the nest

Cerebral palsy — a physical disability that affects movement and posture — does not affect learning abilities. However, as is often the case for people with disabilities in Vietnam, Hồng’s parents believed she would be safer at home with them. But Hồng was not content with a quiet life at her home in Bắc Kạn Province. As she got older, she felt increasingly restless. More and more, she imagined the sights she might see, the people she might meet, and the things she might be able to achieve, if she could somehow break out on her own.

Hồng (left) with her partner (right). They met during a Chạm Vào Xanh trip to the countryside.

Hồng began researching opportunities for people with disabilities online. When she found the chance to work in Hanoi, selling small items on the street — cotton swabs, nail clippers, pens — she left the safety of her home behind and traveled to the city. Despite the long, grueling days spent walking the streets, Hồng found the experience thrilling. She was finally out on her own, earning her own money and meeting people outside her family, which was why she was so crushed when, in 2023, the organization supporting her ran into financial difficulties and had to let her go.

Hồng moved back to her hometown. Still, having had a brief taste of independent life, she was not going to let it go. Searching online, she found an organization called Chạm Vào Xanh, a social enterprise that supports people with disabilities, especially those with cerebral palsy. It just so happened that Chạm Vào Xanh was looking for someone with cerebral palsy to work in their shop, Maru Amigurumi. Shortly after Hồng applied for the position, she received a response from Chạm Vào Xanh co-founder, Hiếu Lưu.

Hiếu: Transcending barriers

Lưu Thị Hiếu detests clichés about the shortness of life. She believes that existence is rich and diverse, and that, if we live openly and honestly, we have plenty of time to see and experience the world — and change it. She has worked for Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation and the United Nations; she has lived in Việt Nam, Japan and Malaysia; she speaks three languages, has a master's degree, has traveled to multiple countries, and has amassed millions of views on TikTok.

Lưu Thị Hiếu (left) and her friend Nguyễn Thùy Chi (right), the cofounders of Chạm Vào Xanh.

Hiếu also has cerebral palsy, and is doing whatever she can to make the world a better place for others with the same condition. One way she is doing that is through Chạm Vào Xanh, a social enterprise that she co-founded with the goal of bridging the gap between people with disabilities and society. Something Hiếu has seen time and again, both in her own journey and in those of the people she supports at Chạm Vào Xanh, is that one seemingly trivial thing — a hobby, an experience or a relationship — can be the catalyst that a person with disabilities needs to break through societal barriers and thrive.

With that in mind, Chạm Vào Xanh approaches its mission by introducing people with disabilities to new experiences. They organize trips to the countryside, host art exhibitions, and help people to find jobs, internships and academic courses. And through this, many of the people they help find friends, lovers, joy and independence — they find that life can be just as rich for them as for anyone else. 

A lifeline

Hiếu’s own story shows how complicated it can be to normalize joy and encourage independence for people living with disabilities, particularly those with cerebral palsy. While the initial brain injury that causes cerebral palsy remains unchanged throughout life, the physical side effects have a tendency to spread and multiply over time.

At an event to mark the official collaboration of Chạm Vào Xanh and Adults Living with Cerebral Palsy (ACPV) Bắc Giang.

A few years ago, Hiếu’s disability changed, forcing her to re-evaluate her role in the world and find new ways to continue enjoying life. When Hiếu began to suffer from back pains, she convinced herself that it was nothing — that she had just been sleeping strangely, or that it was a side effect of other temporary injuries she had suffered — but deep down she knew that there was something deeply wrong with her body. 

When she could no longer ignore it, she visited a doctor who gave her the news she had been dreading. Her pain was the result of a spinal injury caused by walking in the wrong posture since childhood, and because there was no way to correct her posture, all she could do was live with the pain as it continued to migrate and intensify. The doctor then warned her that the injury would soon affect her arms, and he was right.

Art is an important way to enrich the life of anybody, but especially those living with disabilities.

Shortly after that visit to the doctor, Hiếu reached into her pocket but couldn’t feel the object she was grasping for. She thought her hand was numb because she’d slept on it awkwardly, but the numbness persisted for days, weeks, and months until it spread throughout her body. The decline of Hiếu’s physical abilities coincided with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, compounding her sense of fear and isolation. But, in her darkest hour, she found a lifeline: photography.

“If it weren’t for my camera during the COVID-19 period, I don’t know how I would have gotten through it. I couldn’t meet anyone, couldn’t cook anymore, got tired from holding a book, and wasn’t skilled at writing or drawing, so photography accompanied me through the beginning of the secondary complications of my cerebral palsy, helping me get used to the pain, helplessness, and sadness. I’m very thankful for photography.”

A beacon of hope

Amid the pain and the sadness, photography gave Hiếu the strength to keep living and searching for the beauty in life and, finally, to set up an organization focused on giving similar lifelines to other people with disabilities. In October 2022, Hiếu and her friend, Nguyễn Thùy Chi — who also has cerebral palsy and is the head of an organization called Adults Living with Cerebral Palsy — set up Chạm Vào Xanh. Together, they are using all their personal and professional experience to act as a voice, a “beacon of hope” and a source of empowerment for people with disabilities.

Chạm Vào Xanh members try out a friendly match of boccia, a Paralympic precision ball sport, with Japanese volunteers.

Chạm Vào Xanh approaches their work from two main angles. On the one hand, they work to break down restrictive societal perceptions of people with disabilities. They do this by giving talks at school, companies and events, telling the stories of people with disabilities and educating people on how to remove barriers for them. On the flipside, by serving as a safe and nurturing space where individuals can find training and employment, experience the thrills of self-expression, and look for joy in life, Chạm Vào Xanh enables people with disabilities to break through societal barriers and become integral contributors to their communities. 

Some of the main ways that Chạm Vào Xanh does this include art therapy sessions, networking events, vocational training, and employment opportunities in their shop, Maru Amigurumi. Located in Cầu Giấy District of Hà Nội, Maru Amigurumi is run by people with disabilities, selling crocheted dolls made by people with disabilities. 

Maru Amigurumi is a store where one can purchase crochet, and other, arts.

New experiences lead to new experiences

One day, in 2023, Hiếu was looking for a new member of staff for Maru Amigurumi when she received an application from a woman named Hồng. While Hồng wasn’t the most compelling candidate on paper, she had enough experience to warrant a chance, so Hiếu quickly reached out to arrange an interview. 

During her interview, Hồng’s passion eclipsed any doubts Hiếu may have held about her candidacy for the role. Hồng proved to be clever, eloquent and determined, promising to give her all to the opportunities at Chạm Vào Xanh while improving Maru Amigurumi’s sales and driving the store in new and exciting directions. She didn’t disappoint.

A cultural exchange event with participants from Japan, Cambodia, Nepal, Pakistan, and Mongolia discussing efforts to promote independent living amongst people with disabilities.

At first, Hồng had no place to stay, so she slept at the store after work. It wasn’t ideal, but she was out in the world again, earning her own money and living on her own terms. And, unlike the first time that she moved to Hà Nội, she now had a community of people supporting her. At Chạm Vào Xanh, she joined trips and social activities, made friends and learned new skills through training courses.

Then, early last year, she went on a date with a man that she met on a trip to the countryside with Chạm Vào Xanh. They soon became a couple and decided to move in together. Since neither had rented a place before, Chạm Vào Xanh helped them find an apartment, negotiate with their new landlord, and raise money for everything they’d need to begin their new life together.

Through it all, Hồng has stayed true to her promise, working hard and significantly improving Maru Amigurumi’s sales. Soon, Hồng not only had a job, a partner and an apartment, but her first-ever salary raise.

“Everything Is Beautiful”

Hiếu and Hồng are now close friends. From her interview onwards, Hồng has proven herself to be a valuable contributor to society, to her new friends, her family and to Chạm Vào Xanh. Her new dream is to expand Maru Amigurumi to her hometown, helping others with cerebral palsy to thrive just like she is, and just like Hiếu did before her.

As for Hiếu, she continues to dedicate her time and energy to improving the lives of people with disabilities, showing both them and society-at -arge that they have the power to be meaningful contributors to their communities, and are capable of enjoying rich, full lives.

The spreading numbness means Hiếu finds it more and more difficult to express herself through photography — such a lifeline during her darkest moments. “Sometimes I feel like there’s a disconnect between my hands and my heart,” shares Hiếu. But she knows that there is always something to keep fighting for. Witnessing the journeys of people like Hồng, going for New Year's Eve drinks with friends from all around the world, and plans to travel to Pakistan next year, remind her that it’s all worth it.

“To be honest, there’s still a sense of helplessness in me,” says Hiếu. “Sometimes I’m scared, and there are only two choices: stop everything or keep living. And then, there are moments when everything looks beautiful — everything is beautiful — and that’s when I want to keep living.”

Photos courtesy of Chạm Vào Xanh.