{"id":3456,"date":"2014-07-08T08:11:05","date_gmt":"2014-07-08T12:11:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=3456"},"modified":"2014-07-08T08:23:05","modified_gmt":"2014-07-08T12:23:05","slug":"the-example-of-carlos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=3456","title":{"rendered":"the example of carlos"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Fifa-World-Cup-Brazil-2014-e1396712263296\"<\/a>So once again in recent weeks, we\u2019ve witnessed the many bold, (for lack of better words)<\/i> in-your-face comments on cyberspace — some by us, some by professional politicians and editorialists.\u00a0 I am always a bit taken back by the many who justify such passionate vitriol, typically in the name of justice for some but rarely justice for all.\u00a0 We seem to elevate who is<\/i> in need of justice… who is<\/i> a victim… and who actually<\/i> deserves respect; then in turn, we justify injustice or disrespect to another.\u00a0 I don\u2019t always get that.\u00a0 We simply don\u2019t know how to treat all people well.<\/p>\n

I continued to ponder that quandary while watching yet another World Cup match, and then I saw the story told by both ESPN and USA Today about young Carlos Alberto Junior, a 27 year old soccer fan living in Sao Paulo, Brazil — in a story which instantly put life in a far better perspective…<\/p>\n

Carlos has been deaf since birth.\u00a0 He loves soccer — and especially the World Cup.\u00a0 One of his favorite memories, in fact, is of the 2002 World Cup, in which he watched Ronaldo\u2019s Brazil triumphantly score.\u00a0 \u201cI remember the 2002 World Cup.\u00a0 That was an excellent game!\u00a0 Ronaldo scored the goal.\u00a0 With his stylish hair he did the goal dance, and all the players ran to hug Ronaldo.\u00a0 I remember this move, the dance, and Ronaldo\u2019s hair.\u00a0 That was great!\u00a0 I got really emotional with this move.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

Carlos, however, also has Usher\u2019s syndrome, a genetic condition that causes one\u2019s sight to dim over time.\u00a0 Since that 2002 Cup, Carlos has gone blind, only able to discern dim shapes and shadows.\u00a0 Brazil\u2019s 2002 competition is not only one of his favorite<\/i> memories, but also one of his last visible<\/i> memories.<\/p>\n

Knowing how much Carlos loves soccer and his beloved Brazil, Carlos\u2019s friend, H\u00e9lio Fonseca de Araujo, a sign language instructor, wanted to help Carlos experience the excitement surrounding this year\u2019s competition.\u00a0 He created a mini, maneuverable soccer field to scale, using cardboard, felt, paint, and plastic goals.\u00a0 During the games, watching the television, Fonseca de Araujo then guides Carlos\u2019s hands on the mini field, to indicate where the ball is.\u00a0 At the same time, Fonseca de Araujo\u2019s wife, Regiane Pereira, also an interpreter, sits behind Carlos and uses hand movements upon his back to relate play-by-play of the match.\u00a0 Observing their means of communication is fascinating to say the least.\u00a0 As ESPN meaningfully articulates, \u201cFrom the national anthem to the player introductions to the ebbs and flows of the match, this is how Carlos experiences the World Cup.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 To see how he experiences a goal by Brazil is even more beautiful.\u00a0 His cheers are no less joyful… no less resilient… no less.<\/p>\n

Says Fonseca de Araujo, \u201cIt was the same emotion of any other person who could actually see the goal.\u00a0 He celebrated.\u00a0 He jumped up and down.\u00a0 He yelled and screamed.\u00a0 It was something unique.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

As Carlos says in regard to his way of watching the World Cup, \u201cI remember I had a sad life.\u00a0 I was always lonely.\u00a0 I met H\u00e9lio and his wife, Regiane, and they started to help me.\u00a0 It is a true friendship that will last.\u00a0 They are great friends.\u00a0 They helped me and made me grow.\u00a0 God bless their life!\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

There is no focus on being a victim or on limited injustice.<\/p>\n

There is a focus on the positive.<\/p>\n

There is a focus on growth.<\/p>\n

And there is a focus on how to treat all people well.<\/p>\n

Thank God for the example of Carlos.<\/p>\n

Respectfully…<\/p>\n

AR<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

So once again in recent weeks, we\u2019ve witnessed the many bold, (for lack of better words) in-your-face comments on cyberspace — some by us, some by professional politicians and editorialists.\u00a0 I am always a bit taken back by the many who justify such passionate vitriol, typically in the name of justice for some but rarely … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “the example of carlos”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3456","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-event"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3456","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3456"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3456\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3462,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3456\/revisions\/3462"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3456"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3456"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3456"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}