Human Library project @ Human Library 'book' helps students see
NORMAL
— Amanda Coleman traveled all the way from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to
Illinois State University to tell her story of resilience, forgiveness and
healing.
She
was one of 52 “books” who shared their stories Wednesday as part of the Human
Library project. The others covered topics from depression to rape to
immigration.
Coleman,
47, was only 18 months old when she lost most of the sight in her left eye and
entered the foster care system in Canada. It wasn't until she was 15 that she
learned the injury was caused by her mother, who had mental health problems and
had stabbed her in the eye.
Sitting
around a table in the Bone Student Center Brown Ballroom, students listened
intently as Coleman talked about the challenges she faced, including not only
her injured eye but also years spent in foster care. Coleman gave three
presentations.
Katie
Pratt of ISU's University College, which oversees the program, said this is the
third year ISU has used the Human Library project for freshman and transfer
student courses. It has grown from 30 "books" to more than 50.
While
researching human libraries, with the intent to just watch, Pratt came across
ISU's project and the opportunity to take part as a “book.”
Coleman
shared her story through words and images, including an “altered” book she is
creating.
An
altered book is a form of mixed media that transforms an actual book into a
piece of art. In Coleman's case, her idea is to use altered books to relate
life experiences. The idea is part of a master's thesis on which she is working
that will involve school children creating altered books of their experiences.
She
also brought eye patches for the students to try to help them understand what
it's like not to have vision in one eye. While at least one student in the
afternoon session tried the patch, a few nervously fingered them but did not
put them on.
Near
the start of her book, which she called, “The Girl with the Injured Eye,”
Coleman included an image of the back of a piece of fabric she picked up while
traveling in Afghanistan.
“It's
messy and chaotic and sometimes life is like that,” Coleman said. “But there's
a profound beauty to it.”
Coleman
went through a period of trying to “disguise my injured eye” — even
requesting that a doctor remove it and replace it with a glass eye. The doctor
refused because she still had some limited vision.
Coleman
said she came to realize, “what I think is a flaw in me, people don't even
notice.” She began to see her left eye “as this resilient part of myself. … My
eye is my source of my inner strength now.”
She
met her mother when she was 12 and said, "She deserves healing in this
lifetime as well."
Freshman
Lori Michelsen of Burbank liked the symbolism of the Afghan fabric and said, “I
was fascinated by her story."
Kailee
Ross, a freshman from Naperville, said after the presentation, “I can't even
imagine having to go through what she went through.” Ross said it was a
reminder that “you don't really know all the struggles that people go through.”
Coleman
said she hopes the message that students take from her story is that “we can
overcome adversity. My eye is a perfect example of that. … We have life challenges,
but we can move through them.”
Regards
Pralhad Jadhav
Senior Manager @ Library
Khaitan & Co
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