.I remember him well because of the way he stood in such a humble way, with his head down and his hand on his chin. He stood near to us just anticipating getting even the slightest bit of attention.

We asked him what he needed, and he shared that he would like to have a pair of dark sunglasses to hide his empty socket, and because the sun hurt his remaining eye. (We bought a pair of dark sunglasses and took them back to him the following day, for which he was extremely thankful).

What is Semmalai's life like? He often doesn't feel well (probably because he has to eat the rationed rice and slop), so he cannot always eat. When he feels able to eat, it is far from enough for his hunger.

Semmalai standing.

Lowell puts a new pair of dark glasses on Semmalai.

Semmalai praying. That day when I saw Semmalai in his room with his meager dinner, he was gulping like a starving animal, as though it were the only meal he had gotten for several days. He still looked very hungry, and his spoon had hit bottom. Since he cannot see, he must trust what is given to him; he can't even pick through it for insects or other foreign matter. Either way, he doesn't have much of a choice. It's either eat what you get or starve to death.

Not only spiders crawled on his walls, but bloodsucking insects too. The dark spots are eggs . There were thousands plastering his walls. His room where he sleeps is very small and dungeon-like, like a cell room. Instead of a mat, he had a rope cot that looked extremely uncomfortable to even lie down on. There was no mattress. The worst part was this poor man could not see, and all over the walls of his room were not just spiders crawling but also biting insects that drink human blood. So every night Semmalai must spend much of his time itching and scratching and wondering what is crawling on him.

We found out later that all the rooms had these bugs that were tormenting the people living there. We asked him if he had any hobbies or pastimes. It was encouraging to hear him say; "Every morning, afternoon, and evening I will be praying".

Learn how you can help Semmalai by making a life-changing
difference in this leprosy colony - please click here.

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