For the first time in years, I felt something thaw inside me. I wasn’t alone. Others like me existed—and they lived. They laughed. They weren’t broken.
Vera became my friend. She showed me alternative communication methods, encouraged me to use apps, gestures, cards. But most importantly, she never pitied me. She believed in me.
One day, she said softly: “You are all pain, but you keep going. That’s real strength.”
Her words became my anchor.
