The World Of Tzu Chi(Vol.128)

2020 • 11 14 eature “In fact, they all can be skilful only if their command of English is not weak. Thus, I advise them to learn and master English so they can take the professional exam,” said Bridget. “It’s also our plan to get professional trainers to upskill our staff, for example in identifying different varieties of coffee beans, their respective aroma profiles, and so on. For those staff who are interested in roasting raw coffee beans, we send them to our coffee roaster, who is also our business partner, for them to better understand the roasting process.” Moreover, Bridget’s role includes cultivating her staff’s hospitality skills. Some of her staff hardly smile due to a lack in social confidence. Bridget breaks the barrier through setting an example. She recalled, “There was a staff who never smiled. So, every morning I would consciously smile at him, but he never responded.” After two weeks, she deliberately showed a bitter face when she got in to work. Interestingly, this staff was very curious and asked if she was not feeling well or not in a good mood. Bridget immediately replied, “You like to see me smile, don’t you? Then you must smile too.” Bridget only found out later that this staff’s entire family was deaf. There was no one to teach him to smile. Indeed, learning resources for the deaf community are limited. Thus, Bridget is willing to share what she knew and learned with them. How could I lose something I never had? “Come, let me share with you an incident.” “God is very fair. In a year, I will surely get sore throat once or twice, sometimes to the extent of losing my voice totally. Once, a few customers saw me communicating with my colleagues using sign language, and one of them whispered, ‘Oh, this older lady is also deaf!’Although it was just a misunderstanding, I felt rather sad at that time.” Hence, she hopes everyone can put themselves in a deaf person’s shoes and empathize with them. They just want to go to school, work and live their life just like any other person. We do not have to treat them differently. After a few years of working with the deaf, Bridget learned a lot from them. She once hoped that her chef, Chuah, could regain part of his hearing with the help of hearing aid. So she arranged hearing checks for him. But after a few visits to the hospital, Chuah gave up because every time he went with hope, he returned disappointed. He expressed in sign language, “How could I lose my hearing when I never could hear?” One time, Bridget slipped and fell badly in the Café. Chuah immediately rushed out from the kitchen to check what was happening. It made Bridget wonder how Chuah knew when he could not hear. As it turned out, Chuah felt the vibration of the floor and guessed something had happened. “Is it really that important to be able to hear? Although the deaf could not hear, their other senses are more sensitive compared to those who can hear,” said Bridget. From that experience, it dawned on Bridget that sometimes the deaf can outshine an average Joe. Only when we are willing