Ramona Pierson: An unexpected place of healing

Translator: Laura T. Reviewer: Līga Greiškāne

Es patiesībā jums pastāstīšu ko tādu,

I'm actually going to share something with you

par ko neesmu runājusi, iespējams, vairāk kā 10 gadus.

I haven't talked about probably in more than 10 years.

Pacietieties,

So bear with me as I take you through this journey.

kamēr vedīšu jūs cauri šim ceļojumam.

When I was 22 years old,

Kad es biju 22 gadus veca,

I came home from work, put a leash on my dog

atnācu mājās no darba, uzliku kaklasiksnu savam sunim,

and went for my usual run.

un devos savā ierastajā skrējienā.

I had no idea that at that moment,

Man nebija ne jausmas, ka tajā brīdī

my life was going to change forever.

mana dzīve mainīsies uz visiem laikiem.

While I was preparing my dog for the run,

Kamēr es gatavoju savu suni skrējienam,

kāds vīrietis bārā beidza dzert,

a man was finishing drinking at a bar,

picked up his car keys, got into a car

paņēma savas mašīnas atslēgas, iekāpa mašīnā

un devās uz dienvidiem,

and headed south,

or wherever he was.

vai vienalga uz kurieni.

Es skrēju pāri ielai,

I was running across the street,

un vienīgā lieta, ko es faktiski atceros,

and the only thing that I actually remember

ir sajūta, it kā granāta man ietriektos galvā.

is feeling like a grenade went off in my head.

Un es atceros noliekam savas rokas uz zemes

And I remember putting my hands on the ground

un jūtot, ka manas dzīvības asinis

and feeling my life's blood

man iztek no kakla

emptying out of my neck and my mouth.

un manas mutes.

Notika tas,

What had happened is, he ran a red light

ka viņš brauca pie sarkanās gaismas un notrieca mani un manu suni.

and hit me and my dog.

She ended up underneath the car.

Suns pakļuva zem automašīnas.

Es izlidoju mašīnas priekšā,

I flew out in front of the car,

and then he ran over my legs.

un tad tā pārbrauca man pāri kājām.

My left leg got caught up in the wheel well --

Mana kreisā kāja iesprūda ritenī --

tā sagriezās.

spun it around.

Mašīnas buferis trāpīja man pa rīkli,

The bumper of the car hit my throat,

slicing it open.

atplēšot to vaļā.

I ended up with blunt chest trauma.

Rezultātā no trieciena es guvu krūškurvja traumu.

Your aorta comes up behind your heart, it's your major artery --

Aiz tavas sirds ir aorta.

Tā ir lielākā artērija, un tā bija pārrauta,

and it was severed, so my blood was gurgling out of my mouth.

tāpēc asinis burbuļoja ārā no manas mutes.

Tās putoja,

It foamed, and ... horrible things were happening to me.

un ar mani notika šausmīgas lietas.

Es nesapratu, kas notiek,

I had no idea what was going on,

bet iejaucās svešinieki,

but strangers intervened,

centās likt manai sirdij iet, sisties.

kept my heart moving, beating.

I say "moving," because it was quivering,

Es saku "iet", jo tā trīsuļoja

un viņi centās tai atkal iedvest dzīvību.

and they were trying to put a beat back into it.

Kāds bija gudrs un ielika Bic pildspalvu manā kaklā,

Somebody was smart and put a Bic pen in my neck

lai atvērtu manu elpvadu, lai tajā varētu iekļūt gaiss.

to open up my airway, so I could get some air in there.

Un mana plauša sabruka,

And my lung collapsed,

so somebody cut me open and put a pen in there as well,

tāpēc kāds mani atgrieza vaļā un ielika tur spraudīti,

to stop that catastrophic event from happening.

lai apturētu katastrofisko notikumu.

Somehow I ended up at the hospital.

Kaut kā es nokļuvu slimnīcā.

Es biju ievīstīta ledū,

I was wrapped in ice,

and then eventually put into a drug-induced coma.

un tad galu galā ievadīta zāļu izraisītā komā.

Pēc 18 mēnešiem es pamodos.

Eighteen months later, I woke up.

I was blind, I couldn't speak

Es biju akla, nevarēju parunāt,

and I couldn't walk.

un nevarēju pastaigāt.

I was 64 pounds.

Es svēru 64 mārciņas.

The hospital really has no idea what to do with people like that.

Slimnīcai nebija ne jausmas,

ko darīt ar tādiem cilvēkiem.

And in fact, they started to call me a "gomer."

Un viņi sāka mani saukt par Gomeru.

That's another story we won't even get into.

Tas ir cits stāsts, kuru es pat nesākšu.

I had so many surgeries to put my neck back together,

Man tika veiktas tik daudzas operācijas, lai saliktu atpakaļ kopā manu kaklu,

pāris reizes lai atjaunotu manu sirdi.

to repair my heart a few times.

Some things worked, some things didn't.

Dažas lietas izdevās, dažas nē.

Manī tika ievietots daudz titāna,

I had lots of titanium put in me;

kauli no līķiem,

cadaver bones,

to try to get my feet moving the right way.

lai manas pēdas kustētos pareizi.

And I ended up with a plastic nose,

Un beigās es biju ar plastmasas degunu, porcelāna zobiem

porcelain teeth and all kinds of other things.

un dažādām citām lietām.

But eventually, I started to look human again.

Bet beidzot es atkal sāku izskatīties pēc cilvēka.

But ...

Taču reizēm ir grūti runāt par šīm lietām,

It's hard sometimes to talk about these things,

tāpēc pacietiet mani.

so bear with me.

I had more than 50 surgeries.

Man tika veiktas vairāk kā 50 operācijas.

But who's counting?

Bet kurš gan skaita?

(Laughter)

Tā nu galu galā slimnīca izlēma,

So eventually, the hospital decided it was time for me to go.

ka man jādodas prom.

They needed to open up space for somebody else

Viņiem vajadzēja atbrīvot vietu

kādam citam, kas, kā viņi domāja, varētu atlabt

that they thought could come back

from whatever they were going through.

no tā, kas viņam bija.

Everybody lost faith in me being able to recover.

Ikviens zaudēja ticību, ka es varētu atveseļoties.

Viņi būtībā pielika pie sienas karti, meta šautriņu,

So they basically put a map up on the wall, threw a dart,

un tās mērķis bija veco ļaužu pansionāts šeit, Kolorādo.

and it landed at a senior home, here in Colorado.

And I know all of you are scratching your head:

Un es zinu, ka jūs visi kasāt savu galvu:

"Veco ļaužu pansionāts? Ko gan tu tur darīsi?"

"A senior citizens' home?

What in the world are you going to do there?"

Bet ja jūs padomājat par

But if you think about all of the skills and talent

visām spējām un talantiem, kas šobrīd atrodas šajā telpā,

that are in this room right now,

tad tā tas ir arī veco ļaužu pansionātā.

that's what a senior home has.

Tur bija visas šīs spējas un talanti,

So there were all these skills and talents

kas bija šiem senioriem.

that these seniors had.

The one advantage they had over most of you

Viena priekšrocība, kas viņiem ir pār vairumu no jums,

ir gudrība,

is wisdom,

because they had a long life.

jo viņiem bijusi gara dzīve.

And I needed that wisdom at that moment in my life.

Un tajā dzīves brīdī man bija vajadzīga šī gudrība.

Bet iedomājieties, kā viņi jutās,

But imagine what it was like for them

kad es parādījos uz viņu durvju sliekšņa?

when I showed up at their doorstep.

Tajā brīdī es biju pieņēmusies svarā par 4 mārciņām,

At that point, I had gained four pounds, so I was 68 pounds.

un es svēru 68 mārciņas.

Es biju plikpauraina.

I was bald.

Es valkāju slimnīcas apavus.

I was wearing hospital scrubs.

Un kāds man ziedoja tenisa kurpes.

And somebody donated tennis shoes for me.

And I had a white cane in one hand

Vienā rokā man bija balta nūja,

bet otrā rokā - soma pilna ar medicīnisko vēsturi.

and a suitcase full of medical records in another hand.

Un vecie cilvēki saprata,

So the senior citizens realized

that they needed to have an emergency meeting.

ka viņiem jānotur ārkārtas sapulce.

(Laughter)

(Smiekli)

So they pulled back and they were looking at each other,

Viņi atkāpās un skatījās viens uz otru,

and they were going, "OK, what skills do we have in this room?

un viņi it kā sacīja, "Labi, kādas spējas mums, kas ir šai telpā, piemīt?

This kid needs a lot of work."

Šim bērnam vajag daudz darba."

So they eventually started matching their talents and skills

Galu galā viņi sāka

saskaņot savus talantus un spējas

ar visām manām vajadzībām.

to all of my needs.

Bet viena no pirmajām lietām, kas viņiem bija jāizdara,

But one of the first things they needed to do

bija jānovērtē, kas man steidzami vajadzīgs .

was assess what I needed right away.

Man bija jāsaprot,

I needed to figure out how to eat like a normal human being,

kā ēst kā normālam cilvēkam,

since I'd been eating through a tube in my chest

jo līdz tam brīdim es ēdu caur caurulīti kaklā

un caur savām vēnām.

and through my veins.

So I had to go through trying to eat again.

Man bija jāmēģina atkal censties ēst normāli.

And they went through that process.

Un viņi visam šim procesam gāja cauri.

Un tad viņiem bija jāsaprot:

And then they had to figure out:

"Well, she needs furniture.

"Viņai vajag mēbeles.

She is sleeping in the corner of this apartment."

Viņa guļ šī dzīvokļa stūrī."

So they went to their storage lockers

Viņi gāja pie saviem skapīšiem

and all gathered their extra furniture --

un visi atnesa savas liekās lietas, viņi

gave me pots and pans, blankets --

iedeva man katlus un pannas, segas,

visu.

everything.

And then the next thing that I needed

Un nākamā lieta, ko man vajadzēja,

bija pārvērtības.

was a makeover.

(Laughter)

Tad nu projām bija zaļie traipi

So out went the green scrubs,

un to vietā nāca poliestera un augu attēli.

and in came the polyester and floral prints.

(Smiekli)

(Laughter)

We're not going to talk about the hairstyles

Mēs nerunāsim par matu sakārtojumiem, ko viņi centās man piespiedu kārtā izveidot,

they tried to force on me once my hair grew back.

kad mani mati atauga.

Bet es pateicu "nē" ziliem matiem.

But I did say no to the blue hair.

(Smiekli)

(Laughter)

So eventually, what went on is,

Beigu beigās notika tā,

ka viņi izdomāja, ka man vajag mācīties runāt.

they decided that, well, I need to learn to speak.

Tu nevari būt neatkarīgs cilvēks,

You can't be an independent person

ja esi akls un neproti runāt.

if you're not able to speak and you can't see.

So they figured not being able to see is one thing,

Viņi izsprieda, ka nespēja redzēt ir viena lieta,

but they need to get me to talk.

bet viņiem vajadzēja likt man runāt.

So while Sally, the office manager,

Kamēr Sallija, biroja vadītāja,

was teaching me to speak in the day --

pa dienu mācīja mani runāt,

it's hard, because when you're a kid, you take things for granted.

tas ir grūti, jo, kad tu esi bērns,

tu uztver lietas kā pašsaprotamas.

You learn things unconsciously.

Tu neapzināti mācies lietas.

But for me, I was an adult and it was embarrassing,

Bet manā gadījumā, es biju pieaugusi un tas bija apkaunojoši,

un man bija jāmācās, kā saskaņot

and I had to learn how to coordinate my new throat with my tongue

manu jauno rīkli ar manu mēli

and my new teeth and my lips,

un manus jaunos zobus ar lūpām,

and capture the air and get the word out.

un ieelpot gaisu un pateikt vārdu.

So, I acted like a two-year-old,

Es uzvedos kā divgadīgs bērns

and refused to work.

un atteicos darboties.

Bet cilvēkiem bija labāka doma.

But the men had a better idea.

They were going to make it fun for me.

Viņi man šo procesu gribēja padarīt jautru.

Viņi mācīja man lamuvārdu "Scrabble" naktī,

So they were teaching me cuss-word Scrabble at night.

(Smiekli)

(Laughter)

un tad, slepenībā,

And then, secretly, how to swear like a sailor.

kā lādēties kā jūrniekam.

(Laughter)

Es to vienkārši atstāšu jūsu iztēlei,

I'm going to just leave it to your imagination

as to what my first words were --

kādi bija mani pirmie vārdi,

(Laughter)

when Sally finally got my confidence built.

kad Sallija beidzot pacēla manu pašapziņu.

(Laughter)

(Smiekli)

So I moved on from there.

Es devos tālāk.

And a former teacher who happened to have Alzheimer's

Bijusī skolotāja, kurai bija Alcheimera slimība,

took on the task of teaching me to write.

uzņēmās uzdevumu iemācīt man rakstīt.

The redundancy was actually good for me.

Liekvārdība patiesībā nāca man par labu.

So, we'll just keep moving on.

Mēs devāmies tālāk.

(Laughter)

(Smiekli)

Viena no svarīgākajām lietām man

One of the pivotal times for me

was actually learning to cross the street again

bija mācīšanās atkal šķērsot ielu

as a blind person.

kā aklam cilvēkam.

Aizveriet acis.

So close your eyes.

Now imagine you have to cross a street.

Tagad iedomājieties, ka jums jāšķērso iela.

Jūs nezināt, cik tālu šī iela ir,

You don't know how far that street is,

un jūs nezināt, vai ejat taisni,

and you don't know if you're going straight.

And you hear cars whizzing back and forth,

un jūs dzirdat mašīnas džinkstam aizmugurē un priekšā,

un jūs piedzīvojāt briesmīgu negadījumu,

and you had a horrible accident

that landed you in this situation.

kas jūs noveda šajā situācijā.

So there were two obstacles I had to get through.

Bija divi šķēršļi, kam man bija jātiek cauri.

One was post-traumatic stress disorder.

Viens bija pēctraumatiskā stresa sindroms.

Un katru reizi, kad es tuvojos stūrim vai ietves malai,

Every time I approached the corner or the curb,

I would panic.

es kritu panikā.

And the second one

Un otrs

was actually trying to figure out how to cross that street.

bija cenšanās saprast, kā šķērsot ielu.

So one of the seniors just came up to me,

Viens no vecajiem cilvēkiem pienāca pie manis,

and she pushed me up to the corner and said,

un viņa piestūma mani pie stūra un teica,

"Kad tu domā, ka ir laiks iet, vienkārši izbāz nūju uz ielas.

"When you think it's time to go, just stick the cane out there.

Ja to salauž, nešķērso ielu."

If it's hit, don't cross the street."

(Laughter)

(Smiekli)

Diezgan loģiski.

Made perfect sense.

(Laughter)

Taču pēc trešās nūjas,

But by the third cane that went whizzing across the road --

kas aizdžinkstēja pār ceļu,

(Laughter)

viņi saprata, ka viņiem jāsavāc līdzekļi,

they realized that they needed to put their resources together,

un viņi piesaistīja līdzekļus,

and they raised funds

so that I could go to the Braille Institute

lai es varētu doties uz Braila institūtu

and actually gain the skills to be a blind person,

un iegūt prasmes

būt aklam cilvēkam,

un arī saņemt suni pavadoni,

and also to go get a guide dog,

kas mainīja manu dzīvi.

who transformed my life.

Es biju spējīga atgriezties koledžā,

And I was able to return to college

pateicoties vecajiem cilvēkiem, kas manī ieguldīja,

because of the senior citizens who invested in me,

and also the guide dog and skill set I had gained.

un arī sunim pavadonim, un prasmju komplektam, ko es ieguvu.

Ten years later, I gained my sight back.

Pēc 10 gadiem es atguvu redzi.

Bez burvestībām.

Not magically --

Man tika veiktas 3 operācijas,

I opted in for three surgeries,

un viena no tām bija eksperimentāla.

and one of them was experimental.

Tā patiesībā bija robotiskā ķirurģija.

It was actually robotic surgery

that removed a hematoma from behind my eye.

Viņi aiz manas acs izoperēja hematomu.

Lielākā pārmaiņa man

The biggest change for me was that the world moved forward,

bija, ka pasaule turpināja attīstīties,

ka bija jaunatklājumi

that there were innovations and all kinds of new things --

un visādu veidu jaunas lietas --

mobilie tālruņi, portatīvie datori,

cellphones, laptops,

visas šīs lietas, ko nekad iepriekš nebiju redzējusi.

all these things that I had never seen before.

And as a blind person,

Kā aklam cilvēkam

your visual memory fades,

jūsu vizuālā atmiņa izzūd,

to aizvieto jūsu sajūtas par lietām,

and is replaced with how you feel about things

un tas, kā lietas skan,

and how things sound

un kā lietas smaržo.

and how things smell.

So one day, I was in my room

Kādu dienu es biju savā istabā

un redzēju šo lietu sēžam istabā,

and I saw this thing sitting in my room.

un es nodomāju, ka tas ir briesmonis.

I thought it was a monster,

so I was walking around it.

Es apgāju tai apkārt.

And I go, "I'm just going to touch it."

Un teicu, "Es vienkārši tai pieskaršos."

And I touched it and I went,

Un es tai pieskāros, un turpināju,

"Oh my God, it's a laundry basket."

"Ak, mans Dievs, tas ir veļas grozs."

(Smiekli)

(Laughter)

Viss ir citādāks,

Everything is different when you're a sighted person,

kad esi redzīgs,

jo tu to uztver kā pašu par sevi saprotamu.

because you take that for granted.

Bet kad esi akls,

But when you're blind, you have the tactile memory for things.

tev ir taustes atmiņa lietām.

Lielākā pārmaiņa bija skatīšanās lejā uz savām rokām

The biggest change for me was looking down at my hands

and seeing that I'd lost 10 years of my life.

un redzēšana, ka esmu zaudējusi 10 gadus no savas dzīves.

I thought that time had stood still for some reason

Man šķita, ka laiks kāda iemesla dēļ nebija gājis uz priekšu,

and moved on for family and friends.

un gāja uz priekšu tikai ģimenei un draugiem.

But when I looked down,

Bet kad es paskatījos lejā,

I realized that time marched on for me, too,

es sapratu, ka arī man tas ir gājis uz priekšu,

and that I needed to get caught up.

un ka man vajag tam tikt līdzi,

So I got going on it.

un es to sāku darīt.

Kad notika negadījums ar mani,

We didn't have words like "crowdsourcing" and "radical collaboration"

nebija tādu vārdu kā pūļa sadarbība un radikālā sadarbība.

when I had my accident.

Bet koncepts piepildījās --

But the concept held true --

people working with people to rebuild me;

cilvēki sadarbojās ar citiem cilvēkiem, lai mani pārbūvētu;

people working with people to reeducate me.

cilvēki sadarbojās ar citiem cilvēkiem, lai mani no jauna iemācītu.

Es te šodien nestāvētu,

I wouldn't be standing here today

ja nebūtu bijusi šī ekstrēmā radikālā sadarbība.

if it wasn't for extreme radical collaboration.

Thank you so much.

Liels paldies Jums.

(Applause)

(Aplausi)