Afraid that her son would be too tired, Ms. Wendy would sometimes tell the boy to skip school, but each time, Fabian would insist on going to school. "I don't like _ because when I return to school, I don't know what's going on," the 12-year-old boy explained. He suffers for SMA-a neuromuscular disease that leads to weakness in muscles-and gets around in a wheelchair. Fabian's determination to excel in his studies was evident when he was disappointed that he got a total score of 236 yesterday in his Primary School Leaving Examination. He was hoping for a score of at least 240, but his mother was full of pride. "I am happy with his results. He's very motivated," said Ms. Wendy. When Fabian was two months old, he was diagnosed with SMA. Ms. Wendy, who used to go to other homes to teach piano lessons, started teaching lessons at home so she could take care of her son. Fabian proved to be a fighter. Ms. Wendy said, " He would study every day on his own even though he was weak and his spine was already starting to curve quite badly." Fabian is also active in the Singapore Disability Sports Council, where he plays boccia , a ball sport for those who require a wheelchair due to physical disability. At just 133cm tall and weighing 14kg, he knows that he will have to rely on others all his life. "I'm afraid that when my parents grow older, they will not be able to carry me and that there will be nobody to carry me," said Fabian. "But for now, I feel lucky that I get to go out and do a lot of things that I thought I couldn't." His dreams aren't lofty either-all he want to be able to do is work and provide for his parents. "I just want to study hard so that I can be a businessman, like my dad." He is planning to apply to study at Victoria School. Which words can best describe Fabian?
Sensitive and weak. Active and optimistic. Clever and strong. Stressed and concerned.