“I have been working at The Nest for over a year now. My job is to prepare sandwiches, make coffee and other food items - my favourite is the chicken and avocado wrap. I also help with cleaning and tidying up at the cafe. Prior to this, I worked at a local fast food chain. The work environment there was so stressful and unpleasant - I much prefer it here and I really enjoy coming in to work and seeing my colleagues every day. There is a real sense of human touch and connection here at this place.”

「我喺 The Nest 做咗一年有多。我工作主要係負責整三文治，咖啡同埋其他嘢食咁 - 我最鍾意嘅就係雞肉牛油果卷。我都會幫手清潔吓咖啡室。做呢份工之前, 我喺一間本地快餐店度做。嗰度個工作環境好大壓力，好差 - 我喺度做開心好多，日日都好鍾意見到啲同事。呢度好有人情味，好有聯繫感。」 

“I live with my mother and sister in Fanling - there’s a lot of green, open space there. On my days off, I like to go and Yum Cha with my family, or to watch films. I enjoy Tom Cruise movies, or Kung Fu movies like the Donnie Yen ones. As a kid, I particularly loved language classes, especially Chinese. My teacher used to tell these wonderful stories as a way of teaching. I think storytelling is so important and such a great tool of communication. I also like to read books that inspire and encourage, which have really helped me to shape my mindset. Back then, I used to get irritated and angry a lot whenever I felt overwhelmed at work. I would feel like there were too many tasks to do and I would complain a lot. Through these books, I have learned ways to cope with my emotions. It has brought me a sense of calm - I now see every extra task or challenge as a new learning opportunity!”

“My little sister is 7 years younger than me and has mild Down’s Syndrome. I remember when we were kids, I found it really difficult to communicate with her. I struggled to understand what she needed or wanted. As a teenager, I joined a volunteer group to visit a centre where we supported children with Down’s Syndrome. There was a young girl, around the same age as my sister at the time, who was pointing at something and trying to articulate her words. One of the other volunteers told me to follow her finger slowly, to listen intently. That experience changed my relationship with my sister; we are extremely close now. I slowly learned her way of communication and to listen to her needs - it’s all about compassion and patience.”

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「我同媽媽同細妹喺粉嶺住，嗰度環境綠化，近大自然。放假嗰時我鍾意同屋企人去飲茶，又或者睇戲 - 尤其是湯告魯斯呀，同埋甄子丹啲功夫片咁。細個嗰陣好鍾意語言班，特別係中文。老師會用講故事嘅方式去教學。我覺得故事係一個好重要同有效嘅溝通技巧。我都喜歡睇勵志嘅書，幫到我改變心態。以前我工作太忙嘅時候, 會好易發脾氣。啲書令我學識點樣平衡自己嘅情緒，個人平靜咗。我依家一有新嘅挑戰, 就當係學習機會！」

「我妹妹細我七年，有輕度弱智。記得細個嗰陣，我覺得好難同佢溝通。我唔識點明白佢想要啲咩。中學嗰陣，我做義工, 去幫助啲弱智嘅小朋友。有個妹妹，同我個妹差唔多大，用手指指住一個地方，好似想講啲嘢咁。另外一個義工叫我慢慢睇住佢隻手指，慢慢聽。嗰次之候, 我同妹妹感情好好多。我慢慢學識佢嘅溝通方式，仔細聆聽佢嘅需要 - 其實, 最緊要都係有同理心同埋耐性。」