Hellen+Keller

=Helen Keller= by: St Mark's Senior Secondary School, Meera Bagh, New Delhi, India

**Born** on June 27,1880-Helen Keller day. Anne Sullivan arrived at Keller's house in March 1887 At age 22, Keller published her autobiography, [|The Story of My Life] (1903)
 * Died** on June 1, 1968 (aged 87)

//“When Life gives you a hundred reasons to cry, show life that you have a thousand reasons to smile”,// was the message given to the world by the brave hearted Helen Keller.

Helen Keller was born in Tuscumbia, Alabama. When she was only nineteen months old, she suffered from acute congestion of the brain and the stomach which was described by doctors as Scarlet Fever or Meningitis which left her blind and deaf. After losing her sight and hearing power she became wild and intolerable due to her inability to learn and communicate.

Then arrived a smile in her life, her mentor and companion, Anne Sullivan. Anne Sullivan had herself suffered from the same problem and was now serving people who did not know language. According to her language was more important to the mind than light is to eye and if the senses of Helen were impaired and not her mind then she must have language.

So, Anne Sullivan started to teach Helen the technique of spelling words on her hand and Helen’s first word was D-O-L-L after her teacher gifted her a doll and taught her to spell D-O-L-L on her hand. Gradually, Anne made her touch different things and spelled the name of the things on her hand. Anne taught her etiquettes in order to make her a lady. She made her to understand what people were saying by touching their lips. Finally, she succeeded and the first word spoken by Helen was WATER as her teacher spilled water on her hand. Anne Sullivan did a miracle and turned Helen from a case of wildness to an educated lady.

Helen Keller was able to communicate through sign language which was taught to her by her mentor, Anne Sullivan. She did wonders and completely changed Helen’s life. Helen became the first deaf blind to earn the Bachelor of Arts Degree from Radcliffe. Helen later wrote many books, the most famous of them being ‘The Story of my Life’. She also became a member of the Socialist Party of America and the Industrialist Workers of the World.

Helen Keller is a true heroine to many people of the world and she was also listed in the Gallup’s Most Widely Admired People of the 20th century in 1999. There are many roads and hospitals around the world named after Helen Keller. A bronze medal statue of her is there in the National Statuary Hall Collection. She spent her life doing social work for the needy and led an honorable life.

Helen died on June 1, 1968. Now also after many years of her death she is in everyone’s heart and will remain there forever.

A big salute to my favourite ladies the brave heart Helen Keller and her mentor Anne Sullivan.