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Chapter 1

Helen’s apprehension before writing her autobiography

Helen felt a kind of hesitation before she set on the task of penning down her autobiography
and, thus, reveal the story of her life. In addition, the task itself was a difficult one for Helen:
looking back, she could hardly distinguish between the facts and the fancies across the years.
Furthermore, in the process of learning new things, she had forgotten many important
incidents and experiences of her childhood.

Birth of Helen

Helen Adams Keller was born on a plantation called Ivy Green in Tuscumbia, Alabama, on June
27, 1880. She was the eldest daughter of Captain Arthur H. Keller, a former officer of the
Confederate Army, and Kate Adams. Helen was named after her grandmother, Helen Everett.
Even as an infant, she showed signs of eagerness and independence. By the age of six months,
Helen attracted everyone’s attention piping out words like “How d’ye” and “tea”.

Helen suffers an illness that leaves her deaf and blind

In February, 1882, at the age of nineteen months, Helen fell ill with “an acute congestion of the
stomach and brain”, which could possibly have been scarlet fever or meningitis. This illness left
her deaf and blind. Later on, her spirit was liberated from the “world of silence and darkness”
by her teacher, Anne Sullivan.

Chapter 2

Helen’s initial attempts to communicate

After her sickness, Helen started using “crude signs” to communicate with others. A shake of
the head meant “No” and a nod “Yes”, a pull meant “Come” and a push, “Go”. If she wanted
anything, she would imitate the relevant action. Her mother encouraged her by involving her in
the household activities. This made Helen more observant of the actions performed by the
people around her.

Observing herself as different from others

Helen started to observe that unlike her, other people did not use signs for communication but
talked with their mouths. She realized that she was different from others. She attempted to
copy them but in vain. At times, she released her frustration on her nurse, Elisa, by kicking and
screaming at her until she felt exhausted. She regretted her misbehavior but did not try to
change it.

Companionship with Martha Washington and Belle

Martha Washington was a little coloured girl who understood Helen’s signs. She was the cook’s
daughter. Martha submissively obeyed Helen, who in turn enjoyed domineering over her. Both
the girls spent a lot of time in the kitchen, kneading dough balls, grinding coffee, quarrelling
over the cake bowl.

Helen enjoyed feeding the hens and turkeys, and feeling them as they ate from her hands. She
also loved to hunt for guinea-fowl eggs in the long grass. Even though Helen could not
understand Christmas per se, she enjoyed the preparations leading to that occasion.

One July afternoon, when Helen and Martha were bored of cutting paper dolls, they came up
with the idea of cutting each other’s hair. Helen cut Martha’s hair and Martha cut off a curl of
Helen’s. Martha would have cut them all if it weren’t for Helen’s mother’s timely intervention.

Belle was a lazy old dog and a companion of Helen. Despite of her attempts, it was inattentive
to her signs and gestures. As a result, Helen would get frustrated and go looking for Martha.

Helen is saved by the nurse from getting burnt

Once, while drying her wet apron in front of the hearth, Helen ended up going too close to the
fire. Her clothes caught fire. Fortunately, she was saved by the nurse, Viny, who threw a blanket
around her to extinguish the fire. Except for her hands and hair, she was not badly burnt.

Discovering the use of a key: used as a tool for mischief

About that time, Helen found out the use of a key. The mischievous Helen played a prank on
her mother by locking her in the pantry. After Miss Sullivan arrived to teach her, she played the
same prank on her. Helen locked her teacher in her room and refused to reveal the hidden key.
Eventually, her father had to intervene and take Miss Sullivan out of the room through the
window.

When Helen was around five years old, the Keller family moved from the ‘little vine-covered
house’ to a large new one.

The loving relationship between Helen and her father

Helen’s father was loving and indulgent. Helen was fond of the stories her father narrated to
her by forming spellings on her hand. Her father in turn enjoyed Helen’s reiteration of these
stories. Her father’s death in the summer of 1896 was Helen’s “first great sorrow-- [her] first
personal experience with death.”

Helen’s relationship with her baby sister

Initially, Helen viewed her younger sister, Mildred, as an intruder. She felt that her sister got all
the attention from her mother. Helen vented her frustration and showed her affection on her
doll, Nancy. Once Helen overturned Nancy’s cradle in which her sister was sleeping.
Fortunately, their mother’s timely arrival saved Mildred. Later, however, the love between the
hearts of the two sisters prospered despite the fact that neither of them understood the
language of the other.

Chapter 3

The need for a better means of communication

Gradually, the few signs that were used by Helen to communicate became inadequate. Failure
to get across her thoughts led to fits of anger and frustration in Helen. She felt miserable. As a
result, it became imperative for her parents to find a teacher or a school for Helen so that she
could learn a better means of communication.

Helen’s mother’s hope was aroused by an account she read in Dickens’s “American Notes”
about the education of Laura Bridgeman, a deaf and blind student, by Dr. Howe. Unfortunately,
his methods had possibly died with him. Besides, it would not be easy to find a teacher who
would come to their distant town in Alabama to teach Helen.

The train journey to Baltimore

Helen was six when her father decided to consult an oculist in Baltimore for the treatment of
Helen’s sight. Helen enjoyed the new experiences during her trip. She was happy to receive a
box of shells from a lady and a doll made out of towels from her aunt during the journey. She
also played with the “punching machine” of the conductor. In fact, she did not experience any
fits of temper during her journey as there were so many things to keep her mind and hands
busy.

Exploring the possibilities of Helen’s education at Baltimore

At Baltimore, Dr. Chisholm said that there was nothing he could do about Helen’s sight.
However, he advised Helen’s father to consult Dr. Alexander Graham Bell of Washington, who
would be able to guide them in regards to the education of Helen.

Meeting Dr. Bell was a great experience for Helen. He understood Helen’s signs, which made
her happy. This meeting was the beginning of a long friendship between Dr. Bell and Helen.
Helen later recalled this interview as the foundation of her journey from darkness to light,
“from isolation to friendship, companionship, knowledge and love.”

Dr. Bell advised Mr. Keller to write to Dr. Anagnos, the director of the Perkins Institute in
Boston. Her father wrote to him without any delay and got a reply in positive. Finally, in the
March of 1887, Miss Sullivan arrived at the Keller house.

Chapter 4

The most important day of Helen’s life

Miss Anne Mansfield Sullivan arrived at the house of the Keller family on the third of March,
1887. This was the day from which Helen’s life started to transform; the ailing spirit of Helen
could only find solace by the knowledge delivered by Miss Sullivan.

Beginning of the journey of knowledge with Miss Ann Sullivan

Miss Sullivan gave Helen a doll, which was a present from the little blind students of the Perkins
Institute and was dressed by Laura Bridgeman. Miss Sullivan spelled the word ‘D-O-L-L’ on
Helen’s hands. Helen managed to imitate the movements of her fingers even though she was
not aware of the fact that Miss Sullivan was trying to teach her the name of the thing. It took
several weeks for Helen to realize that everything has a name. Miss Sullivan tried to teach the
names of several other objects to Helen, such as “M-U-G” and “W-A-T-E-R”, but Helen was
annoyed at the repeated attempts of her teacher and she broke her doll on the floor.

One day, when they were walking in the garden, Miss Sullivan put Helen’s hand under a spout
of water. As the cool stream gushed over Helen’s hand, Miss Sullivan spelled the word “water”
on the other. Then Helen realized that ‘water’ meant that “cool something that was flowing
over [her] hand”. She experienced the joy of gaining knowledge. When she returned to the
house, she was eager to learn since “every name gave birth to a new thought”.

That day Helen learnt several new words, including “father”, “mother” and “teacher”. This
eventful day left her very happy and excited. She waited eagerly for the upcoming new day.

Chapter 5

Helen could experience new joy as she learned the names of the objects and their uses. This
made her more confident and familiar with the outside world.

Learning lessons in the lap of nature

Helen had many new experiences during her summer trip to the banks of the Tennessee River
with Miss Sullivan. There, sitting on the warm grass, Helen learned lessons from her teacher.
She got to know how birds make their nests; how trees grow with the help of the sun and the
rain; how animals find food for themselves, etc. She became more sensitive to nature and
rejoiced the company of the world about which she was now more informed.

Helen learns that nature is not always kind

One day Miss Sullivan helped Helen to climb up a tree. It was a pleasant sunny afternoon and
they decided to have their luncheon there. Miss Sullivan left to fetch the food, with Helen
sitting on a tree alone. Suddenly the weather became dark and stormy. Helen was terrified and
felt alienated from the world. Helen longed for the return of her teacher and above all to get
down from the tree. Too scared to jump, she “crouched down in the fork of the tree”. Just as
she thought she would fall along with the tree, her teacher rescued her. Helen felt relieved to
reach the ground safely. This experience taught her that nature is not always kind, that nature
“wages open war against her children…”

Rejoicing independence and a new bond with nature

Helen continued to be terrified of climbing a tree for a long time. One day, however, she was
lured to climb a ‘Mimosa tree’ by its beautiful fragrance. She did experience some difficulty in
holding on to the large branches but the pleasure of attempting something new and wonderful
kept her going. Finally, she sat down on a “little seat” and felt like a “fairy sitting on a rose
cloud”.

Chapter 6

With the acquisition of words, Helen turns more inquisitive

Gradually, Helen’s knowledge grew in terms of vocabulary and subsequently, her area of
inquiry broadened. She returned to the same subject repeatedly, eager for more and more
information.

Challenges in understanding abstract ideas

One day Helen brought a bunch of violets for her teacher. Miss Sullivan put her arm around
Helen to show her affection and spelled into her hand, “I love Helen”. But Helen failed to
understand the meaning as she tried associating it with a thing and not with an emotion or an
abstract idea. She was disappointed by the fact that her teacher could not “show” her what
love meant.

The first conception of an abstract idea

A couple of days later, when Helen was stringing beads of different sizes, her teacher kept on
pointing out mistakes to her. Helen was trying to think about the correct arrangement when
Miss Sullivan touched her forehead and spelled the word “think” on her hand. Helen suddenly
realized that the word is the name of the process going on in her mind. This was Helen’s first
conscious awareness of an abstract idea. Finally, her teacher explained to her that, “you cannot
touch love either; but you feel the sweetness that love pours into everything.”

The tedious process of learning for a deaf and blind child like Helen

Miss Sullivan encouraged Helen to talk to her. She supplied her with several words and idioms
by spelling them on her hand. It was a long and tedious process that continued for several
years. This was because Helen could neither distinguish between the different tonalities of the
speaker nor look at his expressions.

Chapter 7

Learning to read

The next important lesson for Helen was learning how to read. Once Helen had managed to
spell a few words, her teacher gave her slips of cardboard with raised letters printed on them.
Helen promptly learned that each printed word stood for an object, an act, or a quality. She was
given the slips of paper, which represented, for example, “doll”, “is”, “on”, “bed”, and each
name was placed on the relevant object. Her doll was put on the bed with
words is, on, bed arranged beside the doll, thus making a sentence out of it.

From the printed slips Helen moved on to read printed books. Helen enjoyed hunting for the
words she knew in her book “Reading for Beginners”.

Learning lessons out of doors and through illustrations

Miss Sullivan taught Helen with the help of illustrations through beautiful story or a poem. In
this way, she made each difficult lesson easy to learn.

The early lessons were carried out in the sunlit woods. Among other places that Helen often
visited were the garden and the orchard. Helen’s favourite walk was to the Keller’s Landing, an
old wharf on the Tennessee River. There she was also given geography lessons in a playful
manner without any exhaustion or feeling of being taught lessons. Helen built dams with
pebbles, made islands and lakes, and dug river-beds. Miss Sullivan built “raised maps in clay” on
a sheet so that Helen could feel the mountains, ridges and valleys by following her fingers. She
illustrated the division of earth into different zones with the help of illustrative strings and
“orange stick” representations.

Miss Sullivan taught Helen arithmetic, botany and zoology with the same leisurely approach.

Learning in the form of stories that were based on the gifts received by Helen
A collection of fossils was once gifted to Helen by a gentleman. These served as a key to the
“antediluvian world” on which Miss Sullivan narrated dreadful tales about various beasts and
devils with unpronounceable names.

Another time, a beautiful shell was gifted to Helen, and it helped her to learn about the habitat
of the marine animals. She associated the shell building process with the working of the mind.
Just as the Nautilus changes the material it absorbs from water and makes it a part of itself,
similarly, the mind converts the “bits of knowledge” that one gathers into “pearls of thought”.

Lessons of science from life itself

Miss Sullivan picked up illustrations for her lessons from life itself. She taught the growth of a
plant by making observations on a growing lily plant kept on the window. Helen learnt about
the behaviour of animals by feeling the tadpoles in a “glass globe” and monitoring their growth.

Teaching skills of Miss Sullivan

Miss Sullivan was a teacher with great teaching skills: she was sympathetic and loving. She
could seize the right moment for delivering knowledge to Helen, which made learning
experience pleasant. Helen developed such closeness with her teacher that she hardly thought
herself distant from her. She acknowledges her teacher for all the good in her and as a source
of aspiration to gain knowledge

Chapter 8

Preparing for Christmas celebration

Helen eagerly waited for the first Christmas after the arrival of Miss Sullivan. Everyone in the
house was planning surprises for Helen and she, in turn, was preparing surprises for them with
the help of her teacher. Her friends incited her excitement by throwing hints at her with “half
spelled words” and “incomplete sentences” which were both amusements and language
lessons for her. Meanwhile, Miss Sullivan and Helen played the guessing game every evening to
help her learn the use of language.

Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve, Helen was invited to a school in Tuscumbia. She felt excited in the presence
of a beautiful Christmas tree standing in the centre of the room. She was delighted when asked
to distribute presents among the school children. She received her gifts as well. However, she
was not satisfied with these and wanted those gifts that were being planned by her family and
friends. Later, she waited eagerly for the morning to discover her Christmas presents from
Santa Claus and others.

Helen’s new pet: Tim:

Helen woke up to a large number of gifts. She was most pleased by her teacher’s gift: a canary
bird.

Helen named the little bird as ‘Tim’ and Miss Sullivan taught her to take proper care of it. Tim
was a friendly bird who clenched to Helen’s fingertip and loved to eat candied cherries out of
her hand. Helen grew quite fond of Tim, until one fateful day when a cat ate the bird. That day,
she had forgotten to shut the door of the cage and as she was returning with water for the
bird’s bath, she felt a pussy cat pass by her. Soon she realized what happened: she would not
be able to see it again.

Chapter 9

The journey to Boston in May, 1888

In May, 1888, Helen travelled to Boston with Miss Sullivan and her mother. This journey was
different from the previous journey to Baltimore as she was no longer a young “restless” child.
Instead, she was now a calm child sitting beside her teacher who was informing her about the
views outside the car window: the Tennessee River, cotton fields, hills, woods and so on.

Helen recalls the tragic end of Nancy, her doll

After their arrival at Boston, Helen’s doll Nancy underwent a sad experience. During the
journey, the doll became dirty and hence, the laundress at the Perkins Institution gave her a
bath. Consequently, the doll turned into a “formless heap of cotton” and could only be
recognized by Helen by her “two bead eyes”.

Helen’s friendly arrival at the Perkins Institution for the Blind

Helen could befriend the blind children at the Perkins Institute quite easily. She was delighted
to be able to communicate with the blind children in her own language. Besides, she was happy
to be at the same institute where Laura Bridgeman had been taught. She envied the blind
children only in one aspect: their ability to hear. Eventually, Helen felt contended and happy in
their company and forgot all her pain.

Helen’s first history lesson at Bunker Hill

While Helen was at Boston, she visited the Bunker Hill. There she had her first history lesson.
She was thrilled to imagine that she was standing at the high stairway which was once used by
the soldiers to shoot their enemies.

Helen’s maiden ocean voyage: trip to ‘Plymouth’:

The next day, they went to Plymouth by water. It was Helen’s first trip on the ocean and first
voyage on a steamboat. On reaching their destination, she felt the curves and cuts of the
Plymouth Rock and the “1620” engraved on it. A gentleman at the Pilgrim Hall museum gave
her a small model of the rock. She was familiar with the wonderful stories about the Pilgrims
that visited that rock. She could idealize them for their bravery and zeal to acquire home in an
unknown territory. Later on, she was disappointed to know about their shameful acts of
persecuting minority groups like the ‘Quakers’.

Close companionship with Mr. William Endicott and his daughter

Among her close friends at Boston were Mr. William Endicott and his daughter. She was
delighted by their stroll through their rose-garden of their house at Beverly Farms. Their dogs,
Leo and Fritz, were quite friendly with Helen and the horse, Nimrod, poked his nose in her hand
to get a pat.

She also enjoyed playing in the sand near the sea. Mr. Endicott told her about great Europe-
bound ships that sailed by from Boston. Helen recounts her whole experience at Boston as full
of pleasure and denotes the city in one phrase as “The City of Kind Hearts”.

Chapter 10

The vacation at Brewster with Mrs. Hopkins

When the Perkins institute closed for the summer, Helen and her teacher went to Brewster, on
Cape Cod, to spend the vacation with a dear friend, Mrs. Hopkins. Helen had read about the sea
in her book Our Worldand was excited to visit it.

Helen’s first encounter with the sea

Once at the sea shore, she hurriedly plunged into the water. She was enjoying the water, when
suddenly her foot struck a rock. Her “ecstasy” changed into fear as she started drowning. She
struggled for a while and finally, the waves threw her back on the shore and she was supported
by the embrace of her teacher. After she recovered from the panic, she innocently asked her
teacher, “Who put salt in water?”

After she had recovered from the incident, Helen enjoyed sitting on a big rock and feeling the
dashing of waves against the rock, sending up a shower of spray. She noticed the movement of
the waves and their affect on the pebbles and the beach.

The horseshoe crab

Miss Sullivan drew Helen’s attention to a sea organism---the horseshoe crab. Helen was so
fascinated by it that she carried the heavy crab all the way to their house. On reaching their
home, she carefully placed it in a trough of water. But to her surprise, it disappeared the next
morning. Helen slowly but surely realized her mistake of separating the crab from his habitat
and felt happy thinking that it had possibly safely travelled to its home.

Chapter 11

Spending a leisurely autumn at the Fern Quarry

Helen returned to her Southern home in autumn. She felt happy and content with her
experiences in the north. She spent her autumn months with her family at their summer
cottage, Fern Quarry. The cottage was like a “rough camp” situated on top of a mountain, near
a limestone quarry. Helen spent her time in a leisurely manner at the cottage.

Many visitors came to Fern Quarry. In the evening, men played cards and talked about their
hunting experiences. She woke up in the morning with the sound of rattling guns and the smell
of coffee. All the men went off to hunt after bidding each other good luck for the season.

Later in the morning, barbecue was prepared. The “savoury odour” of meat made her hungry
even before the tables were set. Afterward, the hunting party also joined the feast of veal and
roast pig, following their discussion on their hunting events during the day.

Helen had a pony and she named it Black Beauty, having just completed the book. Sometimes,
accompanied by her teacher, she rode the pony. At times, Miss Sullivan would release the rein
and the pony would stop at his will to eat leaves from trees. On other days, they would go for
walks in the woods and return home with armful of laurels, ferns and other beautiful flowers.
Sometimes, she would go on similar trips with her sister and cousins.

Adventure with the train at the rail road

At the foot of the mountain there was a railroad and about a mile distant was a trestle spanning
a deep gorge. Helen had never actually been there until one day when she, along with her sister
and Miss Sullivan, got lost in the woods. They came across the trestle, which was a short cut to
their home. Since they were lost, they decided to take this way in spite of the dangers: the ties
were wide apart and quite narrow. Feeling the rails with the toes, Helen moved on the trestle
cautiously but without fear. Suddenly, train was heard coming in from the other side. They had
to climb quickly down upon the crossbraces while the train passed by. With some difficulty,
they regained the track. When, ultimately, they reached back home, it had grown quite dark
and all the family members were out looking for them.

Chapter 12

Chilly winter at a New England Village

After her first visit to Boston, Helen continued to visit the north every winter. Once Helen went
on a visit to a New England village. This village had frozen lakes and vast snow fields. It was here
that Helen got to experience the snow. She explored the snow-covered hills and fields that
were devoid of any life, the empty nests and the bare trees.

One day, the advent of a snowstorm made Helen rush out-of-doors to enjoy the first few
descending snowflakes. Gradually, the whole area was covered by snow and the morning
became dark. In the evening, there was a snowstorm. Helen and her teacher spent their time
sitting around the fire and narrating stories. At night, they could hear the terrifying noise of the
wind on the trees around the house and the creaking and breaking sounds of the rafters. On
the third day, the storm was over and sunlight peeped out from the clouds. It scattered to the
different places making everything shine and glow. The trees were standing still as if statues of
“white marble”. The roads and paths were all covered with snow. Helen could scarcely feel the
earth below her feet.

The favorite amusement during winters: tobogganing

Helen’s favorite pastime during the winters was tobogganing. Helen enjoyed plunging through
the drifts, leaping hollows, drifting and swooping down upon the lake while riding on a
toboggan.

Chapter 13

Helen’s urge to speak

With the loss of the ability to hear, Helen’s speech had died down. However, from a young age,
she had an impulse to speak. She tried to feel the noise that she made by keeping one hand on
her throat and the other on her lips, feeling their movements. She produced sounds not to
speak but for the exercise of her vocal chords. There was a feeling of lack in Helen which
needed to be fulfilled. She was not satisfied with the means of communication she used and
desperately wanted to learn to speak.

In 1890, Mrs. Lamson, one of the teachers at the Perkins Institutions, told Helen about a deaf
and blind girl, Ragnhild Kaata who had been taught to speak. Helen resolved that she will also
learn to speak and Mrs. Lamson took her for advice and assistance to Miss Sarah Fuller, the
principal of Horace Mann School.

Speaking lessons from Miss Sarah Fuller

Miss Sarah Fuller was a “sweet-natured lady” who started tutoring Helen on the 26th of March,
1890. Miss Fuller passed Helen’s hand lightly over her face to make her feel her tongue and lips
when she made a sound. Within the first hour itself, Helen learnt six elements of speech: M, P,
A, S, T, I. “It is warm” is the first complete sentence that Helen managed to utter. In total,
eleven lessons were given to her by Miss Fuller. The syllables were broken but, nevertheless,
human. She was eager to share her happiness with her family and to see the joy on their faces.
Miss Fuller taught her the elements of the speech but she was to continue practicing herself
with Miss Sullivan’s help.
Helen learns to speak with Miss Sullivan’s assistance

Miss Sullivan dragged Helen’s attention to the “mispronounced words”. Helen had to depend
on the vibrations felt by her fingers, the movement of the mouth and expressions of the face.
Discouragement wearied her efforts initially but as soon as she thought of the joy of her family,
she felt optimistic. Helen gave up the manual alphabet method to develop her speech even
though Miss Sullivan and her friends continued to use it to communicate with her.

The final moment of joy: Helen’s speech

Finally, the happiest moment arrived. Helen had developed speech and was eager to return
home. As she reached the station and her family heard her speak, they were overjoyed. Her
mother was speechless with delight and hugged her tightly; Mildred danced in joy clasped her
hand and kissed her; and her father expressed his pride and affection by a “big silence”.

Chapter 14

Helen’s first attempt to write a composition on her own

During her stay at the Fern Quarry, Miss Sullivan described to her the beauty of the “late
foliage” plants. This apparently revived in Helen the memory of a story that had been read to
her in the past. The story had been unconsciously retained in her mind but she thought that she
was making up the story herself. She eagerly jotted down her ideas before they would slip away
from her mind. The words and images smoothly flowed from her mind and she felt the joy of
composing a story. The story was called “The Frost king”. She did not realize that the words and
images coming to her mind without effort were not her own. For her, the boundary line
between her own ideas and those she gathered from the books were blurred because most of
the impressions came to her mind through the “medium of others’ eyes or ears”.

“The Frost King” appreciated by family and friends

After completing the story, she read it to everyone at dinner. Despite some pronunciation
errors, she managed to impress everyone with her story. However, someone did ask her if she
had read the story in a book. Helen did not have the faintest recollection of the story been read
to her and so she denied it saying that it was her story and she had written it for Mr. Anagnos.
Mr. Anagnos was delighted with her story and published it in one of the Perkins Institution
reports.

Helen’s happiness gets crushed in Boston

During her short stay in Boston, Helen was astonished to discover that her story “The Frost
King” was similar to “The Frost Fairies” written by Miss Margaret T. Canby. This story had
appeared in the book, “Birdie and His Friends”, which was published even before Helen's birth.
The fact that the language of the two stories was alike confirmed that Miss Canby’s story had
been read to her and that hers was “a plagiarism”. Her joy changed into grief.
Mr. Anagnos felt deceived. He believed that Helen and Miss Sullivan had deliberately stolen the
thoughts of a great writer to win his appreciation.

Helen at the court of investigation

Helen was brought before a court of investigation where she was examined and cross-
examined by the teachers and officers of the Perkins Institution. The investigators seemed to
force Helen to acknowledge that she remembered “The Frost Fairies” being read to her. Helen
felt heavy at her heart because of the doubts and suspicions from her loved ones. She could
respond to them only in monosyllables. Her consciousness could not be unburdened by the
realization that she had only committed a ‘dreadful’ mistake. At last she was allowed to leave
the room. Her friends and family assured her that she was a brave girl and that they were proud
of her. That night, Helen wept pitiably, suffering for her mistake.

The problem in the composition of “The Frost King” acknowledged

Miss Sullivan had never heard “The Frost Fairies”, let alone read it to Helen. So, with the
assistance of Dr. Alexander Graham Bell, she investigated the matter. At last, it was found out
that Miss Canby’s story had been narrated to Helen by Mrs. Sophia Hopkins when she had
spent a summer with her at Brewster. Even though Helen did not recall hearing the story, it
sustained in her memory.

During this distressing time, Helen received a lot of messages of love and sympathy from her
loved ones. She also received a kind note from Miss Canby herself, encouraging her to write
something of her own in future that might help others. This was comforting to Helen but she
was afraid of “playing with words” again for a long time fearing that she would repeat her
mistake again. Miss Sullivan’s encouragement, however, helped her to continue writing in
future.

Helen’s early compositions

Helen recognized herself as a part of the process of learning by “assimilation” and “imitation”
to put ideas into words. Her early compositions are mainly assimilation of the descriptions from
various forgotten sources. Helen gives an example of the composition she wrote for Mr.
Anagnos about the beauty of the Greek and Italian old cities. Mr. Anagnos appreciated the
‘poetical essence’ in her ideas. Helen was happy that even though the works resembled a “crazy
patchwork” comprising of her own thoughts and others’, they proved her ability to express of
her admiration for beautiful objects in clear and “animated” language.

Effects of “The Frost King” incident in the later life of Helen

The good part of the tragic experience of “The Frost King” was that Helen started thinking
about the problems of composition.

After the publication of “The Story of My Life” in the “Ladies’ Home Journal”, Mr. Anagnos, in a
letter to Macy, stated his views supporting Helen in the matter of the “Frost King”. He also
stated that he had cast his vote in favour of Helen in the court of investigation.
Helen remarks the “Frost King” incident as an important one for her education and, therefore,
has included it in the chapter without an attempt to defend herself or laying the blame on
anyone else.
The Story of my Life: Summary (Chapter 15-22)

Chapter 15
Helen spent the next summer and winter with her family in Alabama. Staying at home made her forget
about the controversy over ‘The Frost King’. Helen was scared that people would discover that the ideas
were not her own. To help her, Helen’s teacher Anne Sullivan encouraged her to write the story of her
own life in the form of an assignment. Helen was 12 years old at that time and used to write for a
magazine called Youth's Companion. Her visit to President Cleveland’s inauguration, to Niagara Falls,
and to the World’s fair were the big events of 1893. Although she couldn’t see the Falls, Helen said that
their power had a big impact on her. Helen claimed that beauty and music were like goodness and love
to her.

Chapter 16
By the time Helen was 13, she could fingerspell and read in raised print and Braille. He could not only
speak in English, but also a little bit of French. Helen began her formal schooling and preparation for
college in for college by taking Latin and Math lessons. She initially liked Math more, but later grew to
love Latin too.
Anne Sullivan taught Helen based on her interests until now. She used to teach her what she wanted to
know and provided her with experiences. However, when preparing for college, Helen worked
systematically and things that did not gratify her immediately. She had to achieve her goal of receiving
formal education.

Chapter 17
In October 1894, Helen went to the Wright-Humason School for the Deaf in New York City for two years.
Miss Sullivan accompanied her and attended the school as her interpreter. Helen studied arithmetic,
physical geography, French and German at the school. The school was chosen because it was the best
for continuing the development of Helen’s speech and lip reading skills. Helen and her teachers were
disappointed as her lip-reading and speech skills were not what they had hoped and expected to be
despite the practice. Helen did not like Math. In spite of the setbacks, her admiration for geography and
languages helped her form fond memories of her stay in New York. The only thing she liked about New
York was Central Park. The daily walks in Central park and closeness to nature were the two things that
helped her get closer to her former life in her country.

Chapter 18
In 1896, Helen went to Cambridge school for Young Ladies to be prepared to get into Radcliffe. It was
her first experience of attending classes with girls who could hear and see. At the Cambridge School too,
Miss Sullivan was to attend the classes with Helen as her interpreter. The teachers had never taught
someone like Helen. The subjects that Helen learnt in the first year were English history, English
literature, German, Latin, arithmetic, Latin composition and occasional themes. Miss Sullivan tried her
best to spell into Helen’s hands everything that was in the books. Although Helen’s sponsors in London
and Philadelphia worked to have the textbooks embossed in raised print for Helen to read, the books
were not ready in time to suit Helen’s purpose. The Principal and the German teacher learnt to
fingerspell so that Miss Sullivan could take a break. Although they were not as fluent as Miss Sullivan,
Principal Gilman took over teaching Helen English Literature for the remaining part of the year.

Chapter 19 Summary
Helen looked forward to her second year at Gilman’s school. However, she was confronted with
unexpected difficulties that year which caused her a great deal of frustration. She had to study
mathematics without the needed tools. The classes were larger and it was not possible for the
Cambridge teachers to give her special instructions. Anne Sullivan had to read all the books to her. Helen
had to wait in order to buy a Braille writer so that she could do her algebra, geometry and physics.
When the embossed books and the other apparatus arrived, Helen’s difficulties began to disappear and
she began to study with confidence. However, Mr. Gilman thought that Helen was overworked and was
breaking down. He insisted that I was overworked, and that I should remain at his school three years
longer. He made changes in her studies. A difference of opinion between Mr. Gilman and Miss Sullivan
resulted in Helen’s mother withdrawing Helen and Mildred from the Cambridge school. Helen went on
to continue her studies under a tutor. Helen found it easier to study with a tutor than receive
instructions in class.
When Helen took her exam in June 1899, she faced many difficulties, as the administrative board of
Radcliffe did not realize how difficult they were making her examinations. They did not understand the
peculiar difficulties Helen had to go through. However, Helen, with her grit and determination,
overcame them all.

Chapter 20
Helen Keller took the entrance exams for Radcliffe College in 1899 just after her 19th birthday. She
became the first blind-deaf college student in the fall of 1900. She had thought of college romantically,
that it would be a time to reflect and think about her subjects. However, her college life was different
from her fellow students. She had to use her hands to listen rather than take down notes. The speed at
which the lectures took place made it difficult for Keller to understand and remember everything that
was taught.
Ms. Keller and Ms. Sullivan worked hard at Radcliffe College. Ms. Sullivan attended all of Ms. Keller's
classes and helped with reading. Radcliffe was not prepared for deaf or blind students at that time.
Many of the other students had never met a deaf and blind person. Although she enjoyed college, Ms.
Keller thought that schedules of the students were too hectic and gave no time to sit and think. She also
wrote, "we should take our education as we would take a walk in the country, leisurely, our minds
hospitably open to impressions of every sort."

Chapter 21
In this chapter, Helen Keller goes back to tell readers about her initial experiences with reading. Helen
first read when I was seven years old. That was her first connected story in May 1887. There were only a
few books in raised print, which Helen read repeatedly until a time when the words were so worn and
pressed that she could scarcely make them out.
During her visit to Boston, she was allowed to spend a part of each day at the Institution library, and
here she used to wander from bookcase to bookcase and take down whatever her “fingers lighted
upon”. When she discovered the book ‘Little Lord Fauntleroy,’ Miss Sullivan read it to her and the book
became Helen’s “sweet and gentle companion” throughout her childhood.
From there she read many books and she loved "Little Women" because it gave her a sense of kinship
with girls and boys who could see and hear. She also loved ‘The Jungle Book’ and ‘Wild ‘Animals I Have
Known’ as she felt a genuine interest in the animals themselves, they being “real animals and not
caricatures of men”. She was fascinated by Greek literature and it was Iliad that made Greece her
“paradise”. According to her, great poetry did not need an interpreter but a responsive heart. Macbeth
and King Lear impressed her most among Shakespeare’s works. She read the Bible for years “with an
ever-broadening sense of joy and inspiration”. She said she loved it as she loved no other book.
Helen also expresses her love for history apart from her love for literature. The first book that gave her a
real sense of the value of history was Swinton's "World's History," which she received on her thirteenth
birthday. Among the French writers, she liked Molière and Racine best. Literature was Helen’s Utopia,
where she faced no barrier of the senses. The things that she had learned and the things that were
taught to her seemed of ridiculously little importance compared with their "large loves and heavenly
charities."

Chapter 22
Books and reading were not the only things that Helen enjoyed. When Helen was not reading, she
enjoyed outdoor activities. She liked swimming, canoeing, and sailing. She also loved trees and used to
feel close to them so much so that she believed she could hear their sap flow and see the sun shining on
the leaves. Helen felt that each one of us had the ability to understand the impressions and the
emotions experienced by mankind from the beginning. Blindness or deafness could not rob us of our
memory in the subconscious about the green earth. This, she termed as the sixth sense which can see,
feel and hear.

The Story of My Life —Helen Keller

Very Long Questions Based on theme and Plot Involving Interpretation and Inference (150-
200 words & 10 marks each)

Q. 1. What were the qualities that attracted everyone towards Helen before she fell victim to
her mysterious ill¬ness ? Give your views. (Board Term-I 2014, Set PRE2N18)
Ans. Value Points:
• bright and happy child
• eager, self-asserting disposition
• as the first baby, she came, she saw, she conquered
• imitated everything others did-actions and words
• attracted everyone’s attention (CBSE Marking Scheme, 2014)
Detailed Answer:
Helen was a very bright and happy child. She attracted everyone’s attention towards her with her
mischiefs.
In her childhood, she was an eager and self-asserting child. She imitated everyone and leamt
walking as well as talking at an early age. She was the first baby in her family so she received the
love and affection of her family members to the maximum. Helen herself wrote 1 came, I saw, I
conquered’ as the first baby in the family
does. She started walking when she was a year old. Her mother had just taken her out of the bath-
tub and was holding her in her lap when she started walking towards the leaves that danced in the
sunlight. Even her naming ceremony was a big event. She was not to be lightly named being the first
baby in the family. She initiated every one and learnt talking at an early age. Everyone got attracted
towards her due to these qualities.

Q. 2. Why did Helen call her pony ‘Black Beauty’ ? (Board 2014, Set QUD9VQW)
Ans. Value Points:
• had a black glossy coat and a white star on his forehead
• had read the book of the same name
• her pony resembled his name sake. (CBSE Marking Scheme, 2014)
Detailed Answer:
Helen had her pony at Fern Quarry. She called him Black Beauty as she had read the book in which
there was a black horse. Helen’s horse resembled his name-sake. He had a black glossy coat and a
white star on his forehead. Helen spent many of her happiest hours on Black Beauty’s back.
Sometimes, her teacher Miss Sullivan would let go of the horses’ rein and the pony used to stop at
his sweet will to eat grass or nibble the leaves of the trees. Helen loved her pony very much.

Q. 3. Helen Keller says, “Happy days did not last long.” Why does she say this ? What had
happened to her ? (Board Term-12013, Set 8SRR)
Ans. Value Points:
• acute congestion of the stomach and brain
• doctors thought she would not live
• fever was over, but she was blind and deaf for life
• light became dimmer by the day
• she got used to the silence and darkness (CBSE Marking Scheme, 2013)
Detailed Answer:
Helen was an eager and assertive child during her childhood. The beginning of her life was simple
and much like every other little life. She received all the privileges as the first baby in the family
does. She was having a wonderful time as a baby but ‘happy days did not last long’. In the month of
February, she fell ill. The doctors called it ‘acute congestion of the stomach and brain’. They thought
she would not live. However, one day the fever left her as suddenly and mysteriously as it had come.
Everyone rejoiced on her being well. After getting well, she could feel her eyes turning dry and hot.
Gradually, the light became dimmer by the day. It was like a nightmare as she turned blind and deaf
for life. Not even the doctors realised that she would never see or hear again. It was terrible but with
the passage of time she got used to the silence and darkness that surrounded her and forgot that life
had, at some stage, been different and wonderful.

Q. 4. Describe Helen’s relationship with her sister Mildred. (Board Term-12013, Set 5007)
Ans. Value Points:
• Mildred Keller—Helen’s younger sister
• Initial jealousy, later became close to her
• While at Fern Quarry—went to gather persimmons with her.
• Got lost in woods
• Mildred alert—observed trestle-short cut home.
• Suddenly saw train—Luckily they climbed down in time (CBSE Marking Scheme, 2013)
Detailed Answer: .
Helen had a younger sister called Mildred. Before her birth, Helen was the darling daughter of her
parents. But with the arrival of Mildred, she had ceased to be so. With the result she started treating
Mildred as an intruder. The thought of Mildred receiving more love from her mother filled Helen with
jealousy. Mildred took her place in her mother’s lap and took all the care and time of her mother
which was not acceptable to Helen. Her jealousy reached its height when Helen saw Mildred
sleeping peacefully in her doll’s cradle. She got angry and showed her anger by overturning the
cradle. It was only her mother’s timely intervention that saved her from falling. With the passage of
time, this jealousy turned into an affectionate relationship. The signs of bonding could be seen very
clearly. Mildred could not understand her sign language yet an understanding and love grew
between both of them. The affection grew into their hearts and they went hand in hand wherever
they went.

Q. 5. ‘The best and most beautiful things in the world can’t be seen or even touched. They
must be felt with the heart.’ Justify the famous quote of Helen Keller.
Ans. This quote is very relevant and truly signifies the life of Helen Keller herself. This quote holds
true for everything that we experience in life. It is the feeling towards what we experience in life that
is more important than what we actually see or touch. Hellen Keller had lost her sight and hearing at
a very tender age to an illness. She did not give up on life.
With all the adversities surrounding her, she still fought back with the courage and the love of the
people who surrounded her and supported her throughout. It is these feelings of love, courage,
hope, satisfaction, happiness, desire, pain, ambition, etc., which makes a person what they are. In
fact. Hellen learns the beauty of love not by seeing or touching but by feeling it. Her life itself stands
testimony to this statement ‘The best and most beautiful , things in the world can’t be seen or even
touched. They must be felt with the heart.’

Q. 6. “Helen had a great strength and courage which helped her come out of her dark and
silent world.” Justify.
Ans. Helen was a great woman who lost her sight and hearing when she was a child. The beautiful
bright world became dark and dull. It took her some time to realize that she was different from others
as she felt that others did not communicate like her. There was movement of their lips when they
communicated. At first she became impatient. She threw tantrums at times but gradually realized
that there was another way to come out of the dark and silent world. It was to be done with the help
of her feelings of the heart and touch. Miss Anne Sullivan, her teacher, helped her a lot in adjusting
to the new dark world. She taught her everything-right from words to sentences. Miss Sullivan,
sometimes, had to face problems while teaching the abstract nouns like ‘love’ but with her patience,
she handled Helen and made her learn such words. Once Helen had gone swimming when she was
at Brewstar. She was enjoying the feel of water when suddenly her foot struck against a rock and
she felt hereself drowning. All her efforts to save herself went in vain. But somehow, the water threw
her back on the shore and she was saved. She took some time to recover and then again went to sit
on a big rock and feel the ocean water.
This incident didn’t deter her. In another instance, she had almost jumped down a big tree when
there was heavy ,
rain and she got terrified. She took some time to gather her courage and she climbed another tree.
Thus, we can
say that she had a great strength and courage which helped her come out of her dark and silent
world. 1

Q. 7. What type of relationship did Miss Anne Sullivan and Helen share ? ,
Ans. After the illness which left Helen deaf and blind, her parents went to meet Dr. Chisholen, an
eye, ear, nose, throat
specialist in Baltimore. He put them in touch with Alexander Graham Bell who worked with deaf
children.
Bell advised them to contact Perkins Institute for the Blind. This institution sent Miss Anne Sullivan
as Helen’s instructor. The eventful day, on which Miss Sullivan was to arrive, Helen felt that
something unusual was going to happen. She had no idea that the future had a surprise for her.
Miss Sullivan arrived and filled Helen’s life with brightness. Both of them shared a wonderful
relationship. Miss Sullivan was like a mother to her. She taught her the spellings of words by writing
them on her hand like doll. Later she taught her abstract words like love, water, think etc. Once she
improved her vocabulary, Miss Sullivan taught Helen how to use the words in sentences, thus
gradually increasing her knowledge. She accompanied Helen everywhere and Helen also looked
towards her whenever she wanted to know about something, their relationship lasted for 49 years
and eventually Miss Sullivan became a companion to Helen from a mere governess.

Q. 8. Helen had a great love for animals and birds. Elucidate with the help of examples.
Ans. Helen was a great lover of nature. She was surprised at what mother earth had in store for
everyone. Birds and animals were always a source of interest for her. She used to hunt for guinea-
fowl’s eggs in the long grass when she was a child but never allowed her friend Martha to carry the
eggs home, for the fear that she might break them. In another incident, she was gifted little Tim, a
canary as a Christmas gift by Tuscumbia School children.

Miss Sullivan taught her how to take care of her new pet. She prepared his bath, made his cage
clean and sweet, filled his cups with fresh seed and water from the well house and hung a spray of
duckweed in his swing. She used to feed him candied cherries out of her hand but felt very sad
when the bird fell prey to a cat after its cage was left on a window sill. During her stay at Brewstar,
Miss Sullivan attracted her attention towards a great horseshoe crab. She felt it and thought it
strange that he carried his house on his back. Suddenly, she wanted to have him as her pet. She
seized him by the tail with both hands and carried him home. His body was very heavy but somehow
she dragged him and with the help of Miss Sullivan, put him in a trough near the well to keep him
secure. But the next morning she found him missing. At first she felt disappointed but later felt happy
that perhaps he had returned to the sea to which he belonged.

Q. 9. How did Helen learn subjects like Geography, History and Science ?
Ans. Helen had a different way of learning subjects like Geography, History, etc. She went with Miss
Sullivan to an old tumble-down lumber wharf on the Tennessee River which was used during the
Civil War to land soldiers.
She built dams of pebbles, made islands and lakes, dug river-beds all for fun, never realising that
she was learning a lesson. She listened to Miss Sullivan’s descriptions of burning mountains, buried
cities, moving rivers of ice, etc. She made raised maps on clay so that she could feel the mountain
ridges and valley and follow the course of river with her fingers.

She learnt Arithmetic by stringing beads in groups and by arranging kindgarten straws, she learned
to add and subtract. She did not have much patience to arrange more than five or six groups at a
time.
She studied Zoology and Botany also in a leisurely manner. She listened carefully to the description
of terrible beasts which tramped the forests and died in the swamps of an unknown age.

The growth of a plant itself taught her a lesson in science. She bought a lily and set it in a sunny
window. Very soon she noticed the signs of opening in the pointed buds. This process was reluctant
in the beginning but later on used to go on rapidiy-in order and systematically. There was always
one bud larger and more beautiful than the rest which pushed her outer covering with more pomp. In
a way she learned from life itself.

Very Long Questions Based on Characterization(150-200 words & 10 marks each)

Q. 1. Helen was very close to nature. She could understand nature through touch and smell. Discuss
the role of nature in Helen’s life. (Board 2014, Set QUD9VQW, 8L1922Q)
Ans. Value Points:
• Father developed her interest in nature—furthered by Miss Sullivan
• Miss Sullivan taught her out doors mostly—in the lap of nature
• The climbing.incident—scare—learnt of her benevolence and dangerous side of nature,
• Swimming in the ocean—scared—but didn’t prevent her from going into water again.
• Found her way around by the fragrance of plants and trees.
• Studied Botany, Zoology, Geography, History through nature. (CBSE Marking Scheme, 2014)
Detailed Answer:
Helen’s father was very affectionate towards her, It was he who developed her interest in nature. He
used to take her out in the gardens where he read stories to her. Her house was covered with vines,
climbing roses and honeysuckles and it was the favourite haunt of honeybees and humming birds. Helen
considered it as the paradise of her childhood. Miss Sullivan also played an important role in Helen’s
love towards nature. She always taught her outdoor in the lap of nature. She leamt all the subjects like
zoology, botany, geography, etc. outdoors. Miss Sullivan took her to rivers, built dams of pebbles, dug
river-beds to teach her. She learnt the growth of a plant by actually feeling its growth day-by-day in
order and systematically. Once Miss Sullivan took her outdoors. While returning back, she was caught in
a storm. She was terrified as Miss Sullivan had gone home to bring food. At that moment, she realized
that nature could be benevolent as well as dangerous. Despite her disability, she leamt swimming. She
had a bad experience in the ocean as well but that did not deter her from learning to swim. Her
experiences with nature made her come out as a woman who could move ahead on the path of life with
full confidence.

Q. 2. Write a character sketch of Anne Sullivan. (NCT 2014) (Board Term-I 2013, Set 101)
Ans. Miss Anne Sullivan was Helen’s instructor as well as a teacher. She was sent by the Perkins
Institution in Boston to teach Helen. They foupd her competent enough to begin Helen’s education and
Anne arrived at Helen’s place in March.

After her arrival, Helen’s life changed. Apart from being a guide and instructor she was like a mother to
Helen. She accompanied her wherever she went.

Miss Sullivan had great patience. Sometimes Helen used to throw tantrums but Miss Sullivan always
handled her very well. She taught her to communicate by writing the spellings of the words on her hand
with her fingers. Helen leamt this art and was able to communicate with others in an effective way when
she leamt to write sentences also.
Miss Sullivan was a perfect teacher who enjoyed spending her time with Helen. She taught her subjects
like Arithmetic, History, Geography, Zoology, Botany, etc., through a playful method. Helen never
realised that she was being educated during the process of learning. She enjoyed all the lessons with
Miss Sullivan.
Both Helen and Miss Sullivan had a good time with each other throughout their lives.

Q. 3. Write a character sketch of Mildred Keller. (Board Term-I 2013, Set 101)
Or
“Mildred was an alert and observant child.” Comment with reference to the train incident at Fern
Quarry. (Board Term-I 2007, Set 5007)
Ans. Value Points:
• Regarded her as an intruder initially.
• Jealous of her—she ceased to be mother’s only darling.
• Discovered Mildred sleeping in her doll’s cradle—overturned it—Luckily mother caught her in time.
• Later signs of bonding
• Couldn’t understand her not could she understand finger language. Yet grew in understanding and
love.
(CBSE Marking Scheme, 2013)
Detailed Answer:
Mildred Keller was Helen’s younger sister. Before she was born Helen used to get all the attention of her
parents but with Mildred’s birth, things changed a bit and Helen became jealous of her but at later
stages both of them
became very close to each other. Mildred was an alert and observant child. Once they were at fern
Quarry. They went out to gather persimmons and got lost in woods. It started getting dark but they
were unable to find their way back home. On the way, Mildred observed a trestle and realised that it
was a short cut to their home. So, ’ they all started walking on that path. Suddenly, she saw a train
moving towards them. She alerted Helen and both of them were lucky enough to climb down in time.
The train zoomed past time. It was only Mildred’s alertness which averted something horrible.
Q. 4. Draw up a character sketch of Martha Washington. (Board Term-12013, Set 8SRR)
Ans. Value Points:
• Martha was the child of the cook
• She was a coloured girl and Helen’s constant companion
• She could understand Helen’s signs
• Helen dominated her
• Martha had a great love mischief. (CBSE Marking Scheme, 2013)
Detailed Answer:
Martha Washington was the daughter of the cook who helped Helen Keller’s mother. She was a
coloured girl. Since both of them were of the same age group, they could always be seen together. In
other words she was Helen’s constant companion. Though she was a child, yet she could very well
understand Helen’s sign language whenever Helen went out to play, Martha was always by her side. But
Helen always dominated her. Martha had a great love for mischief. She used to go egg-hunting for the
guinea- fowl eggs in the long grass with Helen. Martha used to spend a lot of time with Helen in the
kitchen kneading dough balls, helping make ice-cream, grinding coffee, quarrelling over the cake-bowl
and not to forget, feeding the hens and turkeys that swarmed about the kitchen steps. The sheds for
storing com and stables were sources of interest to Martha. In fact she was a mischievous girl who
submitted to Helen’s mischiefs most of the time.

Q. 5. Write a pen-portrait of Helen Keller.

Ans. Helen Keller was a great woman who was bom on June 27,1880 in Tuscumbia, a little town of
northern Alabama. When she was still a child, she fell ill and lost her sight as well as hearing. The world
outside became dark and silent. Initially, she used to have fits of temper when she realized she was
different from others but gradually adjusted herself in a positive way to the life which fate had chosen
for her. Her teacher, Miss Anne Sullivan helped her a lot in this. Her relationship with Miss Sullivan was
long-lasting and she never moved out without her. She taught Helen to communicate with others
through words and later sentences.

Helen had a great respect for physical bravery. She had a sportsman spirit and never felt defeated. She
loved nature and wanted to be with the trees, animals, birds, flower, bushes, etc. Despite her physical
disabilities, she learnt how to climb trees, swimming, etc. She enjoyed the snowfall at Boston.

Helen was a girl who liked the company of others. She never felt shy. She used to greet the guests when
they visited her parents. She went to celebrate Christmas with Tuscumbia school children and
exchanged gifts with them.
She loved fragrances. Whenever she was free, she used to go out into the orchards and gardens to enjoy
the fragrances of persimmons, lilies, jasmines, ripe peaches, etc. Her description of her various
experiences were very vivid and clear. In short, we can say that Helen was an optimistic lady who never
let her disabilities come in the path of her progressing life. Life to her was a teacher and she learnt many
things from it.