Growing up with your parents around during childhood provides a sense of safety.
However, being forced to grow up without them or knowing you were abandoned can sometimes lead to feelings of resentment toward them.
Xueli Abbing, a 16-year-old born in China, experienced this firsthand when she was abandoned at birth. She was left at the door of an orphanage, and the identity of her parents remains completely unknown.
Xem bài viết này trên Instagram
The orphanage staff gave her the name Xueli, where “Xue” means snow and “Li” means beautiful, reflecting the fact that she was born with albinism.
Albinism is a genetic condition that reduces melanin, resulting in pale skin, hair, and eyes.
Xueli was adopted by a family in the Netherlands who provided her with a loving home. At the age of 11, she was approached by a designer in Hong Kong to model for a campaign that celebrated diverse types of beauty.
Xem bài viết này trên Instagram
“She called the campaign ‘perfect imperfections’ and asked if I wanted to join her fashion show in Hong Kong,” Xueli shared in an interview with the BBC. “That was an amazing experience,” she added.
Around the world, people with albinism often face discrimination, and in some regions, they are even “hunted” due to the false belief that their bones have medicinal properties. Reflecting on this, Xueli once remarked, “I’m lucky I was only abandoned.”
Even within the fashion industry, models with albinism are sometimes used as props to depict angels or ghosts. About this, Xueli said, “It makes me sad.”
Related Posts
“You’re Not Coming to Hawaii,” My Father Announced—Then My Mother Handed Me a Schedule for Nine Children and Said, “Someone Has to Stay Home With Them.” I Didn’t Argue. I Just Closed the Folder and Said, “Then I’m Canceling the Trip.” Everyone Laughed… Until the Restaurant Manager Walked Over and Revealed Who Actually Owned the Company Paying for Everything
Part 1 of 3 The Celebration That Changed Everything My parents’ forty-third wedding anniversary should have been one of those evenings people remembered for all the right reasons....
After 25 Years as a Pediatric Nurse, I Was Fired Without Warning and Told Not to “Make Things Difficult.” On the Bus Home, I Gave My Expensive Seat to a Scarred Stranger Who Could Barely Sit in Coach. He Whispered, “You Have No Idea What You Just Did.” Three Days Later, 97 Motorcycles Lined My Street—and a Folder Finally Revealed Why the Hospital Had Really Wanted Me Gone
Part 1 of 3 The Morning They Erased Twenty-Five Years At fifty-six, Marlene Whitaker believed there were two places in the world where she knew exactly who she...
Hours After We Laid Our 4-Year-Old Son to Rest, My Husband Said, “You Have 48 Hours—My Pregnant Girlfriend Is Moving In.” I Took One Suitcase and Left… Then the House Deed Inside It Led Me to a Filing He Never Expected Me to Find.
Part 1 of 3The Afternoon He Asked Me to Leave On the afternoon we laid our four-year-old son to rest, my husband stood across from me in our...
Two Hours Before Brain Surgery, My Husband Handed Me Divorce Papers and Claimed My Best Friend’s Baby Was His. Certain My Condo, Cards, and Fortune Were Already His, He Walked Away Smiling. I Signed and Made One Call… By Morning, His Cards Had Failed—and My Attorney Was Holding a File That Changed Everything.
Part 1 of 3The Papers on My Blanket Two hours before surgeons were scheduled to remove a growth from my brain, my husband walked into my hospital room...
I Married a Wealthy 74-Year-Old Man So My 10-Year-Old Daughter Could Have a Better Life. Then I Saw Him Secretly Giving Her Money—and One Midnight I Heard Him Whisper, “Quickly, Before Your Mom Comes Down.” I Rushed Into the Living Room, but What They Were Hiding Was Nothing Like I Feared
Part 1 of 3 I Married a 74-Year-Old Man to Give My Daughter a Better Life When Everett Langston asked me to marry him, I was thirty-six years...