Healing Through the Arts

By Omar Binno

I was recently out to lunch with some family and friends and the topic came up of how taboo and even frowned upon mental therapy is within the Chaldean community. Like other social issues such as disabilities or physical ailments, therapy has had its own negative stigma for years uncounted. In the past, if you even remotely considered counseling, you were deemed weak, crazy, or both. Pride was, and in many cases, still is the main culprit behind people avoiding therapy, or even talking about it as an option for resolving deep seated issues.

Therapy has been an integral part of my life over the years, whether in the form of traditional counseling or spiritual direction. My positive experiences with therapy as well as recent spiritual struggles were what led to my founding the non-profit organization Healing Arts of the Little Flower (HALF) in December 2022. This new resource will provide music, art, nature, and equestrian therapy for veterans and those with special needs.

Being blind and surrounded by a plethora of family and friends with varying disabilities, I witnessed, first-hand, the negative and destructive stigmas that can encompass the life of these individuals. My own battle with depression over blindness started around age sixteen. High school became a place of unrealistic sandcastles, with hopes of miraculously regaining my eyesight, having my own car and being able to do all the things that “normal” people did.

In 1992, about two years into my college career, I realized that I needed to talk to someone on a consistent basis; someone who could guide me through the turmoil that ensued once I became disillusioned after high school. That year, I met a priest who also had a background in counseling. I began therapy and counsel for spiritual direction with him, and since then I’ve done therapy of all types, both traditional and spiritual.

The idea for HALF had been brewing in my mind for about five years, but the thought of starting such an arduous task was so daunting that, for a while, I just left the project in the realm of dreams. The only person at that time who knew how important the idea was to me was one of my close friends, Mark Kassa, who was also my main source of encouragement when I finally decided to initiate the process. I personally believe that HALF was inspired by St. Therese of the Little Flower in response to my struggles with doubt, but that’s a whole other story.

As a lifelong musician and writer, I can certainly testify to the therapeutic effects of music or other forms of art. I’ve loved music since I was four years old and have always been enchanted with stories of magic and fantasy. The arts were an important part of my life from my early childhood and were instrumental in helping me maintain peace of mind through some dark times over the years.

There is mounting evidence that the arts are highly therapeutic for releasing negative emotions and stress. There is also strong scientific data emerging to support the use and importance of nature and animal therapy for those who suffer from trauma or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Sessions are as varied as walks outside on a nature trail with a therapist, or just sitting quietly in a naturalistic setting and absorbing the scenery.

When Healing Arts of the Little Flower (HALF) was established as a non-profit, I was humbled and honored at the huge interest people had in bringing to fruition a project like this, especially with the rise of autism within the community and abroad. Several people from various walks of life were interested in participating as board members to get the project launched, including doctors, psychologists, and veterans, as well as Bishop Francis Kalabat, who has been a close friend and my greatest mentor over the past twenty-three years. Ronnie Babbie, a media marketing producer and family friend for years, was so excited about the project that he quickly offered his resources and assistance for its development and is now the Chief Operating Officer for the organization.

Another part of HALF’s mission is to provide support groups led by qualified therapists for parents of children with special needs. Parents are often left feeling helpless, confused, and a lot of times overwhelmed to the point where they may feel stuck trying to find resources for assisting their children.

They also often face stereotypes and stigmas, which can lead them to feel isolated just for having a child with special needs. I remember my psychology teacher in high school once telling the class, “The two hardest things for a mother to bear are the loss of a child and having a disabled child.” Truer words couldn’t have been spoken. Having two blind children, my mom endured the struggles associated with it; I’ve seen cousins and friends go through similar issues.

It is my hope that HALF becomes a place of peace and healing for not only our clients, but for their families as well. I have an unshakeable conviction that both nature and the arts are more beneficial than drugs in helping human beings deal with suffering or trauma. It is the advancement of technology that has caused us to drift away from our naturalistic roots. Whether a walk on the grass or sitting in front of a fire outside enjoying a snowfall, interactions with nature are the real wonder drug.

HALF is in the process of securing a base location from which to provide various forms of therapy. It is also the mission of the organization to eventually provide work for those with special needs—whether as music instructors collaborating with the therapist or managing various administrative tasks such as community outreach or social media marketing.

Healing Arts of the Little Flower is not an ethnic or religion-based organization and is open to all those who truly need its services; however, the story of its inception is, for me, a spiritual one. God gave us Jesus, and Jesus gave us each other.

If you want to make a difference in the lives of those with special gifts, whose real needs are often overlooked, support HALF’s first fundraiser on Friday, May 10, from 6PM-9PM at Wabeek Country Club. To learn more about Healing Arts of the Little Flower and the upcoming fundraiser, visit healingartslf.org.