Better than words: Brain-injured Calgary man finds his voice on canvas

A Calgary man says that when he puts brush to canvas, he's able to express himself better than using words, after a devastating stroke-induced brain injury that turned his world upside down.

"I have difficulty finding words, so sometimes I just paint it," Clifford Pebenito told The Homestretch on Friday.

Three years ago, the 34-year-old was getting ready for work when he fell.

"My daughter and my father from the Philippines, just dropped by to visit us, thank God werethere. Otherwise, I am not in front of you," he said.

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Pebenito had suffered a stroke that caused a brain injury.

"It affects everything. It turned my world upside down. I was trying to get my pharmacist equivalency exam. I was working in a pharmacy and all of a sudden, my world is upside down. I lost function mostly of my left side. I have limited hand function. My mobility is slow, less sensation. I have visual impairment. Those are devastating for me."

He had reached out to the Universal Rehabilitation Service Agency (URSA) for physical rehabilitation services but learned they had a lot more to offer, including art classes.

"It started about five years ago as a meeting place for individuals with brain injuries and then it really evolved," Danielle Murphy said.

She's the community relations co-ordinator at the agency and says brain injuries can turn someone's life upside down.

"Someone will come into the program, they may not fully accept the brain injury and the physical and mental changes, and they maybe are not able to express the anger and frustration," Murphy said.

"They come into this program and without even knowing they grow into acceptance. They are creating these pieces, which I think gives them self-esteem and confidence."

And Pebenito is a perfect example of that.

"The quality, the colours, the depth and the thought that he has put into these paintings, it's hard to believe that he has physical and cognitive challenges," Murphy said. "It's very hopeful. You see the pieces and you totally understand what he's saying."

Some of Pebenito's art and that of his peers is available for sale at Brain Art 2018, a fundraiser for the agency.

From the program and the support of his peers, Pebenito is in a better place than he was after his stroke.

"I have hope again," he said.

"Just sharing and touching the life of people through the art. Sharing my story through the canvas and paintbrush."

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With files from The Homestretch.