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Rafi Abdurrahman Ridwan is 9 years old and hearing impaired, and yet he has managed to accomplish what few could ever dream. Like most children, Rafi’s vision is unbounded, and with a passion rare to most people (let alone children), he has become Indonesia’s youngest fashion designer.

At Jakarta Fashion Week 2012, Rafi presented 24 ready-to-wear outfits on the main stage of the JFW fashion tent on the final day of the November event. Time on the main stage is high recognition, even among the more established names in the country’s fashion industry.

“I almost cried when I watched the show,” Rafi’s father, Mohammad Ridwan, said of his youngest child. “I’m so proud of my son.”

Rafi has faced more than his share of challenges, but has demonstrated resilience and managed to thrive.

“I was diagnosed with rubella in the first trimester of my pregnancy,” said Sinta Ayu Handayani, Rafi’s mother. “My doctor told me my child could be born with heart, sight or hearing defects.”

Brokenhearted, Rafi’s parents decided to carry on with the pregnancy.

“My husband and I believe that we don’t have any right to choose life and death for another human being,” Sinta said. “We believe the child that God has given us is a blessing.”

Rafi was born in Jakarta in July 2002 with a healthy heart, but his vision and hearing did not develop until he was 3 months old. “He also suffered from a lot of respiratory tract infections when he was a child,” Sinta said. “We had to take him to the hospital many, many times when he was a baby.”

Rafi’s health gradually improved and his sight developed fully, but his hearing remains impaired.

“Sometimes, I wonder why God has entrusted him to our family,” Ridwan said. “I truly believed there are lessons that God wants us to learn through Rafi.”

Through Rafi’s condition, his family says they’ve learned the meaning of unconditional love. “We have learned to be more patient and understanding,” Ridwan said. “Since Rafi couldn’t hear, he didn’t understand how loud he was talking or screaming. He also didn’t understand that his voice might disturb others. We had to explain it very gently to him.”

Determined that their son would survive in the outside world, Rafi’s parents enrolled him in the Santi Rama school for the deaf when he was 2 years old.

It was at Santi Rama that Rafi began to draw, sketching the colorful fish he watched in an aquarium at home. As a little boy, Rafi became enamored with Ariel, the mermaid princess from Disney’s “The Little Mermaid.” But one thing about Ariel bothered young Rafi.

“He kept asking me why the princess wasn’t appropriately attired,” Sinta said. “He couldn’t understand that ‘The Little Mermaid’ is only a story. So, to end his questions, I just asked him to create dresses for the mermaid.”

Rafi set himself to the task. With his colorful markers, he drew vests and jackets to cover the upper torso of the shell-ladened mermaid. And when Rafi saw Ariel become human on TV, he started designing dresses and ball gowns for her, too.

The dresses in Rafi’s sketches were so vivid and detailed that his mother began to see the design talent her son possessed. “I took him to a fashion show by Indonesian designer Auguste Soesastro in the plenary hall at the Jakarta Convention Center when he was 5 years old,” Sinta said. “I guess, the show inspired Rafi to become a fashion designer.”

Rafi became enchanted with the world of fashion. He watched fashion channels on TV and perused fashion magazines to improve his sketches.

“It was funny, whenever we would go to a bookstore, he’d run and look at the fashion magazines in the racks,” Ridwan said. Through one of these magazines, Rafi saw that the Jakarta Food and Fashion Festival was coming up.

“He practically dragged me to the event,” Sinta said. Rafi was delighted to see the beautiful gowns and meet famous Indonesian fashion designers in person at the festival. He met designer Barli Asmara, took pictures with him and showed Barli some of his sketches.

“Unlike most other kids’ drawings, Rafi’s sketches were so vivid and detailed,” Barli said. “I realized the huge potential he had.”

Barli invited Rafi and his mother to his workshop and showed the boy his own sketches and designs.

As the two became acquainted, Rafi showed his diary, titled “Letters to God,” to his new friend. Rafi wrote to God, asking for two special presents for his upcoming ninth birthday.

“First of all, Rafi asked God that he could hear,” Sinta said. “And then he asked God to be able to have a fashion show on his birthday.”

“I was touched,” Barli said. “I had the time and means to realize one of his dreams. So, we worked together to create a small collection for a fashion show.”

A mini show was arranged at Canteen in Plaza Indonesia on July 20, Rafi’s ninth birthday. Seven of Rafi’s creations were showcased in the runway show.

After the event, Lia Candrasari, an entrepreneur and founder of the LC Foundation, approached Rafi and his mother. “Rafi has exceptional talents that we should foster,” Lia said. “I also admire the resilience of his mother, Sinta, in supporting her son.”

Lia introduced Rafi to writer and textile designer Nonita Respati of Purana Batik fame, and accessories designer Ariani Pradjasaputra, who is behind the Aarti brand, and encouraged them to collaborate. The three established Purana-Aarti-Rafi, or PAR, and presented their debut collection at JFW 2012.

Rafi’s designs are fun and casual, with a tasteful combination of bold colors and patterns. His summer dresses are effortlessly chic, with detailed embellishments such as epaulets. A red batik jumpsuit was a standout in his collection. Enhanced with rows of buttons placed asymmetrically along the bodice, the jumpsuit was playful, yet stylish.

That afternoon on the JFW stage, Rafi’s talent and resilience were rewarded with a big round of applause and bouquets of flowers from the audience. The 9-year-old took it all in with his signature bright smile. “I feel morally attached to Rafi,” Lia said. “I’ll continue to support his education and career in the future.”

But Rafi’s fashion dreams aren’t the only ones to come true. Through the LC Foundation, Lia supported Rafi to undergo a cochlear implant in his right ear at Singapore General Hospital in August.

“The first time he heard noises and voices, Rafi became panicked and hysterical,” Sinta said. “He’s never heard anything in his silent world before.”

Rafi’s hearing is improving, and he has learned to recognize voices and noises from his hearing therapist. If everything goes well with his first implant, Rafi will likely receive another for his left ear in a couple of years.

But Rafi is aiming for more. “I want to be a fashion designer,” Rafi said. “I want to hold fashion shows in Paris, Milan, London and Tokyo.”

“This is another thing that I’ve learned from Rafi,” Ridwan, his father, said. “Most of us are afraid to dream. We’re limited by our own complicated logics and fears. But Rafi’s a child and he simply believes in his dreams. And slowly but surely, his dreams are coming true.

“So, I think we should all have a big dream like Rafi. When there’s a will, there’s a way.”