April 20 - Blind or Not Blind?

Many people think of blindness in terms of black and white. Either a person is blind and can see nothing, or they are not blind and they see in perfect detail. This concept fails to recognize that there are many shades of in-between vision. I know that I fall into that in-between category. I am not alone in this, but I know too that others in the in-between land of sight see the world in many different ways – fuzzy, cloudy, blurred, spotty, pin-point vision, peripheral only, monocular, and a seemingly endless list of sight variations.

I always find it difficult to explain to others what it is that I see. It is even more difficult when I say that I see differently at different times and in different circumstances. I see less in dimly lit places. For instance, candle lit restaurants and bars are like blackened caverns and my sight zooms to zero. On the other hand, bright artificial overhead lights, mirrored walls, shiny marble or tiled floor surfaces can also cause me to squint. I am glad that spring is finally on the way and that I no longer have to contend with the glare of the sun on the snow. I know that I see better when there is a contrast between green grass and bare asphalt.

I see less when I am tired. I see more when I am in familiar surroundings. I think that my memory kicks in and tells me what I should be seeing. I see more when a guide by my side tells me what I am looking at. Somehow, my brain then fills in some of the details.

Probably this reflection comes in April because it was in April 1986 that my sight changed. I have learned much about blindness and sight over these past twenty-eight years.