April 24 - White Cane Connections

Using my white cane often helps me to make connections with other people.  In fact, that is what happened the first day that Lyle and I were in Sydney.  This is how it happened.

Lyle and I were to catch a suburban train to visit my sister.  As we boarded the train, another passenger came into the same train compartment.  Right away he began to speak with us about my white cane.

The man explained to us that he also had low vision because he was an albino.  Albinism is a condition where there is a lack of pigment in the skin, hair and eyes. The lack of pigment in the eyes often causes vision loss,

Our new acquaintance said that his vision seemed "wobbly". It was difficult for him to focus on things.  He said that it in Sydney there was an annual get together of people with albinism.  There would be around 50 of them and usually four or five of these would have guide dogs.

All too soon our friend alighted from the train.  My white cane had been a good conversation starter and it was a good way to connect with someone else who had low vision.