May 1 - Board Games

When I was fully sighted, two of my favourite board games were Scrabble and Chess. These days I can’t see the individual tiles or game pieces and I certainly can’t memorize their position on the game board. I still like to play games but I have needed to adjust my perspective. So, I am learning to enjoy games that utilize team work and audible clues.

This past weekend was a good example of how far I have come with this. Our family was together and our two grandchildren – ages eight and nearly eight – were my partners in several games. Knowing that I was unable to see any print, they were very adept at reading clues, letters and directions for me. Sometimes these needed to be whispered so that the other team couldn’t hear but somehow that just added to the fun of the game. How fortunate am I to have two such supportive little ones in our family. Of course, I know that they are also following the example set by their parents.

It has taken me a while to let go of the very visual games of Scrabble and Chess, but I am learning to enjoy this new game perspective. I am holding to the tenet that it’s never too late to learn new ways of doing things. Certainly, these days we can choose from what seems to be an abundant variety of board games on the retail market.