DO YOU SEE WHAT I SEE? (08-Aug-2021)

 

The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision...Helen Keller

A profound statement from one of the greatest advocates for the blind.  Blessed with extra-sensory capabilities, she and others overcome their visual challenges to be a boon to humanity.  With our eyesight intact, we have many a lesson to learn.

During my decade-long stint at one of the largest Information Technology MNC, my coworker on the floor moved around a maze of cubicles with utmost certainty.  He never used the White Cane - a device that is an able ally to manage basic movement by scanning the surrounding for any obstacles, within the four walls.  He covered good ground to reach the restroom, but never faltered.  On the contrary he put others at shame with the immaculate way he went about his job.  He always washed his hands with soap at the wash basin, and never knocked off a person accidentally.

My business partner and I visited a home for business discussions with a gentleman from UK.  An immaculately dressed man stepped out from the farthest room along a corridor, his gait with swift movement of arms caught my attention. He welcomed us with a firm handshake and sat us down at the sofa.  A charm about him had me spellbound.  He informed us that he was completely blind, though not an inkling in his demeanor.  We scheduled another meeting the next day.  When we entered the venue, he turned around in one swift movement to welcome us and shook hands in perfect alignment with our first names.  We watched in bewilderment his brilliance.

During a trip to Geneva my resident cousin there introduced me to an elderly gentleman who lived alone in a huge mansion with a guide dog.  He was visually impaired at a later stage in his life.  His enthusiasm and energy levels were infectious.  Always impeccably dressed, he treated me to a couple of dinner sessions.  At the dinner table his movement was laced with finesse.  He had a wine glass and a still-water glass next to him but never spilled it.  His exquisite use of the cutlery and the napkin was a treat to watch.  He knew where exactly his dog was seated below the table when he fed him something to nibble on.  He alighted the stairs at a level of precision that had me tripping all over as I had my eyes firmly set on him and his movements.

During the drive with my cousin at the wheel, he was the GPS in the car.  Extremely courteous, he provided a running commentary of the monuments and their heritage as he showed me around the city.  A perplexed me was clouded with thoughts to doubt his impairment, such was the certainty with his movements.  He was the avatar personified of Al Pacino in the Scent of a Woman, minus the idiosyncrasies.

During college, I traveled to a village to participate in a cataract eye camp.  I walked an old lady from the base camp who had almost lost her eyesight, to the place where the procedure was carried out.  I returned in an hour to check on her but was devastated when she with her eyes bandaged categorically remarked that she does not remember me.  As I turned around, I heard a cackling behind me; she blessed and thanked me profusely.

Blindness can take away the sight but equips the individual to see with a compassionate heart and develop a vision far greater than what meets the eye!  Where does that leave us – Do you see what I see?!