[Blindtlk] touching faces

[Jasmine Kotsay]

Hi,
	I agree, Bob, totally, with your last statement.  I don't 
usually touch faces, because of the fact that I don't know if 
they have pimples or anything else on these face.  People ask me 
if I touch faces, but I usually say no.  When I saw the subject 
line of this thread, I thought to myself, "We wouldn't be able to 
tell a person's face from another's." Certain things, we might be 
able to, but only if we've felt the face more times than once.  
For instance, I can tell my dad's face just by the feel of it.

Sincerely,
Jasmine

 ----- Original Message -----
From: "Bob Hachey" <bhachey at verizon.net
To: "'Blind Talk Mailing List'" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Tue, 21 May 2013 21:56:57 -0400
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] touching faces

Hi Carly and all,
AS one who was born totally blind, it is a bit of a stretch for 
me to
imagine how the face has gained such importance among those of us 
who are
not blind, but there is no doubt that the face has a very high 
level of
importance among the vast majority of us humans.  Being mindful 
of this makes
it easier for me to be patient with those who ask me to touch 
their faces.
My rule of thumb is to say no to those I've never met before and 
to say yes
to friends and other colleagues.  By far the oddest situation 
like this I've
encountered occurred when a supervisor asked me to touch her face 
at our
first weekly supervisory meeting.  Not wanting to offend her, I 
complied.
When I got to know her better, I asked her why she made the 
initial request.
She said very honestly that she figured that this was how blind 
folks learn
to distinguish one person from another.  I replied that I'd have 
a far better
chance of remembering people by the sound of their voice rather 
than by the
touch of a face.
Anyone wanting to lose money may feel free to bet on my ability 
to recognize
others by the touch of the face! LOL.
AS with many aspects of being blind, there is a lot of ignorance 
out there
and much of it is innocent.  Though it is not easy on some days, 
I try in
most circumstances to give those asking questions the benefit of 
the doubt.
IF I could change one thing about what sighted folks do when they 
approach
us it would be this.  Please speak or ask before touching and 
never grab a
blind person without talking unless you're saving him or her from 
immediate
danger.
Bob Hachey


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