[nabs-l] Am I the only one?Two Questions

Tue Mar 16 14:58:26 UTC 2010

Hi all,
  I  once had vision- partial vision.  do I  miss it? sure, sometimes
but  not always.  is not having vision the end of the world or  the
end of life on this plannet?  obviously not; we have  how many million
blind people on this  planet?  The beauty of  being around other
blind people  is  that they all have different  tips and tricks they
use to live life and live it  to the fullest. So, while vision is  not
 all it's cracked up to be;  there's nothing wrong with  wondering  or
 wishing if that's how you feel.
  I think that  the Idea of wanting to see, is normal. we, as humans
have  an interest from a young age in   wanting to  learn  about
things we  don't know.  We want to  fanticize about flying or  having
 a magical ability, that's just kind of  how we are, so   I think that
 what you feel  is  totally normal.
   Making rules and  living in a box are both things that are  not
exclusive to blindness ( or so I think).
 When you think about it,  people have different ways of   getting
things  done; thing of the memory devices people utilize to remember
names or numbers, I think that's ken to having a rule for something.
I am reminded of a Star Trek  (the  next generation) Episode where
"Robin  Lefler" creates abook of rules "Lefler's laws".  Point is,
people do it, and it's not a blindness thing.
  as for the  "Box"  i think it can be  best explained as  one's
comfort zone.   People  have  either an easier time or a harder time
dealing  with  reaching out of their comfort zone, depending on the
person. Again, I've found it's not a blindness thing  at all.  I  have
friends that  are  better at reaching out  and beyond their zone than
I, and  yet there are some friends that  might find this harder to do
than I  may find.
  i hope this helps.
  Darian

On 3/16/10, Rania <raniaismail04 at gmail.com> wrote:
> I also wish I can see what things look like!
> Like you I have been blind sinse birth.
> Rania,
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
> Of Mary Fernandez
> Sent: Monday, March 15, 2010 10:30 PM
> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Am I the only one?Two Questions
>
> Hi Jen,
> Both your questions are highly intriguing and thought provoking. I for one,
> think that it is only natural and human to want to see as a blind person.
> Most of us have found wways with which we have succeeded in life. We know
> the alternative skills, we are competent people, and we have satisfactory
> lives. However, blindness is an inconvenience. While it is not the tragedy
> that the sighted world thinks it is, it does cause us frustration and
> annoyance. Most of that frustration is due to the fact of how others view
> us. Oh, what i wouldn't give to be able to walk into a room and have people
> say, oh look, she seems to be a nice person, ;instead of, Gasp, she's blind,
> and she's walking! For me though, aside from public attitudes, I really
> really wish I could drive. I am a highly independent and somewhat impatient
> person. In Atlanta, public transportation isn't the best, and oh, how i hate
> wating on saturdays for a bus that is over an hour late. And I really don't
> like asking people for rides since everyone is busy. Of course, most of my
> friends wouldn't refuse, but who wants to be a burden all the time?
> Long story short, it is perfectly normal to feel that way. Sighted people
> don't wish they could see, but some wish they were married, others that they
> had gotten an educations, still others that they had a different job. We all
> wish for things that we can't have. It's human nature. But as long as it is
> only a passing thought, something that doesn't stop us from living a full
> and meaningful life, it's not somethign to be overly worried about.
>
> As to your second question. I think this is merely a personality trait as
> opposed to a blind specific trait. It is true, that a lot of blind people
> like to be in control, because we have no control over our lack of sight, it
> is comforting, and often a smart thing to have set ways of doing things.
> Knowing as much as we can about our environment, and being able to run our
> lives in a predictable fashion is important, not only to blind people, but
> to everyone. However, being boxed in all the time, and never venturing out
> of a set parameter isn't always healthy.
> I think that we all, as individuals should try to do things
> differently at some point. Sometimes   doing something a different
> way, or approaching a problem from a different perspective is very healthy.
> If we get boxed in, and set in our ways, it might lead us to become stuck in
> situations that can be solved in different ways. This is especially
> important for blind individuals, because we can't always do thing a certain
> way so we have to look for alternatives. Last semester, I was taking a
> statistics class, and I was so determined and used to being able to get
> everything accomplished on my own, without any sighted help, that I
> completely oversaw the solution right in front of my face. Hiring someone to
> describe graphics while I figured out a way to do it myself would have been
> the perfect solution. But instead, I had gotten so boxed in just hitting my
> head against a wall until it gave up, that I had to withdraw from the class.
> I was so stuck in the fact that I didn't have my books, had never used a
> statistics computer program, and my professor was unhelpful, that I just
> failed to look a the problem from a different perspective. I've learned my
> lesson. And it is a valuable one to learn at an early stage. We have
> different reasons for wanting to have structured lives.
> Someone mentioned fear, wanting to have complete control or even just
> because we don't care to know a different way since we have never needed to
> do so. These are all legitimate reasons, but it is important to recognize
> that getting set in our ways can lead to failure instead of success.
> I'm so sorry I went on so long.
> Hope this help though.
> Mary
>
>
> On 3/15/10, Hope Paulos <hope.paulos at maine.edu> wrote:
>> Hi there. I sometimes wish I can see, but am perfectly fine being
>> blind. As far as living life inside a box.. I do this, but am trying
>> to break out of it. I want to be more spontaneous. In my case, living
>> in my box is due to fear. Therefore, I'm attempting to becoome less
>> fearful and more relaxed. To be honest (and brutally so) I believe
>> living in one's box is a "blindism", that not all blind people have, but
> many do.
>> HTH.
>> Hope and Beignet
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Jen" <spiderweb1 at sbcglobal.net>
>> To: <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Monday, March 15, 2010 4:51 PM
>> Subject: [nabs-l] Am I the only one?Two Questions
>>
>>
>>> 1. Am I the only one who sometimes wishes he / she could see?
>>>
>>> I am comfortable with my blindness and would not want to be sighted,
>>> but still wonder and am fascinated by what things look like at times
>>> (for new members, I have been blind since birth.)
>>>
>>> Yesterday, I took my my to a River Dance concert for her birthday. I
>>> loved the music but wanted to see the dancing that went with it as well.
>>> It was hard to try to picture it based on the music...
>>>
>>> 2. I love / cling to procedural order in life - follow all steps, and
>>> nothing can or will go wrong. I also try to make rules for everything
>>> that won't change so everything is in a contained "box" in my mind
>>> out of which it can't escape. I also find rules comforting so I don't
>>> have to think and can just do something automatically. An example of
>>> such a rule is "always take out your book in class [even if the
>>> professor isn't using it that day.] If you do this, you will always be a
> good student.
>>> If you don't, you are a bad student."
>>>
>>> I know there are no guarantees for things but still cling to the
>>> procedural mind set to keep my mental boxes of rules intact. Is being
>>> overly procedure-oriented a "blindism" or something with which the
>>> sighted struggle as well?
>>>
>>> Thanks for your input.
>>>
>>>
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>>
>>
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>
>
> --
> Mary Fernandez
> Emory University 2012
> P.O. Box 123056
> Atlanta Ga.
> 30322
> Phone: 732-857-7004
> In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is
> never a given. It must be earned.
> President Barack Obama
>
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-- 
Darian Smith
Skype: The_Blind_Truth
Windows Live: Lightningrod2010 at live.com
The National Federation of the Blind has launched a nationwide teacher
recruitment campaign to help attract energetic and passionate
individuals into the field of blindness education, and we need your
help!   To Get Involved  go to:
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