[blindkid] A beautiful speech.

[Penny Duffy]

I was looking at the new website the NFB of Utah made that I saw mentioned
on the BlindTalk List serve.  While I was looking I found found a speech
that brought me to tears. I am assume most of you have heard it.  I am
pretty sure I have read it before in one of my many late night research
sessions.    I am still wiping the tears from my eyes.  Its a speech by
Carol Castellano from the national convention two years ago titled "Why are
you trying to make that child blind"

http://blindhow.com/posts/92#content

So if you haven't listened to it you really should even it if you have read
it.  I am sure so many of you have already are well aware of this speech
already but it really spoke to me.   I actually got in a heated discussion
last weekend at a family party with an OLD family friend.  He
was insistent my daughter was not blind and completely disagreed with me
using that word.

Seeing what braille has done for my daughter these past few months have been
amazing. It was one of the most hardest things I have ever heard when my
daughters TVI told us that she recommend braille.  (I am so grateful for
this teacher today) I wanted to yell in the meeting "but Abby's not blind".
She was 6 and had 20/20 vision a year before. I couldn't even say the word
BLIND without gagging  so I kept my mouth shut and listened.  I have not
problem at all with someone using visually impaired but calling my daughter
blind and being comfortable just saying the word was such a growth point for
me.   Being able to over come my own personal misperceptions was harder.

I got a bit off my point. GO LISTEN to this speech.

-- 
--Penny
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Adventures with Abby - visionfora.blogspot.com