I’ve said it already…
There was a time in the beginning when I was very focused on a healthy lifestyle.
Back then, I read a lot, gathering information about everything related to nutrition: food, hydration, etc.
At one point, I started replacing some unnecessary and unhealthy snacks, which had not a single gram of nutrients, with herbal teas. I think I tested just about everything I knew existed. 😊 That’s how I came to love them.
Between me and teas, the love grew as I drank them. 😊
In this post, I don’t want to talk about my passion for nutrition or my fairy tale with teas, maybe I’ll return to those topics in the future.
But I want to share a prejudice I’ve noticed around me that doesn’t apply to about 98% of visually impaired people. And it’s not that visually impaired people are superhumans, even though in my “modesty” I might say a lot 😊
It’s because visually impaired people, due to their disability, are forced by circumstances to be, at least, twice as careful.
Stay with me to discover the story.
One evening around 9 o’clock, I asked my mom, “Feel like having some tea? What do you think?”
“Sure, what kind would you like?”
“Maybe some kind of herbal tea if you have any.”
“How about linden flower? Is that okay?” she asked.
“Mmm, fine, though a grape infusion would have been nice, 😊 but linden flower is perfect too.”
Said and done 😊
I put the water on to boil, and mom went to fetch the herb.
Given how often she drinks tea, the linden was well hidden.
Suddenly, I hear the sound of breaking glass, followed by a bit of “music” starting up—nerves and sadness, because in trying to reach the plants at the back of the cupboard, mom, out of carelessness more than anything, knocked down two glass jars. These jars were very useful for storing things and very dear to her, and obviously, making a leap from about 2 meters directly onto the tile floor, they didn’t survive the impact and were shattered.
At first, I didn’t know what had broken, but I didn’t have the courage to ask her, so as not to deepen her upset. 😊
During that time, I thought about the moments when I had broken something, feats of clumsiness that I had witnesses for.
In 98% of the cases, it was said out loud or in a whisper, but with my ear, which “hears even the grass growing,” I caught:
“Poor thing, she can’t see.”
However, I’ve never heard: “Poor thing, she’s in a hurry, she’s careless, or she’s absent-minded.”
Why is it that a person with perfect vision is allowed to be dreamy, to break things and drop stuff?
But why is that right seemingly taken away from me?
It doesn’t bother me to be told that I can’t see, which to the disappointment of some, thank goodness they remind me of this fact, because otherwise, I sometimes forget. 😊
However, I too can experience mishaps because I’m lost in other worlds and not present in what I’m doing. Often, this has nothing to do with vision.
In situations where I know I need to compensate for my sight, I am careful with all the senses I still possess, which is why I manage to keep glasses intact after washing, flowers in place after arranging, etc.
Or if we’re talking about the office: socks not snagged on some edge of a table/chair; papers on their corner of the shelf; coffee in mugs, not on ledgers, etc. 😊
Do you have a similar experience?
Come and share in the comments!
I can’t wait to read about your adventure with “poor thing, he/she (has some disability)”… or on the contrary “Poor thing, what a space cadet.”
#Accessibility_is_not_a_luxury and it’s not just about facilities, it’s firstly about education.
