Out of Sight

Tonight on Nickelodeon was a special called "Out of Sight" about children who are blind and how they view their blindness in a sighted world.  I thought it was very well done.  The children talked about how their blindness doesn't get in their way.  They talked about what they didn't like and what they wished what they could see.  All but one of them went to public school and were doing well.  Only one had an aide.  The kids were well liked, and happy, and funny.

I decided to let Finley stay up and watch it even though it was past her bedtime.  She had crept downstairs anyway - like she sometimes does - to say goodnight one more time.  So I asked her if she wanted to stay and watch.  I think it was harder watching it with her than it would have been otherwise.  She never took her eyes off the screen.  She made comments and asked questions.  She noticed their canes and reminded me that her home cane is "Sugar Stick" and her school cane is "Sugar Cane".  (Not to be mixed up she reminded me).

She talked to me about how other kids at school have glasses.  That they don't take them off, and they help them see.  And she talked about her glasses are there to just protect her eyes, but don't help her see.  She said most kids with glasses don't change to "outside glasses" (her sunglasses) when they go to recess.  But she said this not with regret, but more like it was something special that just she gets to do.  We have made the sunglasses into something fun for her.  She has about 20 different pair - colors, sparkles, big, small, you name it.  So she has never viewed them as a negative.

Her biggest concern was that every kid on the show got in the back seat, and even though most of them were high school age, they weren't driving.  She asked me "how am I going to drive if I am blind?"  I reminded her that her friend "L" has volunteered to drive her anywhere she wants to go, and this cracked her up.  I told her she will always have someone who will help her with what she needs, but that she will be so independent that most of the time she won't need help.

"No worries then mama?"  she asked me.

No worries.