The Man To My Right

Last night we attended a dinner event which was held in a Chinese restaurant.   It was a ladies group, plus their spouses, so I had not met most of the spouses, as I am a new member of this group.  Sitting on my right side, at this round table,  was Dan, a man who is blind.  Of course, one is always interested and curious about how a blind person manages to navigate the challenges of life.   Dan's wife guides him as need be, but he also uses a cane.

Perhaps the most fascinating and unexpected thing about Dan was his upbeat and cheerful attitude.  He was personable, outgoing and fun to be around.  Clearly, Dan is a very capable person, currently a professor of English at a nearby community college.  Although the cause or timing of his blindness did not come up in the conversation, I did learn that he was sighted earlier in his life, and lost his sight later.   The result of that is that a later- blinded person is much less likely to learn and use the Braille system-- especially now, with all the technological helpers. (he had a talking watch!)  When a person loses one ability, it is often the case that other abilities become keener, to compensate. Since he teaches,  he has mastered the art of memorizing, and often learns the poems by heart, when doing the poetry unit, and certainly impresses his students!

Dan's wife served his food onto his plate,  but he did a marvelous job of eating without any mishaps.  They did inform the folks at our table of his blindness before dinner, so they would be aware should they see anything out of the ordinary.  I did notice that when he extends his hand for a handshake,  it is a little higher than it might be, but that is of no significance, of course.

At any rate,  I thoroughly enjoyed the man to my right who was engaging, intelligent, and multi-abled.   His warmth and personality definitely made up for his blindness, and he was an inspiration to behold!