Have you ever wondered what it would feel like to lose your eyesight? Yes, to become blind, to live in darkness... To miss out seeing the blue sky, the cottony wisps of clouds, the glaring rays of the sun, the sweet glow of a full moon.

The first instinct, I think, when losing the sense of sight is fear. There is uncertainty when we are unable to see what lies ahead of us, what is before us. What if we crash into an object and hurt our self? Or fall headlong because we missed steps in the stairway?

How do blind people cope, or adjust to a life where words are the only way they can paint a picture of what the world is like?

Step into their shoes

I remember an exercise in our Personality Development Class in high school. Our teacher, Mr. Ed Espiritu, wanted us to experience what it was like to lose this essential sense, so he challenged us to blindfold ourselves at home for at least 20 minutes and go around the house.

It seemed easy enough because most of us have memorized the layout of our homes, and take for granted everything that's laid out there. But that's because we can see them.

Mr. Espiritu wanted a report of our experience, so even the best writer cannot produce a convincing narrative without actually doing the exercise.

The moment you put on that blindfold, and you have to be honest to put it on properly where you absolutely can't see anything, you feel a slight trepidation even as you convince yourself that it was going to be a piece of cake.

That sense of confidence is from the knowledge that you know where you are, are familiar with your surroundings, and it was just going to be for 20 minutes.

Yet, the moment you stand up with nothing but darkness in front of you, automatically, you hold up both arms for two reasons: first, to find your sense of balance; and second to help you maneuver without getting hurt.

The challenges

Darkness disorients. What you thought of as just two feet away from you actually seems farther when you're blind. On the flipside, just as you're thinking that the dining table is several feet away you run into a chair that's tucked underneath it.

Suddenly, you feel like someone moved the furniture around and you're knocking your knees or feet into something hard and yelp in pain!

So, I completely understand why some sightless individuals choose to use a walking stick to guide them. When you're in familiar surroundings like your home, the best way to avoid getting hurt is to count the number of steps between furniture and fixtures (and hope nobody plays a prank on you by moving things around).

That's easier said than done where you're alone, which I was when conducting the experiment. That would mean going back and forth to measure the distance and it can be tiring to do that.

Frustrations

Next to feeling terrified, being unable to see is frustrating. And it is probably for this reason why the other senses are heightened to compensate for the sightlessness.

As I try to recall that exercise, I'm starting to remember I conducted it in another household, too. I know it's silly and increased the level of difficulty by two notches.

But being in an unfamiliar environment without sight definitely made me experience what it was like to be blind. Looking back, there were the beads of sweat while I attempted to mask my fear with laughter. I very nearly bruised my shin walking into the coffee table and hitting the edge of wooden chairs. I also slipped because there was a small step separating the living room and the dining room.

Twenty minutes in darkness is not a walk in the park. Aside from groping with your hands and feet trying to find your way around a room safely, several thoughts are running inside your head - anger and fear, you being an inconvenience to other people because of any mess you'll make, and your heart racing as sweat runs down your head and back.

Helping hands

Yes, the visually impaired eventually learn to become independent but they cannot and should not do it alone. They need support, a helping hand. Arrogance is not uncommon for those who become blind, especially as adults.

It will take small victories to be able to adjust and cope, because if life for the sighted is full of challenges, theirs is 10 times more difficult.

That exercise showed me how it is to be sightless on one level. It did not teach me what went inside the head of someone who actually lived in darkness. And I was only living with blindness temporarily and in one familiar setting. How much more did the sightless suffer because of this disability?

So, I am in awe of those who are able to live as normally as is possible given their circumstances and situation. How they are so much more sensitive to their surroundings, even to nuances in the behavior of people in their midst. That takes courage and a strong spirit.

One lesson I learned is that when we feel blinded by our problems, just do like the visually impaired do, tap into your other senses to help you discern.

Photos: Unsplash