Eyesight Is Not the Same as Vision

Last Sunday we had an interesting woman speak to the congregation. She was a cheerful lady, who spoke clearly and confidently. She and her three eldest daughters (they have five kids total) sing semiprofessionally with a wonderful close girl-harmony not unlike Point of Grace. Anyway, she told her story: First she and her husband were told they would be unable to have children, I don't remember why. Then she did get pregnant and gave birth to daughter number one who had numerous health issues as a child, but eventually thrived. When she was pregnant with daughter number two, her doctor came in and told her, "Today you must decide--your eyesight or your baby. If you continue your pregnancy, you will go blind." She replied, "There's no decision to be made here, I won't abort this baby." The doctor called her a fool.

She gave the congregation a little lesson about communicating with blind people.

1. Don't talk louder.
2. Don't point.
3. Eyesight is not the same as vision.
   

Her blindness does not seemed to have slowed her down or hurt her spirit, and her husband and five sweet kids rise up and call her blessed.

Her words reminded me of something. In 1996, we had a banquet to celebrate the completion of Lingualinks, a package of software for language work that Gary had supervised for several years. At the banquet Gary was given a gift of a portable tape player--the kind for playing 4-track tapes used by Recordings for the Blind. The speaker said something similar of Gary: "He may have poor eyesight, but he does not lack vision."