Sight Loss and Parenting

Tags

Beauty, Blind, Children, Disability, Gratitude, Life lessons, Love, Parenting, Peace, Sight Loss, Thanks

Inhaling the heat on the skin and the unwanted scent of illness in the small body, you can use more than eyes to observe illness in a child. The activated response to a smell of a dry nappy becoming wet, alerts you to the need for a swift change. Opening the door to smell if there is petrichor in the air before it starts to rain, lets you know if the children will need coats to keep them dry. When a sudden whiff of Sudocrem joins you in the kitchen, you know you need to follow the trail to confiscate the pot and start the clean up operation on everywhere that you cherub has covered with this villain.

When silence falls in a chatty house, you need to peek to see who’s turn it is being the ringleader in the mischief being caused. When your child’s jangling zip on their boot gets further away from you in the playground, you need to follow the sound to keep them safely in ear shot. When you hear your child’s favourite toy fall, you pinpoint the exact location to reach your hand out to reunite it with its joyful owner. When you hear the whizz of the bike wheels coming towards you, you remind your child that you must always be aware of all oncoming dangers and wait to cross safely. As you hear the squeal of joy escape from their perfectly formed lips, you join their celebration despite not being able to see what is exciting them.

Remembering the different feel of each of their coats, you help put them on the right child for them to go and warmly explore the great outdoors. Differentiating between the pristine feeling lunchbox of one and the scuffed one of the other, you pack their lunchboxes with their personal choices. Touching the top of your child’s head and feeling their unique hair type, you can tell the difference between your children of similar height. Cutting toe nails by touch, you learn to trust your judgement to do what others do by sight. Picking up toys with fingers on high alert, allows you to keep their favourite games together for the next time they want to play.

Knowing that they are going to fall before they do, allows you to be there to catch them. Tuning into the energy of their friends to know which will always make them happy, you are alert to those who will upset them and prepare youself to be there for them when they do. Knowing that you will not make the meeting as you need to be prepared, you are able to act calmly when the phone call from school comes when they have had an injury. Being assertive enough to tell doctors that they are wrong about it being a stomach bug and telling them it is actual a ruptured appendix, you don’t get shocked when they rush your child to theatre as you are just glad they caught it in time.

Memories of raising four beautiful children under the age of six, fills me with love and joy. These wildly different souls who are now adorable young adults, mesmerised me with their abilities as they grew. I may not have been able to see their expression filled faces or the true sweet mischief that they caused but I always saw their unique selves. Eyes only allow us to see what we want to see but other senses allow us to know on a deeper level. Maybe if I was gifted with sight from birth, I may not have known my children as I know them today. As my little cluster of beautiful being’s glide through life in whichever direction they want to take, I hope I can still learn from them each and everyday and see them exactly as they are.

I love you all in every way that you are.

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The Magic Of The Moment

Tags

Alternative, Beauty, Gratitude, Life lessons, Loss, Peace, Thanks, Wishes

As his giggled words “you make a better door than a window” floated through the air to his friends in the park, they all knew what he meant. Just as dense sooty fog obscures the vision of the driver, doors instead of windows allow only imperfect long vision. As necks crane around the seated human in front of them to see into the distance, a feeling of missing out washes over many. When tired blurry eyes loose focus and cannot see with clarity, the haze of the observed objects can be frustrating to the eager eye. Debris from life that ends up in conjunctiva, will always be under the threat of eviction as the owner of the eye tries to remain focussed on resuming normality. Temporary loss of sight is seldom welcomed.

The wave of panic that hits as soon as we lose what we feel what is rightfully ours, immerses us in a feeling of helplessness. A loss of a sense that has worked for us for so long, becomes our enemy as soon as we think it is working against us. We can often forget to thank the abundance of opportunity that the sense has given us in life and go straight into the lack of the moment that we are living in. Patience is a strength that we believe that we often use unless it is in times where it is temporarily not there. When we are so busy focussing on the obstacles that may have sneakily been placed there to push our problem-solving skills, we are forgetting to look at the object with love.

When you cannot see what others can, you learn to imagine what it is they talk about. The frustration that they feel about looking at things that causes them disgust, you feel protective about these things that they disregard. Talking about sights that they see daily but don’t seem to be in awe of, you feel blessed about by being given a chance to enter a world that you have never been in. The wise teachings that the sighted give about the world around us, you take in and memorize the beauty of it all. If disagreements between the sighted occur about what looks the best, you take the best bits and leave the rest as you learn what it must be like to see with clarity.
Next time you see a door when you really want to see a window, thank the person who made such a useful thing. As fog falls all around you, feel the change in atmosphere that nature has blessed upon you. When the person in front of you that is blocking the view irritates you, take a moment to bless that person’s existence as you never know how they may help you of you ever meet again. Tired eyes can always be refreshed so listen to your body’s need to recharge and look later at things through fresh eyes. If debris is an unwanted guest, stop for a moment to think is there a reason that you have been forced to stop what you are doing? Chances are there is a good reason.

If we learn to change the perception of barriers in loss into the discovery of the true beauty in life, we can stop and appreciate what once we disliked. The place to be is always in the moment.

A Day In The Life Of A Healer

Tags

Animal, Autism, Children, Dog, Gratitude, Guide Dog, Healer, Healing, Kindness, Love, Mental Health, Peace, Thanks, Unconditional Love

Pulling towards each other, they met in the middle and fell into each other’s space. Like two familiar souls, these strangers created a unity that looked like it had existed for an eternity. The connection that anchored the pair rooted on the spot at the train station, gave an insight into the world of the unspoken realm of healing. Munch sensed the need for this girl to feel secure before she entered another day in the unknown world of school life. Meeting a highly anxious young girl with autism, triggered off the natural healing instinct in him to come alive. The kisses that he planted on her beautiful face reassured her that she would get through another day and be just fine.

When Munch chose what I thought was a random seat on the train, I had no idea that we would be sitting opposite a man who was losing his sight. As we chatted away and Munch gave his paw and heart to the man, he must have known that this was the place that we really needed to sit. We listened to how the man had been patiently waiting for a guide dog for the last year and a half, yet his vision seemed to be in a hurry to deteriorate. The questions that poured out from him were answered verbally by me and physically by Munch. Hearing the words “I know my wait will be worth it after meeting this furry fella” reaffirmed the positive impact that Munch has on the life of another.

Throughout the working day he continued to spread his healing magic to lonely children that he made feel loved, gave self esteem to those that had little and absorbed the stress that invaded the lives of many. His calming presence that filled the room allowed our clients to leave the chaos of life on the other side of the door and embrace the forgotten peace that lay within each of them. Sharing his toys with those that had forgotten the fun of play in childhood triggered sleepy parts of them that needed to reawaken. Demonstrating his pure love for life was the best infection that anyone could ever catch.

Later that night in training in work, he lightened the mood as the heaviness of the subject permeated the room. The sombre subject of suicide triggered deep emotions in the room that Munch tired to even out. He whimpered in a way that seemed to speak of the groups sadness and began using his Munch like qualities to magic it away. Lying on his back with paws to ceiling he began doing his happy dance with tongue flopping out of his mouth and tail wagging to try and turn frowns upside down. He even went around to kiss each person one by one and gave an extra hug to someone who had just lost her dog. His love was all that was needed.

This healer works in ways that has no structure, just freedom in all that he does. Once met never forgotten, he moves through life in his own unique way on a life path that he was meant to live. Leaving people feeling better in whatever way he can is his personal motto in life. We may never know the positive impact that we have on peoples lives but our impact should always be positive. If we cannot heal another then we should not harm. If we each took small steps to heal ourselves and others in whatever way we can, there would never be anything left to heal as how can we heal perfection?

I Forget That I Cannot See

Tags

Achieve, Blind, clarity, Gratitude, Motivation, Peace, Possibility, Sight Loss

As my fingers expand out from the located space bar on my laptop, I forget that I cannot see. As I feel for and find the glass of water that sits exactly an arms-length away from me I forget that I cannot see. As I find the different textured coats hanging up on the coat hangers and locate the smooth coat with metal buttons, I forget that I cannot see. As I feel for Munch’s Guide Dog harness to get him ready for our walk, I forget that I cannot see. As my fingers dance in stillness towards the handle on the door, I forget that I cannot see.

As my hand trails the rail that leads us from the front door to the gate, I forget that I cannot see. As we walk the rehearsed steps that we have learnt to dance along the way, I forget that I cannot see. As we step over the blown concrete that is 17 steps away for the bend in the path, I forget that I cannot see. As we smell where the freshness of nature ends, and the staleness of buildings begin, I forget that I cannot see. As I wait patiently for the engines to stop zooming by on the road so that we can safely cross, I forget that I cannot see.

As we enter the shop and Munch takes me to the food that I ask him for, I forget that I cannot see. As he finds the worn-out spots that we stand on each time we are here, I forget that I cannot see. As I feel the familiar products that we want, I forget that I cannot see. As I hold the product next to my nose to check its established blur, I forget that I cannot see. As Munch finds the checkout I feel that the conveyer belt is free, I forget that I cannot see. As I find the money in my well-ordered purse, I forget that I cannot see.

As we walk home with wandering minds, I forget that I cannot see. As he leads me home whichever way he fancies, I forget that I cannot see. As I trust that tomorrow will be an equally fulfilling day, I forget that I cannot see. As I crave the new opportunities that always provides excitement in our lives, I forget that I cannot see. As I feel thankful for being here to think these thoughts, I forget that I cannot see.

As we go through life focussing on the negatives, we forget that we can live another way. As we go through life we focus on what we can’t do more than what we can. Whatever you are facing in life, remember that we can forget to allow these things to get in the way as we learn new ways to successful living. Remembering to forget may be the secret to your perfect life.

The Simplicity Of Inner Peace

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Freedom, Gratitude, Happiness, Inner Peace, Inspire, Kindness, Love, Peace, Positivity

Each person has their own version of what inner peace is and none of them can ever be wrong. Whilst one person’s inner peace may be found at a noisy gig, another’s may be found during a lengthy pilgrimage. Inner peace has less to do with volume and more to do with absence. Peace has this way of meaning the same in a multitude of different ways yet never looses its purity. Our own inner peace has always been there, but we can sometimes forget to visit it in our busy lives.

Inner peace to me gets triggered by the most varied of things that I wish will never change. The sound of excited children playing on a school yard instantly brings stillness to my firework mind. My children’s achievements bring harmony to my heart and my granddaughter’s hugs suck me into serenity that no words can ever describe. A friend’s happiness brings contentment at witnessing their joy. Acts of kindness between strangers takes me to that place of peace that lays in humanity.

Inner Peace for Munch kicks in when he is having his belly rubbed and chin stroked and falling deeper and deeper into bliss. Being out in nature whether working or off duty, helps him recharge his soul’s tranquillity and feel at ease. As we sit and meditate together, the music entices him into a dreamy snooze where only happy thoughts linger. The simplicities in life are the culprits for his inner peace.

Inner peace is an addiction that never hurts but always heals. A place where solutions lay if we stop long enough to find them. Adrenaline junkies can feel threatened in this place where they can no longer ‘do’ but can only ‘be’. Cages cannot be rattled in this place of silence, but wings can soar wherever they wish to go in this land of opportunity.

What if you have never known anything but inner peace? Do you dare to tell others and risk looking like the alien in a world full of disharmony? Is it better to keep your positive outlook on life a secret from the vampires that suck joy from pure moments? Is your version of reality filled with nothing but love where others only see hate? Should other peoples doubt on the simplicity of peace ever stop you talking about it? Finding peace may bring up such questions but will always provide far more answers so why do we not all seek it?

Inner peace is not given to a select few and withheld from the masses, it is a thing that we all have within us. We can choose to side step it to willingly seek out chaos as an alternative or we can choose to remain in it regardless of chaos. We can choose to blame outside dramas for our lack of inner peace or we can use our inner peace to dilute the dramas that will inevitably crop up in life. Inner peace is whatever we make it.

Being unable to see the outside world as most do, inner peace to me has always been a magnetic draw in an alien world. When you find such a place in your life, you really want to share it with everyone and help them find their own inner peace. If you are ever battling to get there, you may just need to find an alternative route to this place that is eagerly waiting for you. However, you get there, I am just happy you will arrive in the place that is rightfully yours. Happy peace finding.