things I learned

On The Road To Blindness
by Dianne Baumgartner

1) Keep your mind alive.
2) Keep Moving.
3) You are NOT disabled-Until you stop trying.
4) Master Patience.
5) TRUST-No matter how many times you are disappointed.
6) Learn to laugh at yourself.
7) Keep a Positive attitude. Avoid negativity.
8) Hearing words can feed your mind. Touching words can light your soul!
9) Understand and Accept that not everyone will understand you.
10) Stay balanced-Keep your sense of self.
11) Learn to distinguish between Inexperience and Ignorance.
12) Your greater vision is Intelligence. Use it.
13) Depend on others when you must-But NEVER relinquish your Independence.
14) Find your comfort zone-Then widen it.
15) You are an Individual and uniquely unlike any other sighted or unsighted person.
16) What works for others may not work for you. Create your own destiny.
17) Don't sit on the sidelines. Participate in YOUR own life.
18) MOBILITY is your flag of Freedom. Friend or Cane or Dog-Claim It!
19) Invest your time and energy into something or someone else. It is great Healing.
20) Don't let yourself get stuck or buried in a dark thought.
21) The world changes daily. Take NOTHING for granted. Be careful. Be cautious. Be Safe.
22) Get a tough skin-But don't become calloused.
23) Always make a Bad experience a LEARNING experience.
24) Muster courage. It takes great strength to go blind.
25) Where there is a will-There is a blind person who can find a way.
26) If you get pushed back, say excuse me and proceed forward.
27) The technology is there. HOPEFULLY, someday we will ALL be able to afford it.
28) Like aging, the learning steps of blindness come in stages. Keep Dancing!
29) Welcome change-It is a new day and another chance at everything.
30) Don't stay too long in depression. It is the ultimate blindness.
31) Failure is often a necessary step to improvement and accomplishment.
32) Sanity is the sunny day of blindness. Stay sunny!
33) Cater to your other senses. They will give you more than you could ever imagine.
34) Be patient with sighted people. They too are learning.
35) Don't take chances, but don't avoid challenges.
36) Stimulate your visual mind. All those colours and pictures and memories are still there.
37) You are not in competition with any other blind person. Do your best and be yourself.
38) Accept help when you must-And never be afraid to ask for it.
39) Sighted or Blind-Life is the road we All travel. NEVER STOP MOVING.
40) Blindness is NOT a destination. It is the DAWN of a new beginning.


C Dianne Baumgartner 2012

My heartfelt thanks to Dr. Robert Ritch & Dr. Ronald Hagadus

[Edited 7/13/12 19:09pm]

Can you share with us your story?

imago said:

Can you share with us your story?

Yeah please do !

Serious said:

imago said:

Can you share with us your story?

Yeah please do !

you're watin for him to tell you how he went blind???

do you think he'll see the qwestion if he is???

i think it's just a very insightful observation in preparedness

KingBAD said:

Serious said:

Yeah please do !

you're watin for him to tell you how he went blind???

do you think he'll see the qwestion if he is???

i think it's just a very insightful observation in preparedness

He posted here, so he will check the thread out too I guess .

I want to know about his experiences this far. But I agree that the observations are great!

BTW I think it is a shame that this thread hardly gets any attention, probably because the OP does not have a lot of posts and therefore is not "popular".

Thank you for your responses. This IS my story-A story is only as good as its ending. I believe life's truest intention, no matter what road we travel, is that we try somehow to make it easier for those coming behind us.