"I would rather have eyes that cannot see; ears that cannot hear; lips that cannot speak, than a heart that cannot love."
-Robert Tizon-
"Blake said that the body was the soul's prison unless the five sense are fully developed and open. He considered the senses the 'windows of the soul.'"
-Jim Morrison-
Yesterday I spent the entire school day without my sense of touch. I had to wear three pairs of thick gloves, which not only made me loose my sense of touch but also made me loose the ability to use my hands properly. I couldn't articulate my fingers, and therefore I couldn't do most of the stuff I normally do: I was unable to open my locker, I couldn't write, and I couldn't type on my computer.
This really affected my learning because I wasn't able to take notes or write the answers to the questions I was asked. Since writing with a pen was impossible I decided to use my computer, but I soon realized that I couldn't type with my gloves on and that the trackpad didn't recognize my gloved hand, so I had to resort to typing with my toes. It was a very interesting experience because I learnt that I depend too much on my hands and that I should learn to adapt more easily, and because I realized that I'm more dextrous with my feet than I ever thought I was.
Yesterday was very frustrating. I constantly wanted to take the gloves off my hands. History was the most frustrating lesson of the day, because Mr.Horsley made us read part of a chapter of our history books, while taking notes, and listening to very loud music which made the whole exercise even more difficult than it already was due to our "disabilities".
In my opinion senses don't give knowledge of the world as it really is. Everyone interprets what they perceive with their senses differently, making reality different for everyone. For example, everyone perceives colors a bit different: when two individuals look at a red curtain individual A might see a slightly different shade of red as individual B, or if one of them is daltonic they might see completely different colors. To a person who was born blind, the real world has no images, a person who has been blind all their life doesn't need to see in order to have knowledge of the world as it really is. Senses are just means by which we receive information, it is our mind that analyzes this information and turns it into knowledge. Since everyone's mind functions differently, all of our realities are different. Our minds are biased by beliefs and assumptions, therefore making us perceive things differently. For example, to a Christian white clothes might mean purity or peace, while to a hindi white clothes might mean loss and death since white is the color hindi people wear to funerals.
This exercise really made me appreciate how much I rely on my hands, and it made me realize how completely vulnerable and useless I would be if I were to loose them. I learnt that I need to become more adaptable, that I need to find ways to overcome obstacles without getting frustrated. It also made me appreciate how brave and resourceful people with disabilities are, and how unfair it is that society is indifferent to their needs.
"The moral test of the government is how it treats those who are in the dawn if life...the children; those who are in the twilight of life...the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life...the sick...the needy...and the disabled."
-Hubert H. Humphrey-
"Disability is a matter of perception. If you can do just one thing well, you're needed by someone."
-Martina Navratilova-
"The only disability in life is a bad attitude."
-Scott Hamilton-
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