[Nfb-seniors] New THOUGHT PROVOKER #130- To Braille With Love

[Robert Leslie Newman]

Dear Seniors 
RE:  My THOUGHT PROVOKERS, I host a blindness discussion forum called
THOUGHT PROVOKER. I write a short-short thought provoking story about
blindness, each THOUGHT PROVOKER covers a different aspect of being blind
and dealing with the challenges that we the blind meet on a daily basis, I
post them, people respond, I collect the feedback and post it  on the WWW
for all to read and learn from. I have a website where I post all THOUGHT
PROVOKERS, 130 of them (the URL is at the bottom of this message). Below is
the newest THOUGHT PROVOKER, and it is called- To Braille with Love 

If you have not read the PROVOKER, it follows.  Recall that I collect
responses and post them upon my web site for all the WWW to read and learn
from and that URL is- Http://thoughtprovoker.info  If you wish to receive
THOUGHT PROVOKERS sent directly to you, just write me and ask, at-
newmanrl at cox.net 

THOUGHT PROVOKER 130
To Braille with Love

"Happy Valentine's Day!" chorused Sherry and Tom Hardy to the smiling couple
that was inviting them into their home. The Hardys and Pam and Rich, the
Andersons, were members of a support group for parents of blind children;
the Anderson's were longtime members and the Hardy's were new. 

"Hey, how was the lunch on this snowy Saturday?" Rich asked. He and Pam had
picked up Tom and Sherry's daughter Kathy and their own daughter Cheryl to
take both eight-year-old girls to a Valentine party, giving the Hardy's a
chance to go out for a romantic lunch and movie. And now the Hardy's were
over for a short visit to the Anderson's, then it would be Hardy's turn to
pick up the girls, take them to their home, giving Pam and Rich their
opportunity to go out for a special dinner and dancing. 

"Wonderful." answered Sherry. "We took our time. It's great that Valentine's
Day fell on a Saturday."

"You bet ya!" said Pam. "Come on in. I have a fresh pot of coffee on and a
plate of Valentine cookies Cheryl made special for us." 

Seated in the kitchen around the family table, the two couples dug into
their coffee break. "These are fantastic cookies. Your Cheryl is a great
little cook," commented Sherry, raising a cookie for another bite. 

"Knew I was smart to pass up the restaurant's dessert--love the pink
frosting." added Tom.

"Oh, let me show you her card." Pam said, getting up and detaching a card
from a clip on the refrigerator door.

"Whoo!" cooed Sherry, looking at and running her finger over the front
surface of the card, opening it to see inside. 

"Huh?" exclaimed Tom. "Braille . picture and all?"

"Yeah, she made it herself." said Rich, obviously proud of his daughter's
handiwork. 

"She used her Braille writer." said Pam, pointing. "The border has full
cells down the sides, then dots 1-2-4-5's across the top, and 2-3-5-6's
across the bottom, making an even two-dot border all the way around. And you
can see the heart consists of full cells and parts of cells to get the right
shape." 

"And she colored the heart, too. So creative!" continued Sherry. "And this
down here?" Tracing with a finger, "Words, I take it?"

Retrieving the card, closing her eyes, Pam began reading with her right
index finger. "I Love You Mom, Be My Valentine." 

"Whoo, I'm impressed! With your finger no less." Sherry said, her face
showing a self-conscious mix of surprise and maybe guilt.

"Oh, Sherry . guess we've talked about this . parents learning Braille?" Pam
gave her friend a concerned look.

"Well yeah, Tom and me, our life's are just so.busy. And, you know, with
this electronic age, we have a computer in just about every room and there's
voice mail."

Tom added, "my God, Kathy is a wiz on the computer, you should hear how fast
she has that voice cranked! These kids today they've grown up with all these
electronics." 

"Rich." Sherry looked at Pam's husband, her face showing that something was
still eating at her. "Do you read Braille too?"

"Yeah, but I haven't gone so far to develop the tactual sense for reading
it. I cheat, I read it with my eyes." Looking to his wife for any sign of
guidance, or a warning perhaps. "With Cheryl's blindness, we feel supporting
and encouraging her lifelong literacy is ." Beginning to think he was going
too far with his pointed remarks. "Ah, anyway, it's fun!"

"Tom spoke up, obviously not offended. "Hey, so the card was for the Mom.
How about the Dad?"

"Oh!" both Pam and Rich chorused with big grins on their faces. 

"Grab your coats, ladies and gentlemen!" said Rich rising. "We need to step
out into the back yard."

Outside. "Whoo, Whoo, Whoo!" hooted Sherry. 

"How in the .?" Said Tom. "Did you guys get a picture of this?" 

Before them the white-blanketed yard spread to the fence and at its very
center lay a one-foot tall, six-foot across, very pink heart, with white
geometrical rows of dots on its top surface. Walking up close, it was
evident that the heart was constructed of compacted snow and the white dots
were hand-formed snowballs arranged to create Braille letters.

"How did she get that snow painted pink?" Tom nearly stuttered. 

Pam answered. "A spray bottle and one gallon of red Kool-Aid." 

Standing near the broad part of the heart, Rich pointed. "This single dot is
a capital sign, followed by the letters in the word. That makes her words
here, cap L o v e, cap Y o u, cap D a d. Second line, cap I ' m, cap Y o u
r, cap V a l e n t I n e."


Robert Leslie Newman
E-Mail- newmanrl at cox.net
Web Site- thoughtprovoker.info