Darkness

Short Story- Darkness

There are two time periods in my life, the time when I could see, and now. At first I thought it was the worst thing that had ever happened to me. I searched desperately for a way out of what I saw as suffocating darkness. 

But there was no way out. 

I tried to find someone to blame. But it was nobody's fault but mine, and even then it was an accident. I certainly didn't want to be this way. 

I stayed at home, lay in my bed and tried to pretend that there was some way out. I imagined some magical creature, a fairy, a unicorn, a goblin, anything that could give me my sight back. But it was too late. 

I spent so much time in that bed that I knew everything about it. The way it creaked beneath me as it shifted, the groans of the springs as they echoed my sluggish movements. I knew the smell of the mattress, a deep smell of dust mixed with the fresher cleaner scent of freshly washed sheets. I started to revel in the stillness of the air, an occasional breeze just stirring the fine hairs on my arms. 

I began to realise something. Something that no man that can see truly appreciates. I realised that darkness makes everything else so much clearer. I feel things in a way I could never have truly appreciated before. I notice the calm whistling of the wind on a cloudless summer day. I feel the sun's rays caressing my cheek. I feel the soft tickle of long grass on my ankles. And although I have enjoyed these experiences before I never truly understood how much simple pleasure there was in just feeling the world. Seeing things dilutes everything. your brain is so focused on what you can see, that it almost forgets what you can hear and feel, touch and smell. Until you cannot see you forget that there are five senses, not just one. 

Darkness has helped me realise the true importance of life. It allows me to take joy in the simple experience of holding another's hand. It strengthens the thrill of love and protectiveness and appreciation that you feel for not just a lover but also for a sister, a mother and a friend. You truly appreciate that there is another human being in front of you a living breathing life who has thoughts and feelings as complex as your own. what does it matter if they are fat or thin, tall or short, American or Asian. They are human. They are alive. Just like you.

Being blind is hard. The modern world isn't designed for us. But it has been a hidden gift it has helped me realise that even in darkness there is light.

AN: thank you for reading :)