Hello. Iâm the kid you call the blind kid. Uh, mistake number 1. I have a name. My blindness doesnât identify me. Did my mom name me Blind Kid? I donât think so. So donât call me that, or start referencing me as that. Now letâs get on to this list. This is a list of some things I think you should seriously know. I got the idea from an article I read online. Now before you say, âhow did you read it if you canât see?â I want you to know my computer talks. Get your mind strait!
Your blind, so your brain dead. Do I go to school? Yes. Am I in a main stream school, and not in a disabled institute? Yes. Being blind doesnât affect my brain power. Some kids who are blind seem mentally different because they also have autism. Not all blind people have that! In fact, people who have both, you shouldnât treat them differently. I can think for myself, and can do the work in class myself, and I know what youâre saying when I walk down the hall. Honestly, I wonder about peopleâs IQ score when they think that. If you think a blind person or any person is dumb because of 1 simple difference about them, just consider what it would be like if it was you. How does blindness make me dumb? What kind of logic is that?
O this person is blind, so I will grab them and drag them along the hall. Um excuse me? Did I ask for your help? No. I never asked for help so donât touch me, and drag me down this hallway. I cannot tell you how many times this happens to me. Now if youâre reading this, youâre probably like, âbut you canât see. You donât know if youâre lost.â Again, Iâm not dumb. If I want help, Iâll ask you. And who said I canât be independent. Why do you think I have a Cain, to trip people and detect gold? My goodness. The Cain is used for not running into things. And, tapping someone with a Cain doesnât mean I ran into them. When I tap someone when Iâm moving my Cain, I know someone is there. Also, I can here you there. If I run into you, itâs because Iâm not paying attention, or Iâm hurrying to a class. I get distracted, you know.
You should learn how to see. Ok little kids. I know youâre young and you donât fully understand some things, but never ever go up to someone and say, âyou should learn how to see.â Iâve had that said to me. This is a dumb thing to say for the following reasons.
You canât learn how to see. It is a function your body has, and some people donât have it.
Your basically suggesting I try to be blind. That I do it to get special attention. Do you think I want that special stuff? I just want to fit in, and be considered someone who doesnât have a disability. Just someone who doesnât own a certain data chip for my eyes.
Who am I? Insert name here---! This is incredibly annoying. Itâs like my daily life is an exam that I have to ace or my life is over. Now youâre probably all like, huh? Let me clarify. Iâm talking about when people walk up to a blind person and go, âWhatâs my name?â Or, âDo you know who this is?â Or the infamous, âbet you donât know who I am?â Ug!!! Seriously, itâs like one of those survey people you see at the mall. Except they are questioning you about who you think they are, and they change their voice every time. If I donât see you in a year, itâs going to take me a minute to recognize who you are. What? Iâm not a robot. Isnât it the same for sighted people? The only difference there is that you donât get quizzed every day of your life. I get enough tests and quizzes at school! I donât need anymore! The reaction I get if I hesitate is even more annoying. Especially with little kids. Is this some kind of national sport that I donât know about? Sheesh. Itâs like you guys just won the Olympics. âO!!!!! She doesnât know.!!!â Clap, clap, clap. Good for you. Would you like a cookie? Iâm not a party entertainment system!!! Iâm a person!!!
Being afraid of saying the word see. Ok. This is probably one of my favorites to rant about. Iâll be talking to someone, and theyâll be like âletâs go see whatâs for lunch.â Then theyâll gasp and be like, âI mean listen. Sorry. You canât see the lunch. Duh.â Excuse me? People who are blind or visually impaired say see all the time. Seeing doesnât necessarily have to mean seeing with your eyes. Thereâs more than one way to watch a movie, you know. Some people have said to me âwant to listen to a movie?â Why the heck would you say âwant to listen to a movie?â No, no, no. Itâs do you want to see a movie. Everybody says that. And when you say that, your pretty much saying I require my own special terms.
Pitying or thinking a blind person is week. Arg! This makes me want to break something. You have no idea how annoying this is. Do I look like Iâm made of sugar? No lie, someone will throw paper, aiming for the garbage can, and theyâll hit me by mistake. Then Iâll be surrounded by people going âo my god. Are you ok? I can take you to the nurse. O my god is that blood?â Yo!!! I get smashed in the stomach in sparring at least 4 or 5 times per taekwondo class. Your smothering me. This doesnât just happen with kids. This happens with adults. Arenât you guys supposed to be the role models? Another example of smothering is when Iâm doing something like roller coasters. âHi my name is Jessica, and you canât ride this ride because you canât see and you wonât be able to find an exit if something happens. Try a more tame ride. Maybe the swings.â AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Iâm 13, not a 4-year-old. Liability? Forget that. If I get hurt itâs my problem. Iâm not a grumpy 60-year-old who sues anyone who makes my life harder. Of course I donât yell that stuff at them. I calmly say âmy blindness doesnât affect my ability to do anything you guys can.â Seriously. Iâm not a china doll who needs taking care of all the time. One time an adult, not giving more information, didnât want me to sit in a wobbly chair because they thought I would hurt myself. Another example is when my friend told me to shut up, and she got in trouble. You know how your joking around with your friends and you tell each other to shut up in a playful way? Well, that is what was going on, but the adult warned her not to say that to me. If that was any other kid, the adult would have let that just pass by them, not care at all. But with me, itâs like the person Iâm talking to just said something nasty to the president. Weâre in America, right? Well, what happened to equality? I AM A NORMAL PERSON!!! You can think you are the smartest person in the world, but most of you know nothing about this. Hope you learned something reading this.