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The term blindness is directly related to the one’s condition of being able to see. However, the term vision is more concerned with one’s ability. In society, there is a fine line between ignorance and hatred. In the social aspect of things, ignorance could be closely associated with blindness. There are many who say hateful things not because they truly feel such an emotion or believe the things that they may be saying, but it is simply how they were trained to talk, and they honestly feel as if what they say is tolerable.

Hatred is incredibly symbolic of vision. To be hateful is to lack the ability to care for the object of hatred. This could be the reason why so many feel frustration when arguing with someone that strongly fits the archetype of “racist” or “xenophobe”. Many of those who have tried to alter the thinking process of those who fit the previously mentioned categories have often described such conversations as “talking to a brick wall” and deeming them to be stubborn or ignorant. What the case may truly be is that they are simply not capable of feeling any sort of acceptance for what they hate. One can attempt to reason with them using facts or personal experiences, but it is their lack of ability to accept their dislikes that prevents them from ceasing their hatred.

The difference between ignorance and hatred lies within each status’ realm of ability. One who is ignorant can be given enough light so that they have vision. But those without vision have no chance of ever being able to see light, and are forever stuck in their prison of hate. In a sense, they are unintentionally punishing themselves, being trapped in a seemingly endless cycle of anger and bitterness.

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It’s seeing a dirty little girl clinging to a doll with a missing limb and matted hair and thinking nothing of it. It’s seeing her sit outside the rundown shack that she’s forced to call home, and thinking nothing of it. Her mother is dying of cancer and her father left years ago and all this dirty little girl has is her broken doll and an older brother who drinks to forget about his miseries.

 She watches everyone else play, but she can’t because she must make something for dinner or else she doesn’t get to eat dinner. You pass by this little girl every day on your way to private school and you have no idea who she because you don’t see her. 

You don’t see the doll that she clings to. You don’t see her without the doll, so you don’t see how she lost the doll to a gang of monsters with painted lips and immaculate dresses—even though it happened right before your eyes. You don’t see its mangled plastic body lying in the heat on the side of the road. All you really do is cross the street and walk on the other side so you don’t have to bother with problems that aren’t your own.

 When Hellen Keller said to the world, “The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision,” she was talking about our choice to not see this girl and her story. She was talking about our choice to not make an attempt to be her friend. In order for the world to be as beautiful as it can be, we have to start seeing the girl who sits outside alone with nothing but her broken doll.

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Helen Keller was a woman who endured struggles that resulted from an unexpected illness in her youth. 

Despite the odds being against her, being both blind and deaf, she prevailed because her strength of mind was stronger than her circumstance and it could not keep her down. Having sight but no vision means, despite the wonders and opportunities this world offers, one is able to pass by it all with no goal or drive. It is still hard for people who are blind to navigate in today's world. We have made a society that prioritizes sight and sound, among other senses that most people have. Crossing the street as a blind person with snow covering the ground, blurring the braille indicators, is a feat most of us cannot imagine going through. It is easy to take for granted the gifts we have and even easier to become comfortable in our habitual way of life. I often ask myself, why should daydreaming be just for children? As a working adult, life passes by so quickly and the goals we once had turn into distant memories. 

I recognize the fear of going against the grain, or doing the unconventional has real life consequences, but that doesn't mean we should just give up on them. A vision is the start of the drive to work for something one does not have or wishes to change. Without such dreams then we are living for just the here and now, for daily self satisfaction. It is hope, wonder, excitement, trust in oneself to fulfil a mission beyond what is in the present. That is vision. 

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Sight is the ability to physically comprehend one’s environment. It brings awareness to the shapes, movement, and existence of the surrounding world. Whether looking at the sky, passersby, or the ground while engaged in an evening walk, this ability can help us stay grounded in our own physical existence. But the power of sight involves more than just passive awareness. Vision adds another important, powerful layer. It is the active mental interpretation of the ever-changing physical world. To have vision is to understand what the shapes and movement around us means, and how this reality interacts with us.

Expanding on the evening walk example, one can interpret that the night draws nearer from seeing the sky’s color gradually deepen and the light gradually darken. The environment might be read as unsafe because of fewer passersby, and might inspire a hasty desire to get home. As the surrounding world changes and becomes harder to navigate, the evening-walker has the help of interpretive vision to understand the abstract shapes of landmarks and street signs in the dark, and which ones point to the correct destination.

To see is to be aware of your present self and your current position in life; the first step of progress. To have vision is to interpret what your current position in life means and the change that’s needed to achieve your goals; the next step of progress. As Helen Keller said, “having sight but no vision” is worse than being blind. Because to be aware of potential progress, yet not interpret the process of achieving it, is to walk in the dark.

This quote is something I have interpreted to mean a lot to me. Having sight is something that a lot of people, including me for the most part, have the privilege of having without question but something we don’t all have is a vision. I am fortunate enough to have a vision that I can’t take my eyes off. I want to become a math teacher; this is something I've always wanted and something I will always want until it comes true. Fortunately, I have the privilege to go to college and provide myself with further education in order to pursue my vision. I will start taking classes in the fall semester about math and the psychology of adolescent development all in an effort to make my vision a reality. This as my vision also helps me prevail when the going gets tough. I’m very aware of how much of a financial burden college is going to be so I'm doing everything I personally can to keep my vision a reality. I work really hard at my job trying to earn as much as I can there while also applying to everyone and anyone who is whiling to help my vision become a reality. The vision of me at the front of a classroom being not only a math teacher but someone who kids feel safe to confide in when they need help, someone to look up to, and someone to help inspire visions of their very own. To make this all come full circle visions are priceless and unique to every person. With no vision to fall back on and help drag you through life when the going gets tough, what will help you through a hard time like that? In the end I believe Helen Keller to be 100% right. Having no vision is a fate that seems a thousand times worse than not being able to see.

There are a great number of things that we can take for granted, but unless a friend or family member is blind, our sight and everything that comes with it is something we don’t truly appreciate on a day to day basis. Having sight but no vision goes deeper than this, still. I believe what Helen Keller was trying to convey to her audience was that the ability to see or hear or speak is irrelevant as long as we’re sure to use our talents to put something good into the world.

Underdog stories have been a favorite for centuries as many of us can relate to the inadequacies these heroes experienced. There’s always a hope in children that they will become the greatest leaders in the world, and much of that vision is crushed as reality begins to set in and those whimsical dreams of before seem more impossible by the day. However, there are those who take the risks their younger self would and become more than they could possibly imagine, and an even smaller margin of these people are disabled. The limitations that come naturally with their ability have been stacked on top of living in a competitive world, yet they succeed, because they’ve experienced setbacks and failures and offer a new perspective on how to push through them.

Having something and not using it is considered a waste, but I believe having something and using it for the wrong reasons is worse. Someone who uses the abilities they do have to cater to their own selfish greed and to exploit others along the way has just as little “vision” as someone who doesn’t do much of anything at all. When Keller was saying this, I think she was referring to the people who, sighted or not, are able to better the world around them and aren’t afraid to set goals and follow through with them, an encouragement for people of all backgrounds to pursue their talents to make an impact.

My personal dedication to community service started with watching my grandpa dedicate his time to volunteering. I know community service is indispensable because my sister received free tutoring from volunteers when she was struggling in school and we were unable to afford tutors. When I was able to, I volunteered as a tutor for low-income students. My experiences as a volunteer and as a member of a minority-filled, low-income community inspire me to continue to advance equity, inclusion, and diversity of minorities and low-income students. I am not blind to the issues that plague my community. My college education would supply me with the chance to continue to tutor youths in need and fulfill my vision of bettering the underprivileged. The knowledge I gain at university would also allow me to further aid these students in financial literacy.

After earning my degree and certification, I plan to continue to serve the community by hosting charity accounting days, where I will file taxes for free in low-income neighborhoods. For members of my community who cannot afford accountants, charity accounting days would be vital in helping those in need file taxes. This has been a dream of mine ever since I witnessed my relatives struggle with poor tax advice from peers because they could not afford accountants. My vision of utilizing accounting to solve this societal issue aligns with the value that many universities place upon developing students who grow into the able leaders and productive citizens that our world demands. As a community that has been traditionally underserved in education and life, due to language barriers, I would be a leader of change as well as a productive citizen in serving my community and other underprivileged neighborhoods when I provide support through accounting assistance.

 As an able-bodied queer college student, living in a world where times of today begin to mirror the mindsets of those back in the 40s, nothing holds more important to me than my vision and beliefs. I come from a non-nuclear family of two adoring mothers, and after my brother and I were born they decided it best to leave their hometown in the deep south to seek a more accepting refuge in northern Vermont.

 Historical figures much like Helen Keller, Frida Kahlo, and current day inspirational Malala Yousafzai, have all been speakers of equality that impacted my beliefs and motives since I was very young. To live in a society where beauty and ideals come in the form of little boxes that we must fit ourselves into, like an uncomfortable puzzle, it has been a wall I've wanted to break ever since I started questioning my sexuality.

 A personal goal I wish to hold onto is remaining ever an open mind and eye, and to speak out against injustices I see through my life when others cannot. As Helen Keller states in her quote, one does not need their sight to have a vision, and I interpret this to mean that I should keep my head forward, and my eyes open to possibility and change. For the worst way to walk through life is in the path of ignorance when your actions could make a difference to others around you.