It was raining and thundering when I got up this morning. That’s never a good morning for having the dogs go potty outside. They never go by themselves anyway, without me there, so when it’s raining it takes a ton of coaxing to get them to join me.
I was standing on the bench seat of the picnic table, under an umbrella, some of the dogs around me and a few camped out under the metal shelter that houses our office trailer when I got thinking…
What if right now a lightning strikes the metal shelter and the electricity travels instantaneously all around it and down the legs of it. What if I’m staring at it and the electricity somehow hits my eyes and instantly blinds me? Now I know that my knowledge of actual science is limited and that I had no idea if that could even happen.
But I was close enough, I reasoned, and what if…
Then I scanned the space around me and immediately felt an intense gratitude for my eyes and the ability to see the wetness on the ground, the rain coming down, the dogs in all their unique colors and sizes. I saw the rich colors of the different umbrellas that sheltered the patio tables. I saw the cheerful yellow, vintage chair sitting at the trailer entrance and the yellow and white trailer itself.
Then I closed my eyes and imagined myself blind. My world closed in on me. I thought, I’d have to learn to live life in a totally different way. I’d be so dependent on others. I would have to count steps inside and outside my house in order to learn my way around my own home. Then, I thought, that is just my own home! Imagine if I had to navigate the world without my sight.
There would be no long walks, admiring all the glorious trees within my sight, there would be no more sunsets, movies in theaters, flowers, oh the flowers!
My other senses would become more sensitive. I could touch flowers and trees, smell the grass and even the popcorn. I would probably hear better and be able to really analyze how far someone was from me by their foot steps. I could feel the delicate nuisances of things I felt like flowers, leaves, tree trunks, tables and people’s faces.
At this point, if I haven’t lost you, you may be saying, “she has a vivid imagination” or as my dear friend Collette has said to me, ‘Sandy, you think a lot.’ It’s true, I do. And mostly I’ve learned instead of thinking about stuff that won’t serve me like worrying and brooding about things I have no control over, I think of things that will better my understanding of life and my role in it.
Today I am so very grateful for my eyesight. For a few moments I was blind and now I see the world so much more clearly and it is so incredibly beautiful. 
❤️