You see, on Monday we had an English exam. The teacher, forgetting mine, made me write what I do every day.
And I, stupid of me, wrote a long thing, obviously in English, and boring, I won’t put it here for that reason but if you want I’ll send it to you at some point. I tried to make it as long as possible so that she has something to read and not only say that I just get up and wait to go back to sleep.
Today, she came here because we have class, and I was one of the last people she checked that for, and she had a classmate read it. She, the teacher, seems to be one of those people, no offense to the people who are because maybe they don’t ask themselves or something, that she believes that we as blind people depend 100% on someone even to relieve ourselves in the bathroom.
Don’t take this the wrong way, she’s a nice person, but that bothers me no matter how nice of a person you are.
She seemed to be impressed. Like as if a meteorite had fallen or something and made my classmate read it to all people to hear, and it makes me wonder, if she really knows english or something ๐ because there I wrote I hate being the center of atention.
Now, most of my classmates had quite hmm not so good grades, think that a friend got a 3, here grades are noted from 1 to 10, and if you get for example 5,1, it will be 5, but if you get 5,5 or more you get 6, works with all grades, only gave an example.
Well, most of them got over 5, that being what you need to not repeat the year or a certain subject if you go at the same pace, but yeah. It doesn’t just depend on a grade, but that’s a story for another day. I’ll explain another time.
So, after she put the classmate to read it, that took like a little over 2 mins or I don’t know exactly, didn’t count because I was kind of super anxious and wanted to make her (the classmate) stop in any way but she’s a little more far away from me.
At the end of the class, she said something like, if Diana can study, so can you. I’m the only blind person in my class, so that’s why she must have set an example I think.
But you have to think that, for example the same friend about who I told you at the beginning of the post has a lot of family problems, strong tension at home, among other things that I can’t tell in a public place without her consent, even if it is only visible to users. perhaps from elten, we have another one who has a bad/complicated relationship with his father, also another girl who has lost her mother even though her father remarried, among other things that surely I don’t know and less the teachers, not everyone has an easy life.
Maybe those things don’t hopefully affect all people at all hours of the day every day, but I could tell at least about this girl with the 3, her mental health seems to be declining a lot lately, or she started to show/tell me about it more.
Anyway, I’m not saying that your problems aren’t relevant, if they affect you they’re problems no matter how they are. For example, a problem could be for a rich 10 years old his phone to somehow go down the toilet even he can get another one fastly but is a problem, but, for a poor person a problem might be not eating for 3 days straight.
But, don’t judge others and don’t compare them without knowing a lot of things. Well, I’m not a saint, I do it too wanting or not, mentally or not, and in some cases not feeling guilty but feeling mostly guilty about it when I realize, but we don’t know what people are going through.
Today, we will talk about comparing people to each other
And thank you for reading ๐
thank you for sharing your story!
I also have to agree with you about that. It was a very nice way you wrote that post, and the intention behind it made its way through. It reminded me of a situation about 10 years ago, when I finished primary school and was about to start grammar school. We had a class specializing on music, i.e. singing, playing instruments etc. With my lessons for the violin and the piano, I wanted to enter there, however the teacher responsible for the class wasn’t self confident enough to accept that I, as a blind guy, participate her, she couldn’t imagine it. OK OK… but a few months later, I entered with the violin into her orchestra, also at our school. And from the beginning on, she was sooooo happy about how I played and learned the pieces by heart, the absolut hearing and so on, and very often said things like "Julian, stop playing so the others hear their mistakes".
So, it’s just normal for people to be unsure at first, and we do NOT want to compare people about this, but we share those experiences.
The very year I started high school, a blind guy graduated. Very interesting timing, what can I say.
Most of the time I get along easier with the girls, but I can’t tell you that a little help from a blind colleague wouldn’t hurt or something.
I’m telling you this because in the first weeks some of the teachers were like, but he did this like this, or like that, and at a point I think they got tired of hearing me say we’re all different, well I said it once to every one of the ones who did it but my face speaks a lot sadly ๐ but the french teacher at last once in a not so frequent while but noticeable, says like ah, but he pronunced this better, or etc, when I pronounce french like sorry for the language, shit and I barely understand it spoken but when it comes to writing I’m decent or so I hope and she said it many times so I think it’s true maybe.
But, that doesn’t make her not find something to tell me about how did he do and I don’t. Actually I get that she’s curious and wants to help because I can detect at times easily the intentions of the people based on their voices, and she doesn’t sound like she has bad ones, but, it’s a little frustratin.
Next time I hear it I ask her for his full name and search him on any socials to see who he is. For a friend, for sure ๐
Sure, some teachers do it too, but more rarely.
No clear answers as of yet, everyone is making up excuses ๐
Ask them maybe.
As a blind person from like a year old or so I can’t tell you.
Or why even think it is so impossible in the first place?
See, I was always curious about this behaviour from the sighted.
Of course, the simple explanation is that they haven’t seen a blind person use a computer before for example, so they are a bit shocked, surprised or whatever, fine.
What I don’t understand though is that they have no basis, no evidence or no other source, to think that blind people can’t do these kinds of things, so why not just accept it and be fine with it, instead considering it a miracle and an Oh my God situation, even after it has been demonstrated and explained that it is doable?
Like yeah, it is possible, why would you think it’s not?
Reminds me of the computer science teacher I had in first year of high school, he looked at me like I was an alien or something when I wrote, opened and closed things, etc, in the end I had to make him listen to the tts.
But though after that, the girl standing besides me, the one I talked more about here in fact, told me that after it he still looked at me like I was some kind of miracle or something ๐
Gosh, nothing more than trouble.
So, I’m happy about the fact I’ve never been in a mainstream school.
Agreed with Tissman, but also love the way you’ve written this post and the message you send out to the people in this one.
Thank you for that!
Everyone should know, one way or another.
It reminds me when I opened up my laptop as part of my two years of being in a mainstream school and the English teacher was so surprised that I can use a laptop and she asked my teaching assistant about it, shocked, as if she couldn’t ask me lol.
Later on I have to say that we got along really well though and she ended up always speaking to me, not my assistant like she also did for a good while.
So the good point is that at least some people want to change and can change, so let’s keep that in mind.
Omg so much stuff wrong with this ๐
She should have respected the fact that you don’t feel comfortable being the center of attention, she should probably reconsider her overall mindset about blind people, especially when she has one in class and finally, comparing people sucks! It brings people down and never helps anyone, IMO.
I’d suggest talking to her, at least try to email her or something? Maybe she could change for the better if you give her a hint.
Anyway, good luck and hopefully this wouldn’t happen again.