Tag Archives: blindness

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You’re the Sister I Never Had

Assad and Amaan are now my honorary brothers. One is from Ethiopia and the other from Somalia, and they both work in the Dallas airport. They’ve been in the US for about 5 years and they are both cheerful, hardworking men. I call them my new brothers because they called me “my sister!”

“Step up here, my sister,” Assad said as he helped me into the cart to transport me to my gate. Then, when he transferred me to Amaan for the second leg of my hurry-flurry through the airport, Amaan said, “hello, my sister. I will get you to your gate. You not worry.”

how-very-alike-we-all-are

I loved the way they treated me; it felt like family. They helped me like they would help their own mother. They were protective and as kind to me as they would be to their own sisters.

Why don’t we talk like that to each other?  Why don’t we act like that to each other?

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Jesus Gives Ever-Laughing Life

Several years ago I spoke at a church in Knoxville, Tennessee where I met an 8-year-old little girl named Bailey.

Bailey was born blind, but she had no idea boundaries existed! When I first met her, she fluttered about me like a butterfly with fresh new wings. She giggled and chattered with the most expressive lilt to her sweet voice! She was a delight.

 The-Ever-Laughing-Life

When I discovered she loved to sing, I invited her to join me on stage.

When she got up on stage, she held the microphone like a pro… and totally upstaged me! Before she began her song, she made an unexpected announcement to the audience…

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I’ve Got Moves

I only had 30 minutes between flights. That’s a pretty tight layover even when you’re seated in the first row of the plane and able to get off first. It’s tight even if you can see and run like a sprinter through an airport. But, when you’re blind, have to wait for airport assistance and are stuck in the back of the plane … well … 30 minutes is almost impossible.

airport 5

So, as we taxied in, I knew there was only a small chance I would make my next flight. I signaled the flight attendant and told her my situation and asked, “I know it’s your policy for those needing assistance to get off the plane last, but can you walk me out as soon as we land so I can make my next flight?”

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Why I Feel Beautiful

The tip of his index finger feels light against my skin. He taps, blends, and smears ever so gently.

“I love you and I think you’re beautiful,” he says.

It’s yet another black eye. This one, courtesy of the six-foot-tall bedpost in our bedroom. The arrangement of the furniture in the room hadn’t changed, but evidently, my brain had. I’m older. It’s hard to remember everything all the time. Where am I walking? Which way am I turned? What wall am I facing?

So, into the bedpost I walked. Another black eye. This one, though, just seemed to heal more slowly than the ones before. Another change of aging.

As his fingertip swirls the beige putty that hides the blueish reminder of my memory lapse, I realize one thing has not changed. He loves me gently. He loves me well. He loves me in ways that no one really could imagine.

Jen and Phil

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My Interview with Kirk Cameron, Part 2: God is Just Not Fair

For all of you wondering, our interview aired this week on Blazetv.com! I’m so excited.

Jennifer and Kirk on the Glenn Beck Program. Snapshot from The Blaze TV.

Jennifer and Kirk on the Glenn Beck Program. Snapshot from The Blaze TV.

Since some of you may not be able to see it, I thought I would tell you a little bit of what Kirk Cameron and I talked about. For those of you that don’t know, he guest hosted on the Glenn Beck show this week, and invited me to come and talk. We talked about some of the big questions of faith like, “If God is good, why do bad things happen?” and, “Is God really fair if He lets innocent people suffer?”

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How to Lighten Your Load by Trading Places

I unloaded my frustrations to my friend Karen while talking on the phone the other day. Sometimes blindness makes me so tired that it just scrapes against the bottom of my soul, and it was one of those days.

two hands grasping

I bet you know what I’m talking about; we’ve all had “one of those days.” You know, when you’re so overwhelmed that you can’t even put your jumbled feelings into words?