Interviews to Empower Presents: Joy

Welcome to another edition of Interviews to Empower where we feature folks whom we believe will inspire you to keep on keeping on. This month we are trying something different. We have asked our interviewee to tell her story in her own words. So without further adue, let me introduce you to Joy.

Hi. My name is Joy. I have 2 kids who are grown and 2 wonderful grandbabies. I am a cook at a local restaurant, and I have two cousins who are blind. I was asked to talk about what it’s like having cousins who can’t see, so I will try my best.

I was 8 or 9 when my cousin J was born and about 10 when his sister A was born. They were just babies when my family noticed something was wrong. When my mom told me they were blind I was sad, because I wanted them to be able to enjoy the world like I do. I was afraid they wouldn’t be able to.

My mom, stepdad and I lived with my aunt V and my cousins, because my mom took care of Aunt V before her babies were born. Then, when we found out the babies were blind, Aunt V needed us even more.

We lived in a very rural part of West Virginia and didn’t know if there were opportunities for kids who were blind. So when Aunt V decided her kids needed to go to the school for the blind, we all move to Romney, WV. I was upset, because I didn’t want to leave my family and friends. But, Mom said we had to do what was best for J and A and Aunt V. Today, as I look back I am so glad we moved up here and gave my cousins the chance to learn.

As I was 10 years older than my cousin, A, I was the one who did a lot of babysitting. I guess you could say we all grew up together. But, when it came to having a social life, I sure did get annoyed. Playing hide-and-go-seek with the kids when my boyfriends came over, J answering the phone and telling stuff about me to my boyfriends, yeah, having cousins who are blind sure did interfere with my social life. But, you know, it would have been that way even if they had perfect vision. They were just normal kids.

I am embarrassed to admit this, but when my daughter was born I was scared to let my cousins hold her at first. I was afraid something would go wrong with them not being able to see. But, unknown to me, Mom would let them hold and feed her behind my back. I have pictures of them holding my babies, so I guess I got over that fear. It was just something all new moms go through, I reckon. Today, A babysits my grandbabies when I need help, and nobody could take better care of them than she. Not only that, J is married with 2 little boys of his own.

I always treated my cousins like everyone else. The fact that they couldn’t see, while sad was not the end of the world. After all, my grandpa was blind, I had a great grandmother who was blind and a few other relatives with vision problems. I knew even as a teenager, the ability to see or not didn’t make a person more or less special. Which reminds me of those times when I was lazy and didn’t want to walk J and A all the way to the blind school across town. I would try to talk them into skipping school. J was all for it, but A made me walk her to school. LOL I guess that’s why A graduated at the top of her class.

The hardest thing about taking care of my cousins was worrying about whether they would run into things. Aunt V was always moving furniture around, but my mom rarely did that. Then, once she did move furniture around, and J came in and tried to sit down in a chair. Turns out there was a table in that spot, so he sat right down on the table instead. LOL Now whenever I visit A, I never know where her furniture is going to be, because she likes to change things around. I guess all kids grow up to be like their moms, no matter what.

The funnest part of growing up with my cousins was just being with them. I took them wherever I went. When my own kids were young, A taught them braille, and it made me so proud they could learn something so neat. A person never knows if they will need to learn it. I mean, what if they went blind later in life? I tried to learn, but it took several hours just to learn how to write my name that I gave it up. I probably grew up faster, taking care of my cousins and aunt the way I did, but I wouldn’t trade those times for anything.

If I could give advice to someone facing blindness in the family, I guess I would say make sure they go to a blind school or get blindness skills training so that they can live as normal a life as possible. Also, remember to encourage them that they can do anything they set their mind to.

Joy, thank you for your story and your honesty. And, thank you, faithful readers for being with us today. If you or someone you know has an inspiring story, let us know at adkinsandwells@gmail.com.

That concludes our post for today, but we’ll be back the second Thursday of May, so be sure and come join us. Until then, remember to take hold of life and face it with a grin.

Blessings.

An Update and Some Thoughts on Preparing for a Job

Hello, everyone. I hope this first, full month of  spring finds you well. Anita here with you today, and Spring has been a rather snowy and busy one here in WV. Goalball season has recently ended, and gives me a small break. Spring break has also allowed me a chance to rejuvenate for school, but I have been very busy at home.

My Mom, who lives in a nearby nursing home, came to spend the weekend with me. We played cards and fried potatoes. Ruth Ann, my cousin, stopped in to visit us as well. Then, Joy, my cousin came over to spend the night. Then, I went to her house to spend the night. While there I Took advantage of her WiFi and updated my iPhone. I  put Word Pro on my new MacBook, but at the moment, it is about to be thrown out the window. I couldn’t figure out how to save an article I wrote, though I did eventually succeed. So my brain is foggy just now.

During my break, my friend, Nancy, and I spent a day shopping at the mall. My bank account is way lower, but I have a couple of new bowls and a new kitchen gadget to play with. It is a rice cooker. I found a pasta rice cooker that is useful for all kinds of things a few months back, and I wanted another one. It is so frustrating when something I like disappears from the shelves at Walmart.

Anyhow, the point here is that I’ve been busy. Generally, I like to cook on vacation, but I haven’t had a lot of time for that. Currently, I have a hash brown casserole in the crockpot. When I was preparing it, I decided to add in bacon bits. I found a little bag that felt like the bacon bits. After opening it, I realized it was nuts. I had used Seeing AI, an app on my iPhone designed to tell me barcodes and read text, and while it couldn’t find the barcode, it did read something about almonds. I didn’t believe it because I don’t remember buying any almonds. I should have listened to it though because almonds they were. LOL

This blog post is really me ranting to you. I just wrote an article about "DUCKING INTO UEB", the book S. J. Wells and I wrote. In the article, I mentioned how I wanted to get a job like my sighted family members way back in the ’90’s. As blind people, obtaining a job is more difficult. It is important that we have the skills, training, and opportunity to do the job. Also, accessibility needs are important. Yes, the law requires that reasonable accommodations be made for us. But what does reasonable mean? And, it is a sighted world. A sighted person could apply for and potentially acquire a job in the local area easily enough, though it may be a minimum wage position. But a person who is blind requires accessibility to be included with the package.

I remember years ago in Parkersburg when I wanted to work at a call center. The software at the time was not accessible for screenreaders. Maybe nowadays, I could tackle the challenge of insuring such accommodations were met, but back then, I did not possess the knowledge or bravery. And, I’m glad I didn’t because working at a call center is not where I feel the Lord wants me to be. Still, I sometimes feel that a realistic job option be a consideration. What would I do if I was suddenly rifted from my current position as others have been? What skills and training would I need to acquire employment? Could I still live here in the town I consider as my home? Truth is that most people must relocate in order to be employed. But could their possibly be virtual jobs in the education field for me? Or, are there other career options I haven’t explored? I do not plan to leave my current position in the near future. But where will I be in ten years or so? If I want to make a career move, I need to plan now so I can be properly trained for the transition. And, if I decide to stay in this position forever, educating myself about other careers and even completing some of the training will not be a waste of my time. 

Part of my reason for bringing up this topic on this blog is because on one of my facebook lists, someone wanted to know what jobs are out there for blind people. There are not specific jobs for blind people. There are jobs in the field of blindness. There are companies that focus on hiring blind people, such as Industries for the Blind. But a person who is blind should really focus on their strengths and weakness and job interests. Filling out a job inventory is a great first step. Getting in touch with blind people in an interested field is also important, though not required. 

The ACB, www.acb.org and NFB, www.nfb.org both offer mentorship programs to people who are blind and visually impaired. AFB, www.afb.org also has Career Connect, a program that matches one with someone who has a job in the interested field. Finally, determining the accommodations is key. And, while the employer is required to make the reasonable accommodations, any accommodations we can make on our behalf will help to make us more successful candidates. Blindness skills training and training required for the specific career are also appropriate steps. Have fun searching! In the mean time, here is a link that will allow you to search virtual jobs. The site also allows you to search for jobs that require your physical presence. https://www.indeed.com/q-Virtual-jobs.html

That's it for today, but be sure and come back in 2 weeks for another edition of Interviews to Empower. Until then, be safe and remember to laugh often.