AFL visit #5

AFL visit #5


Cooper

English Assessment 8

Mr. Salsich

January 20, 2010



          Today was a great day, and to cap it off, it was a very colorful day at AFL. Instead of having to sit at the reception desk the entire time, I was able to fill a few orders of groceries. Before that started I was engaging in something very peculiar to me. sitting at the dining table was a man. This man, when I walked in, did not say a word, did not look over to see who was coming, and didn't even acknowledge my presence in the room. It was extremely strange. I saw next to him a folded up metal stick with a ball at the end of it. He was blind. When the other volunteers walked in laughing, he was quick to ask them how they were doing. When a woman said hello while walking in to get groceries, I know his ears perked up. She continued talking, until the man started a conversation with her. I picked up the vibe that she had never met him formally, but he said he recognized her voice. This amazed me. I had never thought of speech as a main source of recognition before today. The man had developed an acute sense of hearing through his visual disabilities. Today's events really strengthened my appreciation for people with major and minor disabilities.