“Change has a bad reputation in our society. But it isn’t all bad – not by any means. In fact, change is necessary in life – to keep us moving, to keep us growing, to keep us interested. Imagine life without change. It will be static, boring, dull.”
Dr. Dennis O’Grady
Processing thoughts and external stimuli becomes an issue, especially when more than one moving person or sound is in motion. The speed of each day continues as usual. You do not. You cannot. Filtering your physical world becomes challenging, tough to keep up with. Distilling conversations with small and large groups can be infuriating. Gestures like shaking hands, patting a colleague on the back, or simply walking past someone or something can knock you right on your ass. God help you if there is more than one moving object in your midst, or an uneven piece of ground. Humility can easily become your closest ally.
This affects a person’s psyche. Truly, it can affect someone to the point of bitterness because you notice a loss that is invisible to others. A loss of your sensory world. A sensory world that could be tough before RP took over, but helped you along by a swath of vision that prepared you for what was coming, or close by.
Peripheral vision gives people a sense of awareness for what or who is in their circle. Funny thing, most people aren’t even aware of it. People rarely stop to think, ‘Wow, I’m sure glad I can see well from side to side, above and below’. It’s their normal. It’s as natural as the fingers on their hand. You don’t have to remind yourself that you have ‘em. The fingers are just there. You can count on them.
But, just think, if your fingers were suddenly missing from your hands things would change radically. Grabbing a cup of coffee, lifting groceries from the trunk, turning a steering wheel, and on and on it goes. It would be difficult to lose your fingers. You’d miss seeing ‘em on your hand, no doubt.
But, what I believe would be most challenging is the mental awareness of the change. The stuff between the ears. In your mind. What was taken for granted is no longer there. You’d have to overcome the innate instincts of grabbing your socks, slipping on your shoes. Fingers are gone. The loss of independence which is common for most people becomes an obstacle. It begs to be recognized, often frequented, confronted, and overcome.
Note: Next post is titled, ‘Loss’ considering grief and how allusive it can be.
Take care, my friend 👍
