Finding the Light in the Darkness

“How much farther?”

I hear my older sister laugh. “It’s just a few steps further. Now stop asking! ” I can hear the smile in her voice. I tighten my hold on her hand as she continues to lead me over the rough and curved incline.

I fall silent as I try to take in as much of my surroundings as possible with my limited senses. I can hear the sound of rushing water-a waterfall I guess. The smell of the cool, wet air wafts in front of my nose. It dampens my skin and clothing. We must be close. Further away, the sound of wildlife is chatters and howls. Birds call for their mates, and bees buzz around my head. The usual city sounds that I’ve grown accustomed to my entire life are nowhere to be detected. That life has never felt further away.

I reach out with my left hand and flinch when it suddenly brushes against something rough. “Are we rock climbing?” I ask, lightly running my fingertips along the grainy surface.

My sister giggles. “If you mean hiking on a rocky surface, then yes. Be careful not to step to your right. The ledge is only a few steps away from us.”

I release my sister’s hand and cling to the solid wall to my left. “Ledge? Are we on a cliff?” I ask, panic rising in my chest at the idea of a steep drop so close to me.

My sister grips my hand again. “Don’t worry,” she says softly, “I won’t let you plummet to the river below.”

River?

“I really don’t feel like drowning today, Lucy,” I say, subconsciously gripping onto her hand even tighter than I had been before.

Lucille is silent for a moment before saying, “Just trust me. Let me be your eyes.” Her voice is quiet and, even though it is I who is blind, I can almost see the pleading look she undoubtedly wears. My loss of sight has been a hard topic on all of us, resulting in my sister bringing me along on all of her adventures around the globe in an attempt to cheer me up. The more places she takes me, the more I develop a love for it.

I figure- if I can’t see the world, the least I can do is hear it. Smell it. Touch it. I have to make the best out of my situation; otherwise, I’ll never truly Live.

I release my grip on the rock and allow her to lead me, albeit at a more hesitant pace, the rest of the way up the cliff.

A few more steps and Lucille stops in her tracks. I stop myself from bumping into her and squeeze her hand briefly. “Are we there yet?” I ask.

I hear Lucille’s sharp intake of breath. “Yeah,” she says, seeming to be in awe, “Yeah, we’re here.”

I release her hand and wave my hands around, trying to find something- anything- to feel. I find nothing but open air. The only clue I have as to where we are is the loud hissing of running water-definitely a waterfall.  “What’s it look like?” I ask, a pang of longing hitting deep in my chest.

Lucille hesitates before saying, “Remember when we were kids? I dyed my hair that bright pink?” I nod my head. “Well, the sky is about that same pink with blue and purple mixed into the gradient. A few clouds are streaked across the sky like someone stepped in vanilla ice cream and smeared their boot across the sky.”

I wrinkle my nose. “Shouldn’t clouds look like cotton?”

“Yeah, but it’s more…more rich. I don’t know how else to describe it,” Lucille admits.

I smile and tilt my head upward. “So, it’s a sunset?” Once I hear Lucille’s hum of confirmation, I ask, “What else? Where are we?”

Lucille continues, “It’s sort of a rainforest, not quite as humid as the Amazon but far from a desert. Right now, we’re standing- brace yourself- on a rocky cliff. We’re pretty high off of the ground, perhaps sixty or seventy feet. The waterfall that you hear is to our left, lush green brush running alongside it down the cliff face as well as on either side of the river it melts into. The foam at the base of the waterfall is white, and it sharply contrasts the deep blue of the calm water.” She pauses, assumedly looking for more to describe. “Large birds are soaring through the air above us, and there’s a butterfly a few feet to our right. Its wings are neon yellow, like a lemon or your rain boots that you had when you were six.”

I easily fit her words into a mental image. At least I was fortunate enough to be able to picture these colors, as I didn’t lose my sight until I was twelve. I’ve missed out on a lot of the things many take for granted, like going to the movies with friends and getting a driver’s license. It took me years to realize that I still had things I could control in the future despite the things I couldn’t control in the past.

I carefully lower myself to the ground, folding my legs beneath me on the wet rock. I hear Lucille’s boots scuff along the ground and eventually, I feel her sit next to me.

We sit there, I in the dark and she in the light, together.