Caroline Pedersen was easy to spot among the other people on the slope. She was the little girl wearing a big patch marked “BLIND SKIER.” But she did not want any further description than that.
“You’re not putting those things on me, Sam!” she insisted. “Blindness, I can handle, and I always have; but not deafness.”
“These earmuffs will not make you deaf, Caroline,” Sam assured her. “But they will prevent frostbite.”
“That’s why I’m wearing a knit hat!” she replied as she brushed her hair aside. “See? My ears feel fine to me. I’ll bet they’re not frostbitten.”
Sam heaved a sigh of frustration. Caroline could sometimes be stubborn, perhaps even paranoid, about her hearing; so much so that she wouldn’t allow anything to touch her precious ears…not even a piercing. But Naomi was now coming out of the lodge, with what she thought was a perfect solution.
“Caroline is still standing her ground, huh?” she whispered.
"You know how she is,” Sam whispered back. He then noticed that Naomi had taken a companion with her from the ski lodge, another little girl about the same age as Caroline.
“This kid will teach her a lesson.”
Naomi approached her younger sister excitedly. “Caroline!”
“Naomi!” Caroline replied with equal enthusiasm, as always. “Is Dad with you? I heard some extra footsteps…Sam!
“Ahhh…sound! Blissful sound…!” she sighed sarcastically.
“No, Caroline,” Naomi said. “Dad’s on a lift. But I do have someone with me, from the local Blind Citizens chapter. Caroline, I’d like you to meet Lisa.”
Always eager to meet other blind kids, Caroline extended her hand. “Hello, Lisa!” But Lisa gave no reply.
“Playing games with me, huh? I’ll let it slide. I play the silence game myself, sometimes. (a-HEM) HELLO, LISA!”
Naomi grinned as she let her in on the gag. “You’ll never yell loud enough for her, Caroline. She’s deaf, too. Did you brush up on your tactile sign lessons?”
“Well, uh…of course I have! Don’t be silly, Naomi.”
“Then say hello.”
Caroline knew how to flag down a deafblind person: they always welcomed a tap on the shoulder. Thus alerted, Lisa’s face lit up like a candle. She didn’t get many offers to converse, and so voicelessly conveyed great joy at the opportunity. She eagerly extended her fingers to feel the signs.
“Hello, Caroline! Would you like to race?”
“You’re kidding.” She was surprised that a deafblind person would dare try it; but she was also smart enough to keep this opinion to herself.
“No, Caroline, I’m not kidding. You’re not going to let a little dimness keep you off a mere junior slope, are you?”
“Uh…no! Don’t be silly! Certainly not!”
“You’re hesitant, aren’t you? C’mon, it’s easy! I’ve done it a hundred times myself! Tell you what: I’ll go first, and we’ll meet at the bottom.
“But, while you’re coming, I want you to think about your experience. Tell me what went through your mind as you came down. I like to know what other blind kids think.
“But be careful,” Lisa added, then slipped on a pair of earmuffs. “It’s pretty breezy out here. The wind chill will freeze your ears off! Better put on a pair of earmuffs!”
“Uh…sure!” Caroline stammered as she heard Lisa slide away. Caroline knew she couldn’t back down. “You win, Sam. Let’s have the earmuffs.”
Sam tenderly placed the muffs over Caroline’s rapidly-reddening ears. She shuddered as she sensed her cherished sounds fade; but she relaxed a little when she realized it wasn’t the stone-deaf silence she had feared.
“Here goes nothing,” she said as she pushed off with Sam and Naomi. They pulled ahead quickly, leaving Caroline alone with her thoughts.
I wonder what that girl thinks. The world is a big enough mystery when you can’t see it. But adding deafness on top of that? I’ve never felt such fear. I wouldn’t wish this upon myself or anyone else.
Yet the idea is strangely fascinating. What if I was like Lisa, and had to rely on touch for most of my information? What would I do? Would I run around, touching everything within reach, trying to reassure myself that the world around me really exists? I suppose I’d stand there, extending my fingers as far as I can, wondering…what lies beyond?
Caroline momentarily forgot where she was, and hit a lump of snow. Fortunately, she was at just the right angle to send her flying, as if from a ski jump. Nevertheless, it caught her totally off-guard. She was about to scream in surprise, until she realized how exhilarating it was. She could almost feel herself float in mid-air. Her heart raced with conflicting emotions of fear, relief and joy, all within a split second.
Wooooow. I can no longer feel the ground. It was weird enough when I couldn’t hear the shushing of the snow under my skis, and the crunch of my poles poking through the surface. Even without sight or hearing, I still had the comfort of the touch of solid ground. Now I don’t even have that. All I have is the feel, the sensation, of the wind. It is intangible; it has no form, taste, smell or sound…but it is there. And it is carrying me to the top of the world…to the moon…to the stars above… I could almost touch those unseen stars I’ve heard so much about. I could fly forever…
Alas, the whole experience was over in only a few moments. The sudden feeling of her skis touching the ground broke her train of thought, and Caroline snapped back to reality. A look of wonder was on her face.
Sam and Naomi, having arrived already, noticed this. Naomi turned to Lisa, and said, “Caroline made it down!” Lisa was also thrilled. “Tell me all about it!”
Caroline took a backward leap into a pile of snow, landing as if to make a snow angel. But the only part of her that moved was the smile on her face, as she both signed and gasped her response.
“Awesome.” And she no longer cared about the earmuffs.