My Virtual Reading Room

From "No end in sight: My life as a blind Iditarod racer", by Rachael Scdoris and Rick Steber
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"...Some people try to put limitations on me because they want me to fit into the legally blind box. There are the naysayers out there who say I have no business being out on the trail, or running dogs, or doing any of the other activities I am involved in.  A perfect example of this occurred during my freshman year of high school. I was running a cross-country race and got clotheslined by a guy wire. One minute I was running and the next I was on the ground, flat on my back. Once I got over the shock I jumped up and continued to run. A woman standing near Dad admonished him with, "Your daughter is blind. How could you let her do something so dangerous?"

Dad came back with the greatest answer: "What would you like for her to do? Sit on a couch with a white cane over her lap and be blind?"

I refuse to sit back and let life quietly slip past me. I want to be involved. I want to try things. I want to live and experience everything I possibly can. I know there are dangers out there. I accept them. No, I embrace them. Dangers present us with fear. And fear is my fuel. It makes me go.  If I did not meet the dangers of this world head-on and come to grips with my fear,  I would be cheating myself.

Those people who are content to sit on the couch and say, "I'm blind," or, "I'm deaf," or, "I'm sick," are missing something--a life.

My blindness gives me a sharp contrast between easy and difficult. It forces me to push past the limitations other people try to place on me. Over and over again I am obligated to prove my competence and, as a result, I push harder to achieve than anyone else I know.

I hope this book will provide a window of understanding of the fact that just because a person has a physical impairment or certain limitations that person is not helpless. Those of us who are impaired or limited must cling to the possibility of hope. Hope that today's challenges will be overcome, hope that we can find the personal strength to face yet another battle, hope that our individual lives will become more rewarding.
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