This is a game played with a ball that makes noise by means of a bell inside. The game is called "GolBol" (Goal Ball) and if you aren't blind, you have to wear a blindfold to play. Nobody plays it competitively here, but a few people at Piña organize exhibition games in surrounding communities.
I'm rethinking a lot of what the word "disability" has come to mean for me. Before coming here, I had never had a real conversation with someone with cerebral palsy, or someone who couldn't see or hear. I'm surprised every day by the new realities I'm finding here, and the barriers to living what I would consider a "regular" life. Surprised, impressed and honored to be here redefining what a life is and what my own life is worth.
1 comment:
It's interesting that we don't make full use of whatever senses and faculties we *do* have....I just came back from a week's meditation program in VT. Along with sitting practice we did all kinds of body exercises including a blindfold walk where a partner leads a blindfolded person through the countryside for fifteen minutes. The terrain was rocky and you immediately have to trust the other person, as well as your own tactile senses. You quickly tune-in to sounds and winds and those sensations become more prominent. You realize how oblivious we are to so much of our environment - running on auto-pilot and missing much of the texture and richness all around us....
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