Blind Guide BASICS

Thank you everyone for joining me again today by reading my blog. And I am very grateful to the people who post me messages. It really motivates me to write more. I have received messages from people I went to high school with and friends from my amateur radio days and I look forward to the day I will get the chance to see them again. Today I will write about how to be a blind guide as I promised in a previous blog. The key is to walk in front and be the leader. Quite often, people try to maneuver the blind by walking behind them and to push them in the right direction. I understand why they would want to do that. It makes them nervous if they can't see the blind person so they do that to keep them in view. But as a blind person who is being guided, we prefer to hold the elbow of the guide. By having the guide walk in front, we can feel a  lot of what is going on through the elbow like if there is a step up or step down, it allows us to walk smoothly. Exactly what you are thinking now...if the my hand that is holding the elbow goes up I know that I will be going up and if it goes down I will be going down. If you have read what I have written here now, then please be confident and give it a try. If the blind is familiar with their environment they may tell you they are fine on their own even if you offer assistance but that doesn't mean they felt insulted that you offered or anything like that so please do not feel bad. Please remember that there are many more that would be grateful that you offered your assistance.  

Originally posted by Hiro in Japanese on 4/18/2013
Translated by SWIS Project