The ANGEL on the Platform

What do you think is the biggest difference a blind person notices when walking about, not so much a comparison between the U.S. and Japan but between San Diego and Kansai? It is the number of bicycles we encounter. In San Diego, we very rarely bump into bicycles. But in the last month living in Osaka, I bumped into 3 moving bicycles. Once, I bumped into the handle and yelled "Ouch!", another time a bicycle tire ran over my walking cane and the third and most frightening was when my walking cane got caught between the spokes of a bicycle tire and went flying out of my hand. If I hadn't let go immediately my cane would have been completely broken. It was a good thing I let go. Nothing is as useless as a broken walking cane. For us the cane helps us feel the condition of the ground, any obstacles and uneveness like a step. When the cane breaks, we can't feel any of that. We would have to move slowly with a broken dangling cane. I remembered I used to pack an extra cane in my bag for emergencies when I lived in Tokyo. I decided to call Nippon Lighthouse's Information and Culture Center which sells assistive tools for the blind and asked for their nearest location. Praying that there will be one Nishikujo, I pulled out my mobile phone and pressed each number carefully and got through to an operator. They said the nearest one was near the No.2 exit of the subway Yotsubashi Line, Higobashi Station. A new challenge. 

I was already used to the JR Loop Line and the Hanshin Railway but the subway? I didn't know they had subways in Osaka! I'm only kidding but if it were up to me, I would have liked to have been able to avoid taking the subway. But, there is always a new encounter in any new adventure. That's because if I don't ask for directions, I will never reach my destination. Everything was fine up to getting on the JR Loop Line. I got off at JR Osaka Station and walked on the platform, heading for the subway. Walking on an unfamiliar platform always makes me nervous. I'm always afraid I may fall off onto the tracks. As I slowly made my way down the platform, I heard a voice of an angel asking me "Where are you going?". I'm not saying this person looked or sounded like an angel. This person is an angel because this person was there to rescue me. On the platform of a huge station, there's so much loud noise that it's hard to tell in which direction the trains are running. You can hear the trains approach and the sound of their horns. If I lose focus, even for a moment, I lose my sense of direction. One wrong move and I'll end up on the tracks. It's not unusual for a blind person to fall off the platform and on to the tracks. I was painfully aware of the worst case scenario so my stress level was at its peak. If I'm familiar with the station I have a mental map to rely on so I'm not as scared but being in an unfamiliar station for the first time..it was really scary. Between the exit of the ticket booth and the subway station, a few people offered me their help. By the time I finally reached the Culture Center, 5 people had stopped to help. I am so so grateful. It made me realize again that we are all a part of a bigger picture, all here to help each other and it made my day. 

So did I get my walking cane? YES! So everyone out there reading this! If you ever see a blind person navigating their way very slowly on a platform, that's your chance to be an angel! I will right about tips on how to be a good guide for the blind some other time.

Originally posted by Hiro in Japanese on 4/12/2013
Translated by SWIS Project