10.3.09

luck be a lady. bug.

on our long and difficult hike today my brother and i passed a blind man... hiking. he had a stick and a woman guiding him over the roots and boulders in the path. and presumably letting him know about the sheer 200 foot drop to his right.

i had two immediate thoughts:

1. "i am very impressed with that blind man."

2. "i wonder how one gets the awesome job of leading blind people on long and difficult hikes."

thought number two was immediately revised.

3. "actually that hike would probably take all day and be super annoying for the guide. also imagine the consequences from even a momentary lapse in concentration."

my brother must have been impacted with different thoughts because after walking in silence for a while he asked me,

"would you rather be blind, or deaf?"

i chose deaf immediately because i cannot imagine my life without photography, especially coupled with the cruel sting that each month's student loan payments would carry.

john chose deaf too, because he'd always wanted to learn sign language and were he deaf, well he would have to.

i would like to take a moment here to quit worrying about all those good problems i have and thank my lucky stars that i am neither blind nor deaf.

thanks. so much.