dnsyl57

I've always had low vision. I've been legally blind since November 1990. I've lost more sight since then, and it continues to slowly deteriorate. I don't see as clearly as I did even a year or two ago. Yes, I take meds and see specialists on a regular basis, but medically there really isn't anything that will help.

I still love, appreciate and marvel at the beauty of a sunset, or the brilliant colours of autumn. It takes me longer to see the beauty of spring. The buds on the trees aren't apparent to me until a couple of weeks after most people notice. The same with flowers, I don't see the subtle and delicate beauty. Fresh flowers are wasted on me. Yes, I can smell the aroma, but I'm just not a fan of floral scents.

One of the things that I miss the most is seeing the faces of the people I love and care about. I've never really been able to see the details of their faces. Even before 1990, I had trouble with visual detail, but it is pretty much impossible to see the finer points now. I can still see some things like height, build, hair colour, glasses and if a man is clean shaven. If I normally see you in a certain type of setting, I will probably be able to find you if it isn't too crowded. But if our paths cross in a different environment, I likely wouldn't notice unless you spoke to me. It has always amazed me when people spot someone they know across a crowded mall or on a bus as it drives by. How wonderful it would be to see that much detail!

Some people may think that it's good that I can't see them that closely, but I disagree. I wish I could see the colour of their eyes, the shape of their nose, cheekbones and jawline. Do they have dimples, freckles or laugh lines? If I look at a photo of someone, I use my reading glasses and a strong magnifier to see detail more clearly. There is only so much detail that you can see in an average 4X6 photo. Real people aren't too crazy about you getting that close to them unless you are in an intimate relationship!

I got my first VCR back in the late 80's, Over the years, I have often taped, then paused the picture so I could see the detail more clearly. It was the only other way I could get a close look at a face. But my friends were never on TV, so I never really knew what they looked like.

Since I started using the computer, I have often used some of the magnifying features to look more closely at pictures of things and especially at peoples faces. There are magnifiers that allow me to take an image and enlarge it to a size that I could see more clearly.

I think it would be wonderful if I could look at the faces of my family and friends that closely - to see the beautiful and handsome faces that are a part of the incredible souls who enrich my life. Scary to some, but it would be such a gift to me to see detailed pics of the people I care about and who care about me.

So here's the deal. Most of you either have pics scanned or digital pics on your PC. Would you be willing to e-mail me a decent quality pic(s) of yourself so I can see what others see? I swear on my love of chocolate that I will NOT alter, post, publish, share or distribute the pics in any way. This is strictly for me to see you more clearly.

This isn't a joke. I really do want to see what you look like while I still can. Hopefully, I will have sight and all of you in my life for many years, but we don't know what tomorrow brings. If you want to send me your pic - and I hope you do - then please send it to my personal e-address (not the one for this site).

Here's hoping that I SEE you in the near future!

dn