A minor incident Thursday night left me with broken glasses, shattered lenses, and a scratched cornea. It was an accident, and the scratches would heal in a couple days with no (known) longterm issues. I normally have old glasses around as backups, but I got rid of those during a recent purge. So I spent half my Friday without any vision correctness.
It was an interesting experience.
On the positive side, I’m not that blind, only a -3.25 prescription. And the day was mostly spent in comfortable territory. I know my own apartment and the surrounding area well enough. But I had to venture out to the optometrist.
While they happened to be close by (I didn’t need to read any street signs), it was still an eye-opening (I’m sorry) experience to go through the day without the crutch for a disability I’ve had since elementary school. Where did I put my keys? Is that a bug or just a dot? How do I know I’m not stepping on a nail?
The oddest part part for me, though, was not being able to see anybody’s face as I walked around town. As mentioned, I knew where I needed to go without having to pay attention to street signs or buildings. But when it came to people I would walk past, their face and most of their body language was a complete blur. Are they looking at me? Are they smiling? Frowning? Are they talking to me? How are they reacting?
Not knowing was so weird. I knew that I was looking at them, but did not know if they were looking back—I assume I freaked a few people out by staring. It made me feel completely disconnected. The face is important to us humans. We even seek it out in random objects, a phenomenon known as Pareidolia.
I’m happy the experience didn’t last too long, but it was humbling while it lasted. If you wear glasses, perhaps try it for a day?