Читать книгу Blinded - Fran Sánchez - Страница 3

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Upon opening my eyes all I can see is darkness, rather, in other words, I cannot see a thing, either way I cannot keep them open, my eyelids are strangely sticky. I do not know what has happened, after the inexplicable brightness I have been left blind. I must acknowledge that I am nervous, scared, very alarmed, and at the same time anxious for some answers, to know and understand what has happened.

I remain seated on my favorite sofa for a long time, hoping in vain for my poor eyes to work once again. I have my laptop burning over my lap. I have been bent over typing and tweaking the last chapter of my work, ignoring the elemental rules of ergonomics. I have been pressing the keys in a frenzy since very early in the morning. The early-rising muses that whispered incessantly into my ear had kept me awake. Ignoring my current new situation, I concentrated on my main worry, my novel. It had been more than an hour since I last saved the file and a terrible fear of losing my recent work invaded my tormented mind. After some endless minutes reflecting and considering infinite possibilities, I decided to leave the laptop on the cushion next to me, trusting that the battery would last enough for it to autosave.

I can finally focus on myself. Conscious of my weakness, I need help, without a doubt. I listen intently to the sounds of the lonely house, the quiet murmur of the refrigerator engine, the rhythm of my breath, the soft ringing of new messages on my phone. My phone! It is not that far, I cannot remember exactly where, so I will just have to feel around as I can, right and left. Due to its smooth surface and small rectangular shape it is unquestionable that I have found it. Though now another problem emerges. My first thought is to call my wife, who is working at the moment as a French teacher. I change my mind, today is her first day in that elitist private school after months of unemployment. Considering our lack of a stable job, I thought it best to tell her after work. I ponder over the possibilities of my next step. Contacting an ambulance service could be a solution. Once I lifted my phone I noticed it was impossible to dial a number while blind. I remember that one of my best friends, an expert in technology, had told me how to activate and configure voice dialing days ago. Why did I not follow his advice? Anyway, I will keep my phone in my pocket.

I need to pee. I stood up carefully and fearfully walked blindly with my protective arms in an horizontal position. The stab I received in my abdomen from the great dining table reminded me to move around very carefully. I cross through the doorway and press my hand on the hallway wall, following slowly as I take a few steps. The brush against one of the hanging paintings causes it to lose balance and I instinctively try to catch it. The result is disastrous. The corner of the frame falls on my fat toe, I shout out in pain, and the glass of the painting shatters to pieces upon landing on the floor. In just five minutes I have already had two accidents happen to me. If I do not liven up, this situation will not end well. I hear the crunch of the crystals under my slippers when I reach the closed door. I go into the narrow bathroom. Urinating on foot, as I usually do, does not seem like a good idea today, so I lower my pants and sit on the toilet. I usually wash my hands after this necessity, but, due to this situation, I should simplify my routines, though I may need a good washing of my eyes, they might improve miraculously. Half an hour of water over my face did not change my situation. I am still blind.

I barely drank a lonely coffee when I woke up, so I am hungry now. Going to the nearby kitchen and preparing something to eat seems like an arduous mission. I weigh the pros and the cons, but the rumbling in my stomach convinces me in the end. I set my plan in motion. I resort to the mental map provided by my memory to help me make it to the kitchen, walking the stretch calmly, without hurry. I manage pretty well. I remember the spatial dispositions of the furniture and where I keep each thing. Of course, I am not complicating myself too much, a pair of muffins and a cold small juice in a cardboard package will be today’s menu, until my wife comes home.

I make it back to the living room, lie down on the sofa, look for the television remote on the little table, and press a few buttons one by one until I hear the distinctive on sound. I manage to change channels little by little with difficulty, but I cannot find any broadcasting news channel. I leave it on an important national channel waiting for them to broadcast a news program. I must rethink my situation. It may be in my best interests to seek help from the neighbors, even go out to the street. I am full of questions. That adventure now seems a bit dangerous and risky. If I go outside I may get disoriented, lost, and unable to return home. If the door closes it feels like it would be very difficult to even put the key into the lock. I prefer not to take the risk, better to stay in the comfort of my home, waiting for my wife.

I do not even know what time it is. I am so disoriented that I have lost the ability to sense the pass of time. During the few hours of my affliction, I am discovering how difficult and complicated it is to live as a blind person. I feel defenseless and weak. Because of how unexpected it was, I jump out of fright. My phone suddenly began ringing. It took me a while to react and the call ended when I managed to pull it out of my pocket. I explore the edges of the apparatus, and, from the position of the gaps and buttons, I manage to identify its correct orientation. I wait a while and it rang again. I try to respond, but fail. I sense it is my beloved wife who is calling. It is a good thing she is insisting. Luck comes to my side and I manage to answer her call. She sounds very worried and tells me about her apocalyptic day, of her coworkers and students that are all blind. She, amazingly, is unaffected, out of a stroke of luck. She had tried to ask for official help, but failed. She naively asks me to go help her because she is overwhelmed. She weeps uncontrollably when she discovers my truth. She wants to come right away and help me. I tell her there is no hurry, that I can manage for now. I think it best to wait for aid from the government and that the children need her much more than me. Ana begged and implored me not to go outside, to avoid any possible danger, to be patient. She would be back when the circumstances allowed her to. We said goodbye with a kiss, an “I love you”, and a “see you soon”.

A little more relaxed, I focus on the television. The current program does not catch my attention, so I keep changing channels one by one without finding anything on what was going on. The technological possibility of listening to the radio through the television came to mind. I go through the sound systems, stopping to listen for a while, until I find something interesting,

a tired presenter broadcasting a short, repetitive fragment of news. He narrates that everything had started with a strong blinding light of an unknown origin. The presenter ventures off with several hypothesis, none of them confirmed. It could have come from an atomic bomb, something very unlikely, it did not seem like there was any devastation we know comes with that sort of weapon, besides, the country did not have any immediate threats nor motives for any aggression of that kind. Though, it did not rule out some new kind of terrorist attack. Maybe a large meteor entering the atmosphere caused a great flare. Another possibility could be a sort of unknown climatological effect or perhaps some anomaly caused by the sun, like a huge solar eruption. The presenter continued giving basic advice, like warning that venturing out on the street could be dangerous, it was better to stay home, since it was the safest place, and wait for help to arrive.

It seems that I am wisely making the right choices, though waiting in the darkness is so boring and tedious that sleep is getting to me, but, as I fall asleep, I believe this situation that is happening to us could be a good theme for a novel.