Whether we are facing a transition from fully sighted to having some degree of vision loss or if we go through stages of life blind from birth, we may feel dropped into a tailspin. Maybe, we’ve gone from a career that’s kept us active and on the go and now we are experiencing days on end of being more sedentary. Sometimes, surgeries leave us rehabilitating muscles we use during athletic competition; now hours with seemingly less to do stretch out ahead.
Life changes. That’s why today’s tip encourages us to find a hobby and make it our own.I’ve got two big ones outside of writing-physical fitness chess. No matter what curve balls that family circumstances or health or career paths have tossed my way, those two aspects of life have always been there.
You may or may not share in the same hobbies. Perhaps, you’re a reader of sci-fi novels. Staying on top of the latest releases gets you revved up for the day. If you’re a singer, even practicing for hours each day gives you that sense of accomplishment and an outlet where you can pack away the stresses of coping with your new normal for some time.
So finding that hobby helps you in several ways:
It gives you something constant to do while many changes affect you.
A hobby gives you an out where you can step away from many of the stresses that otherwise affect your livelihood.
Through having a hobby, you can gain a needed sense of accomplishment, whether that’s completing a series of novels or cross-stitching projects for your friends.
Then there are those hobbies that may lead you to some new venture in life for supporting yourself or your family. Maybe, doing some form of art gives you a platform for selling your work at a show or community bazaar. Perhaps, you’ve written poetry and friends have encouraged you to publish it for a profit.
One way you may be able to get involved with others in your town or neighborhood who have common interests is finding a Meet Up group. www.meetup.com Your local library will have plenty of groups where you can join others in reading and discussing a book in common.
If going to a new activity with mostly sighted folks makes you uncertain at first, check out your local Center for Independent living. Where I live in Fort Wayne, the League for the Blind offers group support activities and Turnstone gathers like-minded athletes who are physically disabled.
So here’s to you finding or maintaining your hobby or hobbies while boldly navigating life’s contours.
Boldly Blind 