The Passenger

The Passenger

The passengers on the bus watched sympathetically as the young blind woman with the white cane made her way carefully up the steps. She paid the driver and, using her hands to feel the location of the seats, walked down the aisle and found the seat he’d told her was empty. Then she settled in, placed her briefcase on her lap and rested her cane against her leg.

It had been a year since Sarah, thirty-four, became blind. Due to a medical misdiagnosis, she had been rendered sightless, and she was suddenly thrown into a world of darkness, anger, frustration and self-pity. Once a fiercely independent woman, Sarah now felt condemned by this twist to become a powerless, helpless burden on everyone around her. But no matter how much she cried or ranted , she knew the painful truth – her sight was never going to return. A cloud of depression hung over Sarah’s once optimistic spirit. Just getting through each day was an exercise in frustration and exhaustion. And all she had to cling to was her husband,Ismaeel.

Ismaeel was a Military officer, and he loved Sarah with all of his heart. When she first lost her sight, he watched her sink into despair and was determined to help his wife gain the strength and confidence she needed to become independent again. Ismaeel’s home background had trained him well to deal with sensitive situations, and yet he knew this was the most difficult battle he would ever face.

Finally, Sarah felt ready to return to teaching, but how would she get there? She used to take the school bus, but was now too frightened to get around the city by herself. Ismaeel volunteered to drive her to work each day, even though they worked at opposite ends of the city. At first, this comforted Sarah and fulfilled Ismaeel’s need to protect his sightless wife who was so insecure about performing the slightest task. Soon, however, Ismaeel realized that this arrangement wasn’t working – it was hectic, and costly. Sarah is going to have to start taking the bus again, he admitted to himself. But just the thought of mentioning it to her made him cringe. She was still so fragile. How would she react?

Just as Ismaeel predicted, Sarah was horrified at the idea of taking the bus again. “I’m blind!” she responded. “How am I supposed to know where I’m going? I feel like you’re abandoning me.” Ismaeel’s heart broke to hear these words, but he knew what had to be done. He promised Sarah that each morning and evening he would ride the bus with her, for as long as it took, until she got the hang of it. And that is exactly what happened.

For two solid weeks, Ismaeel, accompanied Sarah to and from work each day. He taught her how to rely on her other senses, specifically her hearing, to determine where she was and how to adapt to her new environment. He befriended the School bus drivers who could watch out for her, and save her a seat. He made her laugh, even on those not-so-good days when she would trip exiting the bus, or drop her briefcase. Each morning, they made the journey together, and Ismaeel would take a taxi back to his office. Although this routine was even more costly and exhausting than the previous one, Ismaeel knew it was only a matter of time before Sarah would be able to ride the bus on her own. He believed in her, in the Sarah he used to know before she’d lost her sight, who wasn’t afraid of any challenge and who would never, ever quit. Finally, Sarah decided that she was ready to try the trip on her own. Monday morning arrived, and before she left, she threw her arms around Ismaeel, her “temporary bus riding companion”, her husband, and her best friend. Her eyes filled with tears of gratitude for his loyalty, his patience, his love. Now for the first time, they went their separate ways. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday … Each day on her own went perfectly, and Sarah had never felt better. She was doing it! She was going to work all by herself !

On Friday morning, Sarah took the school bus to work as usual. As she was paying for her fare to exit the bus, the driver said, “I sure envy you.” Sarah wasn’t sure if the driver was speaking to her or not. After all, who on earth would ever envy a blind woman who had struggled just to find the courage to live for the past year? Curious, she asked the driver, “Why do you say that you envy me?” The driver responded, “It must feel so good to be taken care of and protected like you are.” Sarah had no idea what the driver was talking about, and asked again, “What do you mean?” The driver answered, “You know, every morning for the past week, a fine looking gentleman in military uniform has been standing across the corner watching you when you get off the bus. He makes sure you cross the street safely, and he watches you until you enter your office building. Then he blows you a kiss, and slowly walks away. You are one fortunate lady.”

Tears of happiness poured down Sarah’s cheeks. For although she couldn’t physically see him, she had always felt Ismaeel’s presence. She was blessed, so blessed, for he had given her a gift more powerful than sight, a gift she didn’t need to see to believe – the gift of love that a husband and wife share- The gift of love that can bring light where there had been darkness.
Author: Unknown