soaring crane Posted April 3, 2010 Hey Bums, Remember asking each other this, and arguing the point adamantly in the seventh grade or so? Well, I'm just curious how the Bums would react to a forced choice either losing their vision or hearing, permanently. Which would you give up, and likewise keep, and why? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marblehead Posted April 3, 2010 (edited) Which would you give up, and likewise keep, and why? I would have to give up my hearing although I would dearly miss my music. Reason is that still having sight I can still be very independent, go places and do things on my own. Peace & Love! Edited April 3, 2010 by Marblehead Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aetherous Posted April 4, 2010 I would do the opposite, because someone needs to hear the music and I also like to be dependent on others. I think it's also better for your energy. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
soaring crane Posted April 4, 2010 At the moment of having to choose, I would probably get scared and give up my ears. But when I meditate on the two possibilites, I keep coming back to the more fundamental, animalistic, nature of hearing and think it be more difficult to get through life without it. The deaf people I've encountered seem more frustrated by their difficulties in communication than the blind people who have to deal with physical obstacles. People who are born blind seem to adapt in incredible ways. They can feel color, they can hear space. There was a short report on TV here about a blind man who navigates his way through the world with echolocation, same as bats. He came riding up a path in the woods on a bicycle and stopped right in front of the camera crew. Blind, on a bicycle, on a winding path through the woods. He constantly makes a small "cluck cluck" sound and can "see" the echo in 3D inside hes head. When I went to school in Munich and rode the U-Bahn a lot, I was amazed by the blind people who would come walking along with their sticks, tip tip tip, gabbing with each other nonchalantly and stopping right at the spot where the train would stop. They knew before the trains stopped where the doors would be and they were often the first ones to get on. Hearing is our first real contact with the world outside. The ears are very active in the womb and pick up everything going on outside of Mama. The eyes are there, but if they see anything, it's just black. We can close the eyes, but we can't close the ears - sleeping deaf in a cave could be a death warrant for our ancestors. So, yeah, I'm sure that if really faced with the horrible choices, I'd still be more afraid of loosing my vision, but then maybe after a few years, I regret the choice. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
