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Clean Up Your Act: Household Chores and Low Vision
If you were to ask my mother to name one of the happiest days of her life so far, she might tell you, “The day I got married,” “The day my son got married,” or maybe, “The day my daughter got married.” (In my fantasies, she smiles brightly, dabs at her eyes, and replies, “The…
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On the Floor: Blindness & Ballroom Dancing
Dance lessons always begin the same way. I enter the room, walking confidently with my cane and possibly holding the arm of a girlfriend, and we laughingly find our way to a chair or bench, depending on the room’s amenities. We take off our everyday shoes and strap ourselves into Dancing Shoes – high heels…
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Happy Easter, Boys and Girls!
Springtime. Adorable baby chicks. Pastel colors everywhere. The punchy smell of vinegar as Mom prepares the colors for dying eggs. A line of little coffee cups hold the little colored tabs fizzing away. I claim the red one. And the purple. A beribboned Easter dress in shades of pastel pink or lavender, maybe even yellow.…
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Three Turns
I stand up, swinging the heavy bag over one shoulder, unfolding the six sections of the cane with their hearty, reassuring clicks. Mobility is a mess of sensations. “Can you make it?” — it’s the question on others’ lips, but they’re whispering compared to the voice in my head. “Can you make it?” Don’t be…
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“How does it feel?”: Exploring touch and texture
A few years ago, my brother and I were doing a bit of grocery shopping, and, as we wandered through the produce section, he abruptly stopped the cart. Trying to suppress a mischievous laugh, he reached for something on a shelf and said, grinning, “Feel this!” When he put it into my hand, I immediately…
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The curing hymn
After I graduate, I want to audition for a group that brings musicians and artists to hospitals, nursing homes, hospices, and similar facilities. The idea of singing as healing has always appealed to me, much more so than the thought of performing. I don’t feel the urge to be the center of attention onstage where…
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Impossible autonomy
Some days I feel like a substandard ecopoet. I have only walked the UNF Nature Trails twice in my six years’ experience on this campus. Yet each time has brought forth the same conclusions, thoughts that have been steeping awhile and now must be given a voice. The first occasion, according to the dark green…
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The Other Blind Girl
Sitting in the plush theater seats, my friend informs me, “There’s a girl with a cane over there.” And now that I know, I can’t help but hear the determined tapping as she walks down the poorly-planned aisle stair. At first I ignore her, convinced I don’t care, and then I begin to theorize. What…
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Visionary Recipes: A series of kitchen-friendly instructions for aspirational blind cooks!
I have decided to embark on a series of “visionary recipes” – recipes written for cooks with low or no vision. I can’t take all the credit for this idea. I must give credit to my friend Henry, an up-and-coming cook. He asked me for some simple recipes, and, because he’s a) totally blind and…
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Visual curiosity
I am reading an essay for class called “Beholding” that discusses the patterns and ethics of staring. It’s an essay that offers a few different ways to stare at things and people and also proposes a way for the “starees” to look back, to take control of the staring interaction and make something educational, productive,…
About Me
Emily K. Michael is a blind poet, musician, and writing instructor. She serves as the poetry editor for Wordgathering at Syracuse University. She is also a poetry mentor in AWP’s Writer to Writer program. Her work focuses on music, embodiment, teaching, and ecology. Emily is passionate about birds, medieval history, singing, and guide dogs.
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Recent Posts
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