Author Peggy Holloway

ISLAND OF THE BLIND

One of the very few enlightened people I met, a supervisor, when working on my internship, told me a story that had such a profound effect on me, I just have to share it. I don’t know where he got it, but here it is:

A man crashed his plane on an island inhabited by blind people, who nursed him back to health. The island was very beautiful and, as the pilot was healing, he walked around the island talking about the beauty. There were many varieties of flowers, waterfalls and pools of blue-green water, and white sandy beaches with crystal clear gentle waves coming up on the beach.

The people on the island, who had nursed him back to health, began to believe something was wrong with him. They took him to see ministers, psychologists, psychiatrists, and every kind of counselor and therapist. Finally, he took their hands and put them on his eyes and said, "this is what I see with.”

The “wise” men and women had a meeting and decided that the patient’s eyes were the cause of his delusions. They decided that in order to cure him of these hallucinations and delusions, they would have to cut out his eyes, and so they did.

I think it is important to have tolerance for those who are less enlightened or insightful but just don't let them put your eyes out.

One day while painting a landscape, I decided to put in one of those really high mountains like you see in the Rockies, the ones with snow on top. It was one of those spring days, perfect for painting outside. I was working on the patio, and Confederate Jasmine covered the fence surrounding the patio. While I was putting on the snow with a knife, like icing a cake, I began to think about mountains and mountain hiking. I had hiked up mountains all over the United States when I was in my twenties and thirties.

One thing I always noticed while hiking up a mountain was that the higher you hike, the less growth there is. When you reach tree line, there is no growth at all, just solid rock with maybe some snow on top. As you hike back down you will notice that there is more growth the lower you go. The most growth is in the valley. As soon as the word “growth” entered my mind, it set my thinking off in another direction, that of inner personal growth.

Being on top of the mountain is nice. You can see for miles and miles. You can look down and see where you came from. You can get perspective. In the valley, you can’t see much of anything. Your view is blocked out by the trees. I can remember the times I have been in the valley while going through life’s trials and tribulations and not knowing which way to turn. After going through this valley, when I was able to climb up that mountain, I was always able to look back down and get perspective. I could see where I took the wrong path and I was able to grow from the experience.

I once shared this with a psychologist I was in private practice with, and he said, “What about the journey itself, up and down the mountains? Don’t you think that is as important as being on top or in the valley?” I agreed with him, the journey is the important thing.

We all know that no one has a smooth journey. We have hills and valleys, highs and lows, and it’s the journey itself that is important.

I believe if we keep in mind, that this up and downhill journey we are on is for the purpose of growth, we can be at peace within ourselves and have no need to use any of the distractions invented by man.