Day 1: A Level Living Field

Wish One: Everyone becomes blind

I think we put too much emphasis into appearances and images.

Magazines tell us how we should look. Organizers of an annual Victoria Secret event claim that there are two billion viewers to their show. A third of the world's population? But these models look nothing like our friends, sisters, spouses and significant others, so why the hype?

The news reports are longer when there are video clips. Thousands die in Africa, but we don't hear about it. Why? No video clips. And if we did have images, viewers would change the channel.

When you look at the outpouring of aid, why did Thailand get a lot, but not nearby New Orleans? As one TV reporter bluntly put it the day after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans was "a sea of black". And then there's the earthquake in Pakistan. What? You didn't hear about that?

Good luck getting into a plane if you're wearing a turban. Good luck getting roadside assistance if you're the object of "yo mama so big" jokes. Good luck catching a cab if you're (fill in the blanks). Our appearances give us advantages and handicaps.

Now if all of us were blind, that would give us a more level living field.

Women can get the job even if their skirts touched the floor. Children could play together because parents wouldn't notice what the other kids looked like. Cosmetic surgeons would lose their jobs.

People would finally feel good about themselves. Because they are accepted for who they are, and not what they look like.

By the way, blindness doesn't have to be the loss of sight. Here's a true story.

Many years ago, in a bank in California, a patron refused to approach the next available teller. She told an assistant manager, "I do not want to be served by that Chinese girl." That teller had been there for many years. This was the first time she had ever been treated this way. She broke down and cried.

The Bank Manager approached the patron and told her in no uncertain terms, "If you refuse to be served by her, we don't need your business." There was a silent cheer among the tellers and bank employees as the woman left.

The supportive tellers actually looked at each other and asked, "She's Chinese? I didn't know." For years, they were blind to the appearance of their colleage. They just didn't care what she looked like. She was their friend, and that was all that mattered.