Brian Schnabel's Head Space
Where Magick and Mind Digitally Interlace.

Misconceptions About Blindness: Why I Stopped Explaining My Life to Strangers

Dealing with people has always been a challenge for me, not because of blindness itself, but because of the misconceptions that surround it. Most people are curious about how I function, how I navigate, how I live my life, but the conversations rarely go anywhere meaningful. The same questions get asked repeatedly, the answers never seem to stick, and the exchange feels more like I’m being treated as a novelty than as a person worth knowing.

For years, I believed that answering these questions would build understanding and bridge the gap between blind and sighted people. I was raised to think that prejudice only existed because people didn’t understand blindness. But experience has taught me something different: most people aren’t asking to learn. They’re asking to fill silence, to satisfy momentary curiosity, or to ease their own discomfort at the idea that life can change in an instant.

The truth is simple: very few people ask questions because the answers will genuinely help them.

Genuine people, the ones who want to understand, who listen, who remember, are rare. And I’ve learned that I don’t need to exhaust myself trying to educate people who aren’t actually interested in learning. Their phrasing, their tone, and their reactions tell me everything I need to know.

So I’ve changed how I interact.

These days, when someone asks a question they don’t really care about, I treat it lightly. If someone asks, “How do you cross a street if you can’t see?” I might say, “Magic,” or “I’m not sure, Google it and tell me what you find.” It keeps things light, it protects my sanity, and it stops the endless loop of meaningless questions. And interestingly enough, once those questions stop, the conversations that follow tend to be more human — the kind that come from actually living a life, not from treating me like a walking FAQ.

Going forward, this is how I interact:

• I don’t explain blindness on demand. If you truly want to know me, you’ll learn more from how I live than from any technical explanation.
• I don’t repeat answers for entertainment. If you didn’t listen the first time, that’s on you.
• I engage with people who display genuine sincerity, curiosity, and respect.

In short: I’m open to meaningful conversation, not performative curiosity.

We all have an existence that goes far beyond the body and its limitations. If you want to get to know me, let’s talk about that; the part of life that actually matters.

Posting that's a little off the trolley at times... Brian is a single Newtonian Gardens Apartments resident, Self-Publishing Author, cPanel WordPress Web Host and Windows 11 powered computer tech. He’s a musician, sailor, hiker, cycler and some women would say, “Magical, too!”