If You Give Me Three Days of Light: The Best Collection of Helen Keller

Chapter 2 If You Give Me Three Days of Light (2)
I don't know how many of us have ever looked closely at the vivid exhibits that are on display in that exciting museum.Of course I must admit that not everyone has such an opportunity.But I would venture to assert that many who have this opportunity do not make good use of it.It's really a place to use your eyes.You who have sight can spend countless fruitful days there, while I have not been so lucky to have only a glimpse of these in the short three days I imagine I can see.

I choose my next stop to be the Metropolitan Museum of Art.Just as the Museum of Natural History reveals the physical makeup of the world, so the Metropolitan Museum of Art will reveal the myriad facets of the human spirit.The urge for artistic expression that has persisted throughout human history is in fact as strong as the human urge to eat, shelter, and reproduce.

In the huge halls of the Metropolitan Museum, we can learn about the spiritual outlook of these countries by looking at the art of Egypt, Greece, and Rome.I used to feel them with my fingertips before, so I was familiar with the statues of ancient Egyptian gods and goddesses, felt the friezes of the reproduced Parthenon, and recognized the melody of the attacking Athenian warriors.Apollo, Venus, and Victory of Samodra are friends at my fingertips.Homer's warped and bearded features were very dear to me, for he knew the blind well.

I have rested my fingertips on the very lifelike marble sculptures carved in Rome and in the later period, I have touched Michelangelo's heart-pounding plaster statue of the heroic Moses, I know Rodin's talent well, and I am familiar with Gothic woodcuts. in awe of the devout spirit.I can understand the meaning of these works of art that can be touched by hand.However, those things that can only be seen but not touched, I can only rely on guesswork to appreciate the beauty that has always eluded me.For example, I can appreciate the simple lines of a Greek vase, but I know nothing of its patterned decoration.So be it, on my second day of seeing, I shall try to explore the human soul through art.What I know from the touch of the hand I can now see with the eye.The whole magnificent world of painting would open before my eyes, whether Italian primitive art with quiet religious piety or modernist art with wild imagination.I want to look closely at the oil paintings of Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, Tissan, Rembrandt, and I want my eyes to enjoy the gorgeous colors of Veronese, and to study the paintings of El Greco. Mysteries, and capture new imaginations from Corot's nature.Ah, the variety of art that has been produced through so many centuries has afforded you sighted ones such beauty and such depth of meaning!
It is a pity that this is only a short visit to this temple of art. I cannot see every detail of the great art world that is open to you who have sight. All I can get is a superficial impression .Artists tell me that anyone who wishes to appreciate art correctly and profoundly must train his eye; he must learn from the experience of judging line, composition, form, and colour.How happy I would be if my eyes could help me, and with what joy I would embark upon this fascinating work of research!But someone told me that for many people who can see the light and have vision, the world of art will always be a boundless night, a world that is difficult to explore and cannot find light.

With mixed feelings, I will reluctantly leave the Metropolitan Museum, the place where the key to discovering beauty is hidden—that is a kind of beauty that has been neglected by everyone.Yet sighted people don't need the Met to find the keys to beauty.It can be found in relatively small museums and even among the books on the shelves of those small libraries.In the finite time I have to imagine being able to see, I shall choose a place where the keys of beauty will unlock the greatest treasures in the shortest time.

I'd choose to spend my second night at the theater or movie theater where I could see.Although I often go to watch various types of performances now, it is a pity that the plot of the performance has to be spelled by an accompanying person on my hand.How I longed to see with my own eyes the enchanting figure of Hamlet, and Falstaff coming and going among the figures in all their Elizabethan costumes.How I longed to imitate every movement of graceful Hamlet, every swagger of stout Falstaff.Due to the limited time, I can only watch one play, which puts me in a dilemma, because there are so many plays that I want to see.You who can see can see whatever you want whenever you want, but I doubt how many of you, when engrossed in a scene, a movie scene, or any other sight, appreciate and thank you from the bottom of your heart for the How about magical vision with colorful colors and graceful movements?
In a world where life is felt through touch, all perception is limited, and I cannot enjoy the beauty of rhythm and movement.Although I know the secrets of rhythm, because I often discern the beat of the syllable from the vibration of the floor, I can only vaguely imagine the charm of Pavlois.I can imagine that rhythmic posture must be the most pleasing spectacle in the world.I deduced from the touch of my fingers following the lines of marble statues that if beauty in motion is so lovely, it must be all the more fascinating and exhilarating to see beauty in motion.

I remember one time, which really stuck with me, when Joseph Jefferson was rehearsing the lovely Rip Van Winkle, and I touched his face and hands while he was moving and delivering his lines.I have only had such poor exposure to the world of drama, and I will never forget the joy of that moment.Ah, I must be missing a lot of things.How I envy you sighted ones who get more enjoyment out of dramatic performances by seeing the action and hearing the lines.If I'm lucky enough to see a play, even just one, I'll have a deep understanding of the character and plot development of a hundred plays that I've read or that have entered my mind through someone else's sign language.

In this way, through the night of the second day when I can see things in my imagination, many tall images in drama literature that I have seen before will appear vividly before my eyes.

On the third day

Until the next dawn, I will meet the rising sun again with the desire to discover a new world, because I am convinced that those who have eyes that can really see will find that every dawn is different The dawn of the day, they are varied and ever-changing.

This was the third and last day I could see, according to how long I imagined being able to see.I really don't have time to complain or long because there is so much to see and I have to hurry.I gave the first day to my friends, to the living and the inanimate, and the second day I saw the historical face of man and nature.So the third day I'm going to spend an ordinary day in the real world, among people going about their daily lives.Come to think of it, where else can one find so much activity and such a variety of situations but New York?So I choose this city as my next stop.

I started from my idyllic country cabin in the woods of Long Island.Surrounded by green lawns, trees, and flowers, the hut is full of women and children talking, laughing, and running around. It is really a quiet resting place for hard-working urban workers.As I drove across the steel belt bridge across the East River, my eyes were opened again to the ingenuity and power of human ingenuity.Thousands of sails compete on the river, and hundreds of boats compete to flow.If only I had a few days to see, I would spend a lot of time admiring the beautiful scenery on the river.

I looked up and saw the magical New York Tower standing in front of me. The city seemed to jump out of the pages of fairy tales.What an awe-inspiring spectacle!Those splendid minarets, those huge banks of steel and stone, these buildings are as if the gods built them for themselves.There are millions of people living in this vibrant picture, but how many people are willing to take a second look at it?Probably very few.

The reason why people's eyes can't see this magnificent spectacle is because they are too familiar with the scene before them.

I was hurrying to the top of one of those massive buildings, the Empire State Building, where I had been before and "saw" the living city beneath me through the eyes of others.I was anxious to compare imagination with reality.I am sure that the picture scroll unfolded before me will never disappoint me, because it is a new world and a new vision for me.

Then I started touring the city.First of all, I stood in a lively corner, just looking at the people passing by, trying to understand some things in their lives from observation.When I see people smiling, I feel great relief; when I see people doing things decisively, I feel great pride; when I see people suffering, I feel compassion.

I wandered down Fifth Avenue, not allowing my vision to be dominated by the word "concentrate," I freed my vision so that I could see the fleeting change of color without noticing something special.I believe that the colors of the women's costumes flowing through the crowd must be a splendid spectacle that I will never tire of seeing.Yet, if my eyes serve me, perhaps I, like most women, give too much attention to the style and cut of individual garments to the splendor of color in groups.I think I will definitely become a person who lingers in front of the window. I will carefully watch those beautiful and colorful commodities and admire them from the bottom of my heart.

I started walking around the city on Fifth Avenue—I was going to see Garden Street, I was going to see the ghetto, I was going to see the factories, I was going to see the parks where the children played.I always keep my eyes open to the joys and sorrows, so that I can deeply explore and further understand how people work and live.My heart is full of longing for people and things, I will not let go of any small things easily, and strive to capture and hold everything in sight.Some scenes are happy and make you feel very happy from the bottom of your heart, but some scenes are sad and make you feel sad and melancholy.For the latter, I will not close my eyes, because they are another way of life. If I close my eyes and pretend to ignore their existence, it is tantamount to closing my heart and imprisoning my thoughts.

My last day of seeing is coming to an end, and it stands to reason that I should spend the remaining few hours on many important explorations and pursuits, but I'm afraid I'm not that rational, and on the night of this last day, I might go to the theater again to see a very funny burlesque; and then I would appreciate why comedy cannot be absent in the world of the human spirit.

At the stroke of midnight, my days of temporary relief from the pain of the blind were over, and darkness fell over me forever.Of course, it was impossible for me to see all the things I wanted to see in those short three days. Only when the night fell again, would I feel that there were too many things I didn't see.But my mind is so full of magnificent memories that I have no time for regrets.From now on, no matter what I touch, I will always recall the way I saw them before. This is a memory that will always be vivid and unforgettable.

If one day, you also unfortunately become a blind person, you may feel inappropriate about my arrangement of how to spend three days of visible time and make your own decision.However, I believe that if you do face that fate, your eyes will open to things you never noticed in the past, storing memories for the long night ahead.You will use your eyes contrary to the old habits, everything you see will become very friendly, your eyes will be sharp to catch anything that comes into your sight, and finally you will see a door Open to you, inside the door is a truly beautiful whole new world.

I, being blind, would like to make a reminder to those of you who have sight, and a piece of advice to those who do not know how to use your eyes: think that you may become blind tomorrow, and you will be well. Use your eyes.This approach can also be used for other functions.By analogy, if you imagine that you may become deaf tomorrow, you will be better able to listen to the sounds around you, such as the crisp chirping of birds and the sonorous melody of an orchestra.If tomorrow your tactile nerves are going to fail, then try your best to touch everything you can touch; if tomorrow you can no longer smell or taste, then try your best to smell the fragrance of all flowers and taste every flower. Take a bite of food.Let every organ play its best role, and they are showing you what the world looks like through various channels.We can experience all kinds of happiness and appreciate all kinds of beauty from it. You should be proud of having such a sensory organ.

But I must also say that among all the organs, I dare to assert that vision is definitely the most worthy of our possession. It intuitively allows us to understand this pleasing world.

(End of this chapter)