Sunglasses are a standard accessory on the beach, so it took me a while to realize the man walking toward me wasn't just strolling the ocean's edge with his pet and significant other.
As the trio got closer I realized the dog at the man's right side sported a harness with a metal handle for the man to keep hold of - and that the dog was leading the man rather than the other way around. The female member of the trio held firmly to the man's left arm and was steering him around any unseen obstacles... for it was now obvious to me the man was blind.
Which made me wonder. Just how big does the ocean sound to a blind person.
For those of us gifted with both sight and hearing, even if we close our eyes we still carry with us the visual memory of the ocean stretching off to the horizon. So, with eyes closed and ears filled with the sound of crashing surf, we still "see" the ocean.
But without the visual reference, what mental images come from the sound of the surf? For that mater what feelings does the ocean instill in a blind person? Does the steady pounding of ocean on sand bring tranquility - or is the sound one of tumultuous assault?
It occurs to me that the woman might have been holding the man's arm in reassurance as much as guidance.
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