I truly admire the blind.

I was driving down a friend's street today and there was a blind woman with her seeing eye dog walking down the side of the road. I was immediately struck by how gutsy you would have to be/become to live as a blind person. Living downtown, I used to always see people walking through the city with their canes and every time I am in their presence I feel an urge to congratulate them on how brave they are. I don't-- because I don't want them to feel like I'm gawking at them, although they may enjoy the praise. They would be standing next to me at a crosswalk and I would think, would I have the guts to walk into the street if I couldn't see anything? I guess desperate times call for desperate measures, but it just seems like such an impossible feat to me. The obstacles that they tackle every day just trying to make it from one place to another makes me want to give every blind person I see a giant pat on the back. Again, I don't because what blind person wants some stranger on the street touching them... but still. I think that they are just super awesome, and I want to throw them a party and tell them all how cool I think they are. Maybe I shall.