SUDDENLY BLIND

Darkness, nothing but darkness. My heart is pounding so hard, I can hear it in my ears like the beating of a
huge drum.
Panic! Where am I? I stretch my arms out in front of me in search of a familiar texture or object. I am frightened
of where I am stepping. Will there be a step or something to fall over? I feel small and invisible, wobbly
and so alone. I am worried that people will bump into me or that I will fall into this imaginary pit. I am
breathing hard and my mouth is incredibly dry.
I must try to calm down and work out where I am and which way I can go to get help. The darkness is
depressing – it seems to be getting darker every minute. I take a deep breath and now the air feels icily cold.
I shuffle carefully forward, still with my arms out-stretched. My fingertips touch a cold, rough surface. I
pull my arms back in surprise. Hesitantly, I replace my hands to try and work out what it is I have touched.
This rough surface must be a wall ~ I can feel the shape and pattern of the bricks. I am sweating and so
scared. How can I be afraid of something that last week I would have ignored?