Short story of a blind man’s “Master” vision to graduate from college
“The end is simply the beginning of an even longer story.” — Zadie Smith
A month after John Charles Kimbrough celebrated his 8th birthday, “my world went black,” he said.
What followed was seven surgeries by the skilled Johns Hopkins University-trained physicians who were based in Atlanta, GA. Despite multiple exploratory and FDA approved treatments in between his summer of surgeries, the chief physician delivered the news that his retinas were not repairable. It was the aftermath of the damage from John’s tough bout with bacterial meningitis at age 3 months, his infant seizures that placed him on the Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) watch list, and the adult-level medicines he had to ingest to live.
Once his father, Wendell, and I informed John of the outcome, John became unusually quiet. Angled upward by the pillows in his hospital bed and both eyes bandaged from his hours before surgery, John finally spoke after an hour or so.
“Will I be able to go to school?”
Short answer: Yes.
His school journey has been full of logistical challenges involving the juggling of the schedules involving his twin sister, Jocelyn, and big brother, W. Earl. All children, including John, had busy academic, social…
