In the early 1990's I was working on Summer Camp Staff out at Camp Edgewood Boy Scout Camp. Camp is where I first met Tod.
I was walking into the staff area when I noticed a staff member with red hair standing on a metal spring cot in the middle of the staff area. There were two or three similar cots nearby. The red headed staff member appeared to be surfing on the cots. It is important to note that there was no one else around.
I quickly joined this guy and we were soon both surfing on the metal cots, singing "Let's Go Surfing Now" as loud as we could. We surfed the cots, bouncing back and forth, and occasionally wiping out for the next 10 plus minutes. A friendship was born. That is how I met Tod who would later be known to me as Tod with one d from Leesville.
At camp we use to have a staff night out. One half of the staff got Wednesday night off and the other had Thursday night off. On one of these nights Tod, Chris, Abe, and myself all went out to the bowling alley in Lake Charles.
On this particular night as we were bowling we were pleased to note some attractive young women bowling in the lane next to ours. Abe had wandered off so it was just Tod, Chris and I. Tod quickly struck up a conversation with these women and we were making good progress.
Tod explained that we worked on Summer Camp staff at Alligator Lake and that we were all lifeguards. The story spiraled out of control from there with Chris and I adding to the story. Then Abe showed up and decided to throw a wrench in our plans when he said at the top of his voice, "I thought you guys worked at Boy Scout Camp!" (Busted.) Of course we tried to pass Abe off as a Counselor in Training who was always trying to cause us trouble. Needless to say we did not get any phone numbers that night.
Back in those days Tod was always a character who was ready with a good story or a one liner for comic relief.
In later life Tod moved out of state. We stayed in touch off and on by phone and facebook.
As I settled down to watch "Driving Blind" my mind wandered to these memories of Tod and I wondered what I was in for in this documentary. Tod had told me that he and his brother both had a genetic disease called Choroideremia.which caused blindness. It should be noted that I had never met Tod's brother.
"Driving Blind" is a visual extravaganza. It made me really think about the things I see every day and take for granted like the look of a city skyline, the beauty of a waterfall, and the wonder of something as simple as pine needles.
It also made me think about some things I never want to see again like Tod's naked butt. (Sorry, nothing personal.)
While enjoying the visual beauty of the film it touched a deep nerve, a realization that we are all just one step away from calamity. At the same time how Tod and Justin handled this calamity that fell on them so unexpected was an inspiration to me as it should be to all of us.
I could see how easy it would be to curl up and give up but Tod and Justin attacked the disease head on and in doing so turned a negative into a positive. "Driving Blind" is not just about two brothers driving around the country seeing things they want to see before they go blind. It's about two brothers growing closer together, their friends supporting them, and a drive to turn their calamity into something good. It's about raising awareness of a disease that so few know about, it's about helping others, it's about "Driving Blind" so others won't have to.
The documentary asked repeatedly, "If you were going blind what would be the last thing you would want to see?" I thought of all the things that I would want to see last and I decided. I would want to see people just like Tod and Justin doing exactly what they did in "Driving Blind," never giving up, showing courage in the face of adversity, and showing a deep love and respect for others.
Everyone should watch "Driving Blind." Open your eyes up and you just might find you have been "Driving Blind."
For more information on "Driving Blind" click here.
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