Today is World Braille Day. On this day, the inventor of Braille is put in the spotlight, because this invention enables thousands of visually impaired and blind people to read again.
Braille is a godsend for the blind and visually impaired, but the braille alphabet has now been overtaken by technology.
Elisabeth Smelik from Assen became blind at a later age. She says she has regained her independence a bit by learning Braille.
“In the time that I learned it, it meant that I could find things independently in the house. For example with my clothes. Together with someone I sorted the clothes by color and type. Then on the shelf of my closet is in Braille: ‘blue trousers’ and ‘matching shirts’, or ‘black trousers’ with ‘matching shirts’,” says Smelik.
“Also folders in which I have to look up things, on the outside it says ‘Belastingdienst’ in braille, for example, not the nicest”, jokes Smelik. “In this way I also find all the data about my guide dog.”
Smelik had to learn Braille at a later age. She did eventually read books in Braille. “I sometimes still read to keep up, but I haven’t actually gotten further than books with the level of a twelve-year-old child,” says Smelik with a laugh.
Smelik went blind when the development of the mobile phone suddenly went very fast. “Digitization has made my life so much easier. At first my phone read aloud all the text I encountered, but very quickly Apple developed the possibility of a voice that reads everything I do on the phone.”
“I can do as much with my phone as you, and maybe even more. I just can’t see it, so everything goes by ear. I can see colors with one app. I can send messages with another. The only difference is that I don’t have to type them. You can see how easy it makes life,” she beams.