Cathedral

5/30/07

I have to say that I was a little skeptical to read this story, not knowing what a blind man and a cathedral had in common. I skimmed over it and still didn't think much of it. Finally I sat down with no distractions, and read the short story. The topic was jumping around so much at the beginning, and I was having a hard time following it. I didn't see why this story was so much better than the rest of them in this book, until I read the ending.

I was taken back by this connection between the woman's husband and the blind man. He was clearly uncomfortable around a blind man. I found it strange that the husband kept saying how he had never had a blind man in his house before. I also was taken back by the connection between the wife and the blind man. I think that for two people to have a strong connection is a very rare thing in this world, and for someone with a disability that affected their life so much, this seems even more rare.

My favorite part, to no surprise, was when they were drawing the cathedrals together. I finally understand what Mr. Sexson was talking about when he would say "The cathedral is tall." The world is filled with so many words, and of all languages, English has the most, and that is the work he chooses to describe such a beautiful structure. Or when someone comments on a piece of work saying that it is "interesting". What does that mean anyways? When I think of something I am familiar with that really means something to me, no words come to mind. Sometimes I feel that no word could possible do justice to what I am feeling when I am in the presence of my favorite things. The fact that the husband was so uncomfortable with this blind man being in his house, and being asked on the spot what something as magnificent as a cathedral looks like, I can definitely see where he is coming from.

I loved the end when the man didn't open his eyes right away. He was taken into the blind man's world, and for a second, he saw the beauty of such innocence. He doesn't have to see all of the ugliness in the world today. I am in no way saying this is something I want to experience, but at that moment, I closed my eyes and the feeling was hard to describe. In face, it was interesting, but in such a different way than when I would use the word interesting to describe something else. When the blind man asked him how it looked, the husband said, "It's really something." He didn't want to go back to the world where he can see the lines awkwardly filling the paper, he wanted to see the image in his mind of this beautiful cathedral, that of which would be impossible for him to draw, especially with his eyes closed.