- Julie Woods from NZ grew up with her sight but by 31 she was legally blind.
- The mother-of-two can see only moving shapes and high contrast shadows
- But she doesn’t let this rule her life – she’s found love, learned braille, refereed a game of nude touch rugby, and travelled to 60 countries
Here she shares her story in her own words.
Breathing in fragrances of lime and salt, my senses were piqued.
Sipping on cool water in the searing Mexican midday heat, I heard loads of lovely people speaking in Spanish.
Walking hand-in-hand with my partner Ron, then 69, I felt utter bliss.
It was October 2014, and we were visiting Chichén Itzá – a colossal pyramid in Mexico.
Aged 48, I’d been blind for 17 years and, although I couldn’t see my surroundings, I felt present in this new environment.
Travelling the world is everything, even if you’re blind! I thought.
Growing up, I’d had my sight.
Then, in my uni days, I’d been left partially sighted by a juvenile form of macular degeneration.
In late 1996, when I was 31, I was in the bathroom when the floor suddenly blurred.
After that my vision quickly declined.
‘I felt terrified.’
Visiting the eye doctor, I was diagnosed with inflammation of the retina.
‘You’re legally blind,’ he told me gently.
I felt terrified.
How will I properly mother my children? I fretted, thinking of my boys Zachary, then four, and Sebastian, two.
By March 1997 my world was almost complete darkness.
All I could see was moving shapes and high contrast shadows.
My then husband and small boys were so helpful as I adjusted.
Sadly, my marriage broke down in June 2001.
Being a blind single mum had its challenges, but I was determined to be resilient.
Wanting to make the most of life, I was ready to say ‘why not!’ to anything.
So when I was asked in 2003 to be a Braille Literacy Coordinator at Blind Low Vision NZ, I said, ‘Why not!’
Then, offered a volunteer role in 2004 to referee a game of nude touch rugby… I again said, ‘Why not!’
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A guy who owned a tour company called Bottom Bus organised it – a bit of fun with uni students keen for a cackle and some rugby, while raising funds for Blind Low Vision NZ.
Blowing the ref’s whistle, I used my hearing to follow the action on the field.
‘Turnover!’ I’d shout, as they frolicked in the buff.
In 2005, I was receiving help at Workbridge – an organisation supporting disabled people in Dunedin, NZ, where I live – when I met Ron.
‘Sparks were flying.’
We shared a bond, and over time sparks flew.
By then I’d learned braille, a system where blind people can read by touch.
We love you, Mum, my boys often wrote to me in braille.
And it wasn’t the only affection in my life.
‘I’m in love with you,’ Ron confessed one day.
‘I love you back,’ I smiled.
I could make out some of his handsome features with the five per cent vision I had left, but his soul was what I truly fell for.
Eventually, I lost what bit remained of my vision in 2008, when I got uveitis in both eyes.
By then I knew tricks for getting about my day using smell, touch, sounds and taste.
‘Ron asked me to travel the world with him.’
My senses were heightened, giving me a new way of seeing – creating a vision in my mind’s eye.
That same year, Ron asked me if I’d like to travel the world with him.
‘Why not!’ I beamed.
Flying to Paris, France, in January 2009 in celebration of Louis Braille – the Frenchman who invented braille – I was smitten with the city as I sang ‘Happy birthday, Louis!’ at the top of the Eiffel Tower.
Travelling to Petra, Jordan, after that, the surroundings enveloped me as I smelled horses and tasted delicious fried fish.
What an experience, I thought, besotted with this place, one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
Returning home, we thought about visiting the other six wonders.
And that’s exactly what we did!
But before we set off, Ron proposed in mid 2010 and I was thrilled.
Tying the knot in front of my boys and loved ones in January 2011 was wonderful.
In August that year, Ron and I took the boys, then 18 and 16, to China where we saw the Great Wall.
There, I relished the scent of jasmine tea and the taste of crumbed squid.
In September 2012, I visited the Colosseum in Rome, Italy, and devoured tasty margherita pizza.
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In October the next year, we were at the Taj Mahal in India, where I inhaled the woody notes of incense.
Visiting the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2014, I enjoyed the smell of red wine and the sound of tourists taking pictures.
And in Machu Picchu, Peru, I took in the smell of cigar smoke and felt the dry stone walls of the Inca citadel.
Our final wonder, Chichén Itzá in Mexico, was also thrilling.
We’ve now visited 58 countries – and counting!
As I travel I write diary entries in braille, with details of what I feel, smell, hear and taste.
‘I’m making the most of life!’
My boys, now 32 and 30, are so happy I’m making the most of life.
And I’m so proud of them too.
My next adventures with Ron will be in Malaysia and Taiwan this year – it’ll be my 60th country before turning 60!
Wanting to inspire others, I’ve done work as a life coach, fundraiser, and motivational speaker.
Just because I lost my sight, doesn’t mean I’ve lost the ability to truly live.
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