As you know by now, I have lot of stories. I would not presume to consider myself a raconteur, but I rarely give a talk or teach a lesson without some type of personal story to apply to the principle I am communicating. Some stories lend themselves to many lessons, some are more specific.
Once in a while I will have an experience, or hear about something that makes for a good story – but then when I try to figure out how it applies to my life and the gospel, I am left with nothing. This is one of those stories…
A few years back, my EC an I took a vacation to San Francisco in full tourist mode. From the airport we took a shared shuttle to save money. We loaded up our luggage and climbed in with the other half-dozen passengers, gave the driver our destination, and off we went. I must tell you wherever we go, whenever we go, every single time we use a shared shuttle, we are ALWAYS the last stop. Always. This would be no exception.
As we made stop after stop, there were only three passengers left: Me, my EC, and an elderly gentleman seated in the front row, right behind the driver. I had noticed when we boarded that he had a white cane with a red tip, and that he wore dark glasses on a cloudy day – he was blind.
Of course he would be dropped off before us (why break our streak?) but this time I was glad, because it became interesting. Now this was a few years back, before everyone had iPhones and every car had navigation. The driver would find a way by using a map or a radio to get directions.
The driver asked the blind man for the address, which the man furnished. The driver was not familiar with it. The blind man then chimed in, “I can get you there. Are we on Van Ness?” The driver replied with a hint of surprise, “Yes we are.” (The street names may or may not be accurate, it was a while ago)
I was impressed. The blind man then said, “Just follow Van Ness until you can turn right on Broadway, then go over to Hyde.” The driver followed the directions with the blind man guiding him up the hill. As we made the last turn, he said to the driver, “Take the next right. There should be a big stone wall right in front of you.”
There was a big stone wall in front of us.
“Now turn left and follow the wall until you get to the first house. That’s me.” The driver followed the instructions exactly, pulled to the curb, and slid the door open. The blind man got out, paid the driver, and with cane in hand, headed up the stairs to his home.
For the next few minutes I quietly sat thinking about what I had just seen. It was remarkable.
—–
That’s the end of the story, but I need a message, or moral to link to it. So I am turning to you.
How can this story be applied? What principles did it teach? Did anything jump out at you? As my loyal readers, it is time for you to give back – Please take a minute and think about how this story could be useful. Now, I don’t want to hear obvious stuff like “Handicapped people deserve respect” or weird stuff like “The blind man represented messengers from Kolob and the driver was the anti-Christ.” I just need your help in figuring out how to make this story applicable to something.
Please submit your ideas as a comment. I will pick my favorite tomorrow, and I will feature the winner on the post.
Thanks for your assistance!
I skimmed the comments and I am fairly certain I can add a fresh idea:
Marriage.
The Shuttle Driver and the Blind Person were partners in reaching a destination just as a Husband and Wife are partners in reaching the celestial kingdom.
I was impressed that the blind man did not have to ask the driver what street they were on–he asked to verify the map in his mind, but also to build trust in the driver that he was capable in his responsibility to get to the destination. It established that the relationship was equally yoked. The driver had the responsibility to drive and the blind man had the responsibility to navigate. Both worked together in their separate responsibilities and trusted and relied on their partner.
Sometimes Husbands and Wives have a hard time figuring out what they should be doing to help move them forward to their goal in attaining the celestial kingdom. (Who is the driver and who is the navigator?) Sometimes we don’t feel equally yoked. Sometimes we feel disabled in someway and forget that we are designed with weakness so we can turn to God and be made strong. Heavenly Father designed us to be married and to return to Him with a partner, a help meet.
I think the reason why I relate to this story so well is because my husband and I work so hard to be married. I don’t think our roles are set in stone either. Sometimes I am the blind one navigating and he is the driver and sometimes I am the driver and he is the blind navigator. The blind man didn’t blame the shuttle driver for not knowing the way. He didn’t give up and leave the shuttle. The shuttle driver didn’t kick him out or tell him to find a shuttle driver that knew the way. They both had faith that they could get to the destination and allowed for the contribution from their partner and accepted the weakness of the partner.
I’ll be honest. I didn’t read ALL of the comments, so if this is a repeat idea, then I’m sorry. What jumped out at me was that we are all children of our Heavenly Father and it’s not up to us to judge others. Sometimes the one who would seem to know the least about something is actually the best one for the job. So yeah. A general “The Lord looketh on the heart” or “sustain your leaders” type of thing.
I like pres packer’s comment that if he were stranded on a deserted island and could only bring one thing, he bring the spirit. The driver had other means to get him to the location. He could have stumbled or found it very easily with his tools, but he noticed his weakness and asked for help, then followed. He excersiced faith by asking then excercised faith by following. The blind man could be analogous to the spirit, quiet and simply guiding if only we ask. Sometime pride can rule us from the start by using our tools or once we get started stop listening and drive by our own instincts.
B
If you have to travel down Broadway in S.F. to get home everyday, maybe being blind isn’t such a bad thing (eternal perspectively speaking).
Reading this scripture reminded me of your post: “I am in your midst and ye cannot see me” (Doctrine & Covenants 38:7)
Many times I believe that our “abilities” really become our disabilities…when we rely to heavily on the arm of flesh.
But if we can let go, and rely on our spiritual senses, the path becomes clear and uncluttered by the world that we CAN see.
(I read that scripture on this post today: http://www.johnseight.blogspot.com/2012/01/you-are-not-alone.html)
Wow, good comments! I’m printing them all off so I can use them in a future talk. Thanks for sharing MMM and everyone!
If you know where you are going,(temporally or spiritually) don’t doubt the route regardless of how many eyebrows it may raise.
We all have hidden talents.
What a wonderful thing to witness on that journey. Very memorable.
Every moral I came up with someone has already beat me to it. They’ve all been good. But I did finally come up with something, and I think because whenever we travel and have to take a shuttle bus or a shared taxi or anything of that sort, we are always last to be dropped off, too. And so I began to think about how I feel at the end of one of those rides.
I think this can be a powerful story for the spectators (aka you and your EC). What a privilege to be the last ones dropped off. To be able to see where everyone else went (think of us in the latter-days and those that went before us leaving their paths and stories for us through journals and scriptures). Perhaps you saw how someone dropped their luggage as they were getting it out of the vehicle, or maybe someone tripped, or someone forgot their cell phone. Those were teaching moments for you, if you were paying attention, for things not to do as you exit yourself. You were able to see the bravery that this blind man had to learn where he was going and to be able to confidently tell others how to get there. You were able to witness that ultimate “blind faith.” I too think that this can be more than just about the blind man. Its more about your journey. Its about being the last ones. You have more responsibility and accountability, because you know more and you saw more than the rest; and you should learn from their examples and mistakes. Being in the last days means that we were probably among the most brave in the pre-existence and we were blessed with the great opportunity to come to earth in a dispensation where the gospel has been restored. Lets not take that for granted.
I too, always teach or give talks with personal stories. I learn better when people share them with me, so I feel that I can get my message across best with them too. It’s one of my favorite parts of a talk or lesson to plan.
The best I can come up with is kind of along the lines of a lot of the other comments:
To some extent, most of us are living life on some sort of “blind” faith (the concept of blind faith itself though, is arguable–see R. Conrad Schultz’s 2002 talk, “Faith Obedience”). I guess what I’m saying is that, although we do not necessarily follow COMPLETELY “blindly,”–we cannot see everything, we are not omniscient. We are the blind man.
However, we have other senses to follow, such as the light of Christ and the Holy Ghost. We don’t have to physically see where we are going to know we’re in the right direction and make it home.
That IS a tough one.
In the land of the blind the one eyed man is king.
Ditto Bossy….. MMM and EC are an integral part of the story.
It’s about faith … the bus driver following the directions of the one who knew the way. The blind man was sure, this isn’t about him. It was about the faith of the one who was driving. How many times do we get in the drivers seat and try to forge our own way? We doubt the person giving the direction because we think there is no way they can “see” for us … I know that so many times in my own life I have the directions, but I choose not to listen because I think I know more than the one who is giving them.
Sorry if other people came up with this idea all ready–I did not read all the comments.
How well do you know your way home (to your heavenly home)?
Well enough that you would immediately know where you were and continue your journey if placed anywhere on the path?
Well enough to guide and direct someone else home with you?
Well enough to do each of the above if you lost your sight, or another sense, or the borrowed light of a trusted friend/companion, or temporarily misplaced your only copy of the scriptures, or the ability to go to church on Sundays, or suddenly faced new temptations or obstacles in your path?
There has been a lot of focus on the blind man and his role in the story. But what about MM and his wife?
Be still and quiet and the lord will reveal miracles.
Kira
I don’t know if anyone has said this yet, but you could also think of the driver as humans during our earthly life. The blind man was Christ, and although it appeared he was handicapped (“this blind man has no way of knowing where he’s going,” or “I don’t need to listen to what God has to say, he doesn’t understand my life”) But, because the driver listened to the blind man (Jesus) he was able to safely and efficiently get where he needed to go. If we listen to Christ, we can make it safely home to our Heavenly Father. It may not always seem like He knows where we’re going, or the blind man knows where he is, but if we put our full trust in Christ, he will lead us safely home. I hope that made sence. 🙂
I really thought Kathryn’s, Katie’s, and Cheryl’s comments hit the nail(s -because there’s more than one lesson/symbolism that can be made from this story) on the head.
What a great thing to witness and be a part of.
p.s. thanks for making that addition to your blog.
That’s a good analogy too Amber.
how about this. this is about the circle of Service. we are, each in our turn, the driver or the blind. the driver both gave and received help and so did the Blind man. in whatever walk of life or circle of influence we live in we are receiving or giving service. the most important thing is to not break the circle. that, and that simple exchange of faith brings hope to unhappy hearts.
I loved reading everyone’s ideas!
Perhaps you won’t find the moral to your story until you are in a situation that truly needs it. Then the Spirit will prompt you to “remember that time in San Francisco…” with the moral right there in front of you, perfectly adapted to the situation at hand!
Sometimes we come to conclusions about people by just what we see. A man with a white cane and dark glasses is blind, that girl with the dreadlocks and tatoos is a drug addict, that big guy on the motorcycle with the beard and leather jacket is a bully. Whatever, it may be on the outside, doesn’t really tell the story of what the person is like on the inside or what the person knows. Only God knows the persons heart and what they are capable of doing.
I remember encountering people on my mission who believed we had nothing to offer because of our relatively young age. (“Elder?” they would say. “Elder than WHO?” Har-har.) Occasionally I would get the opportunity to explain to someone that, no we hadn’t gained AS MANY life experiences as some, but we had gained different experiences. And those experiences gave us uncommon knowledge and purpose. People who refused to listen remained lost. But we felt great joy when a person would look past our apparent shortcoming and accept the message we were so eager to share, leading them ‘home’.
The man not only knew the way, he knew the driver’s language and how to direct him to the destination. He used street names and gave directions when they were needed (step by step) instead of using his perceptions and saying, “Turn right after the 3rd dip and before the pothole on the left side, and go right when you smell bread but before you smell chinese. Then after a clank you’ll need to put on the brakes, hang a left and drive for 8 seconds before letting me out.”
LIVING prophets speak our language and help us interpret scriptures and principles written in a language we don’t understand spiritually and sometimes intellectually. After all, horseless carriages, trains, planes and telephones not to mention video chats would have been foreign concepts but thanks to amazing insights from latter day general authorities we can still glean incredible knowledge from Revelations!
I guess the blind can lead the blind….I knew it.
Everybody loves Katie’s comment so I just wanted to stake a claim and announce that she is my sister-in-law and we have awesome gospel discussions via email all. the. time.
My first thought was that most likely this man had worked with a coach who had gone out with him for several days going over routes he would take and what landmarks were around him.
Our view of life is limited our vision of eternity is poor, but we have prophets who have mapped out the way for us. There is a particular path to follow that will lead us safely home. We can be completely sure of our way and confident of the path we have to follow because we are following Christ.
Moral: sometimes blind faith is the answer.
My thoughts were the same as Katie’s.
=)
Love these stories.
A few “applications”:
1. Liahona (vs. Iron Rod, unless you count the cane as the moveable iron rod…) —
2. Light of Christ: we can know our way home without seeing it clearly.
3. The value of studying something out in our own mind; clearly the blind gentleman had made this trip before — either he had seen it or someone had described it to him and he paid attention to what he learned.
Now, if it were LA, I’d suggest maybe the fellow wasn’t blind, but an actor preparing for a role, but that would make me sound cynical…
Perhaps the man was not always blind. He knew his way because he had some years before he lost his sight to learn the streets and the landmarks. When he was tried and tested with adversity, he had the foundation of knowledge and experience he needed to step out in faith and find his way–and lead others through the twists and turns and obstacles (stone wall) as well.
Uh…what Katie Richins said. Very cool story.
How often do we ‘have eyes, but will not see’ and ‘ears, but will not hear’? Sometimes our senses get in the way of seeing the miracles and hearing the word of God.
We would all be better served by turning off our worldly senses and relying on the spirit to guide us back home.
I think it is quite remarkable that you were able to witness this phenomenon and recognized it as a lesson to be learned instead of feeling grumpy that you were not be delivered quickly to your destination.
Well, there’s the whole PAUL thing! Acts 9.
Or John 9:39. Or 2 Corinthians 5:7.
(And San Fransisco isn’t easy to navigate, either!!)
JWW
I think there are things we can’t do on our own. We need to work together to reach the goal. We each have a part to give and we have to trust the other person to do their part too.
I love the trust the driver displayed in following the man’s directions despite what reason might tell him.. (“this man is blind…surely he can’t REALLY know where I need to go”). But this was the blind man’s turf. He KNEW how to get there. And the driver showed a bit of faith in that respect– and I think sometimes when the prophet or other leaders give us instructions where we may think.. “Are you *sure* about this? Are you *sure* you know where *I* am in my life to be giving me directions?”… but we need to remember that he *knows* this spiritual turf and we can trust that he knows where he’s leading us.
wow. that got long and not well-stated at all… but what a cool story.
I like Katie’s.
Following the Spirit gets us Home. Just like the blind man knew which way to go, if we follow the Spirit…you know…
or
Yeah, I got nothin’. I like Katie’s. Did I already say that?
[And San Francisco is my favorite city! We lived in the Bay Area for a year and we miss it a lot.]
Okay, maybe this is an obvious one but I like the idea that this man didn’t need to see where he was going to know he was going home. We don’t have to see every little thing on our life journey to know we are trying to get home to kolob…. wait…I can’t use that….OK so eternal life. We know the way-thru specific ordinances and being the best we can be…the rest requires faith..and maybe a little blind faith..
Blind people are cool?
Yep, the blind man knew his way home, even though he couldn’t “see” exactly where he was going. He had confidence that he knew the path. And he did. Not only well enough for him to get home, but for him to help guide other people there. And, of course, home is returning to live with Heavenly Father.
Well I guess my Kolob/anti-Christ idea is out..
I feel like I am reaching a bit, but here’s what I thought: That man knew where he was going because it was so familiar to him. Likewise, if we immerse ourselves in the gospel so that it becomes just as familiar to us, we will most definitely be able to find our way back to the presence of Heavenly Father, and even help others along who don’t know the way so well.