Blind youth

Jamie saw things.

Other people may say that Jamie 'thought' things but he was insistent
about the fact that he saw them. He couldn't predict natural disasters
or foretell the winner of the next Grand National, but he saw things
that other people didn't see.

Jamie saw the goodness in people.

In class if someone did something wrong then Jamie saw why they had
done what they did. He could see inside other people's souls. If the
act had been done maliciously or as an act of cruelty or aggression,
temper or just plain badness then Jamie would be taken deeper into
their subconscious until he could plainly see something good about
them. He had no control over this. It was not a Pollyanna thing where
by he wanted to find something to be glad about. He just saw. Against
his will, against his better judgement and often against his wishes. He
saw.

At home Jamie's 'Gift' often caused tension. Sam, Jamie's twin brother
wasn't gifted in the way that Jamie was. Sam was resentful of this and
often did unkind things to Jamie out of jealousy. But Jamie understood.
Understanding was his cross to bear and it was a cross made of leaden
steel.

Sam had his own special gift; he always saw the bad in others. He
wasn't a likeable child. Perhaps his accursed insight was the reason
why he was so unpleasant. If someone said something nice to Sam, he
always saw what they were really thinking. And it hurt to know that
people could be so unkind. It blackened his heart with the taint of
humanity's soot.

You would be forgiven for thinking that Sam's gift was far worse than
Jamie's but in fact they were both equally difficult. Neither of the
children had balance and each of them only saw their own side of human
nature. Sam became hard and bitter while Jamie had a vulnerability that
left him open to being hurt over and over again.

The boys learned not to wear their difference to everyone else on their
sleeves. They became secretive about their power and although what they
saw remained, they became wise and found that they didn't have to act
on it.

Neither of the boys had any friends. Although they hid as best they
could what was unusual about them, somehow the other kids knew. They
sensed as only children can that these two brothers were different to
everyone else in the school. The boys were thrown together. They didn't
like each other. Jamie saw the good in Sam, but try as he might Sam
could find no badness in Jamie. This angered him as nothing had ever
angered him before. He would have his revenge.

Jamie was twelve when it happened. Sam was only ten. It was Sam's idea,
but Jamie saw the good in it. Sam had intended that only Jamie should
do it, Sam wanted to hurt Jamie. Jamie knew of course what Sam was up
to but he realised that it was something they both must do. The younger
child didn't want to go through with it, but Jamie desperately wanted
to help his brother.

It happened in the tree house. Jamie had to tie Sam up with rope and
gag him to stop him screaming for help. It was much easier than he
thought it would be to take his brothers eyes, and only slightly more
difficult to take his own. Jamie screamed for both of them until help
arrived.

The bandages were removed from the boy's eyes three weeks after the
terrible accident Interminable unwinding of soiled bandages sealed the
tension after the weeks of being bandaged. Their mother seemed to think
that with the healing of the wounds would come the marvellous gift of
sight. Both boys would later be fitted with wonderful modern prosthesis
that apparently, if the doctors could be believed were no different to
real eyes. Apart from the obvious difference that they didn't work of
course. But that's what Jamie wanted. Blessed blindness so that he
wouldn't have to see.

The darkness after the bandages were removed was complete a sheet of
pure blackness without even shadow or shade. Sam screamed and had to be
sedated it was all so bad. Jamie was happy&;#8230;

Until his mother walked into the room and against the sheet of
blackness that was once his sight, he could see her good
intentions.