Disability Dialogue with Bill

Bocci Ball for the Blind and All

Has anyone played Bocci Ball before? I had never played it before and received an invitation to play with a few of my family members and graciously and thoughtfully accepted the invitation.

You might wonder why I stated thoughtfully. This is because I am completely blind and walk with the aid of one long white cane for navigation and one support cane for stability. As you might understand I had to plan my strategy to participate and be successful since I did not want the team I was on to lose the game. Plus my main goal was to have fun in the beautiful outdoors and enjoy my new Bocci Ball adventure with my family.

Strategy:

I had my family members explain to me how the game is played and the rules. They also described the four red and four green balls we divided between the two teams we had with four people on each team. There was one smaller white ball, called the jack or pallino. From what I understand from only playing once the goal of the game is to roll your ball and get it closer to the pallino than anyone on the other team without hitting the back end of the court which immediately causes that ball to be a dead ball and is not eligible for any points.

I felt one of the balls to get a feel for the weight and width. I also had a person go to the end of the court and call to me so I could gauge the distance to the end of the court by sound. I could also hear where the borders of the rectangular court were by listening to the people walk up and down the sides of the court which helped me gauge the width of the court. With these sound clues I now had a mental visualization of the layout of the rectangular court.

Time to Participate:

At the start of each game a person would roll out the white ball (pallino). When it was my turn I had a person stand by the pallino and call out to me so I could locate the pallino by memorizing where the voice came from. Standing behind the foul line, I swung my arm back and forth to get a gentle rhythm and focus on the direction I wanted to roll the ball. Once I was ready I rolled the ball towards where I thought the pallino might be. The court was very, very fast so I only had to roll the ball slowly for it to roll down the court and if I planned correctly close to the pallino. I would then listen to the other voices either get excited if I rolled a good ball or hear the cringes or moans if I rolled a poor ball. Luckily I rolled more good balls then poor ones. Also with some astonishment I actually made quite a few points by getting my ball closer to the pallino than anyone on the other team. The team I was on was in the lead most of the time until near the very end when the other team took the lead and won the match.

I Won:

Even though our team lost I felt as if I had won. I felt I had won since I attempted to play instead of taking the easy way out by not trying. I was also pleased because I was able to fully participate in our family fun.

Do any of you enjoy experiencing new activities? What did you learn from participating in new activities to overcome what seems like obstacles to experience joy and inclusion? Does anyone have examples of when you had the chance to experience new activities life has to offer and you chose to participate instead of sitting on the sideline.

I look forward to hearing your valuable thoughts and comments.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author,

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton

Paralympics: Demonstrating Full Potential & Reinvention

Did anyone get the opportunity to attend, participate, watch or listen to the 2012 London Paralympics Games?

I know there were many outstanding individuals participating in this world class event. I want to share a story about one of the participants, Alex Zanardi, who, after becoming a double-amputee during a horrific race car crash was able to win a medal at the 2012 Paralympics Games.

What inspired me about Alex Zanardi is his attitude to reinvent himself to continue to pursue his dreams, despite any obstacles which he had to overcome.

Learn about Alex Zanardi in Fox News: Double-amputee Alex Zanardi hopes to race in 2013 Indy 500.

Another excellent example of a medal winner at the 2012 Paralympics Games is Vincent Boury. Vincent won the medal in Table Tennis. 

Having the privilege to know Vincent Boury, I enjoy his enthusiasm for life, willingness to help others and his competitiveness, despite his perceived challenges.

Does anyone want to share their thoughts after reading about Alex Zanardi and Vincent Boury? Does anyone want to share their experience with the Paralympics games? If you attended, participated or know somebody who was able to compete, what did you learn? If you participated, do you have any tips for others who may want to compete in a future event?  

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and comments.

Bill Tipton

Contributing Author

Global Dialogue Center

http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wdtipton

Facebook: http://profile.to/wdtipton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/wdtipton 

4 Square Without Eyesight

Recently I had the opportunity to play a game I had not played since elementary school called four square.

One difference from the last time I played this game is I am now completely blind and need two canes to walk safely. I am also about 35-40 years older than the last time I played

I am not sure if they play this game called four square in other countries? If so, maybe it is called something different.

How I Was Given this Opportunity to Challenge my Senses
I was at a recent family gathering enjoying everyone’s company and cheerful conversation. I walked out to the driveway to ask one of my cousins a question when I heard the laughing and the bouncing rubber ball near by. These sounds caught my attention with curiosity and wonderment. Thoughts raced through my mind wondering if I could play this game with no eyesight.

Soon my nieces, great nieces and great nephews asked me to join them in the game. At first thought I imagined how I might be able to play without any eyesight, and wondered if I should attempt to try this.

To play this game there are four squares on the ground. These squares are usually drawn on the ground with chalk. Each of the four people in the game stands in their own square. The goal is when the ball comes into your square you are to hit the rubber ball into another person’s square. The person who misses the ball or overshoots another person’s square looses that game.

I thought to myself why not give this new challenge and experience a try.

I folded up my long white cane and put it into its holder and fastened it to my belt. I folded up my white support cane and partially stuck it down the back of my pants to secure it since I only had one cane holder. I could have set my support cane aside while I played, but I wanted my support cane for emergencies in case I started to fall or get unsteady standing and moving around in my square with no canes.

With the help of the others in the game letting me know where my square was, I positioned myself into the center of my square. Then I heard the sound of hands hitting the rubber ball. Immediately after I herd the hands of another player hit the ball I heard a different tone as the ball struck and bounced off the ground. I stood there crouched down ready to turn in any direction quickly to try to hit the ball. I imagined the rubber ball being brick red in color since that is what I remembered the color was when I last played. I listened intently as I tried to follow the ball’s sound as it bounced from square to square and from person to person wondering when it would come into my square. I was intensely concentrating on the sound of the ball hitting the ground. Soon I could distinguish the different sounds of the ball hitting the ground depending on what angle, direction and speed the ball hit the ground. After a bit, once I got into a rhythm, I imagined in my minds eye the compression of the rubber ball as it bounced off the ground. With more compression I could gauge that the ball would be traveling faster. From the sound the ball made I could hear if the ball was going towards me and would bounce in my square. If the ball did bounce in my square I would gently time my attempt to hit the ball based on my methods of gauging the speed and location of the ball from my auditory observations. When I would make hand contact with the bouncing ball I would hit the ball towards another persons square. After a few successes, I was having a great deal of fun! I was amazed I actually was hitting the ball! I was very glad I tried to play the game instead of sitting out and never knowing if I would succeed, or fail. I played the game with eagerness and joy for quite a while. I eventually stopped when I could no longer concentrate intensely enough to follow the bouncing ball accurately.
To read about another of my recreational firsts, read Hitting a Softball without Sight.

Has anyone else ever tried something they were not sure they could accomplish? If so, how did you feel after you decided to try the unknown instead of sitting on the sideline and missing your opportunity to extend yourself? Even if you did not succeed, how did you feel after making the attempt? Not succeeding in my opinion is better than not trying; depending on if not succeeding will cause you or anyone else physical harm.

We all look forward to hearing your thoughts and comments.

Bill Tipton
Contributing Author
Global Dialogue Center
http://www.globaldialoguecenter.com/