Norm: The Whole Story of Living

Being Normal in Commonville was a hard thing for Norm. Norm was not the norm. You see, the people of Commonville were all blindfolded since they were born. Oh, don't feel sorry for these Commoners, for being blinded was Normal. They didn't realize there was a whole world filled with color and fascination. They didn't know that they were missing the whole story of living. They were content to stay in their colorless world of conformity.

Yet, Norm was not like the rest. He couldn't be the same as them because no one put his blindfold on him when he was born. Since the Commoners were blinded themselves, they couldn't see that his blindfold was missing. Therefore, he could see. His eyes gave him access to the vibrant world surrounding Commonville.

As you can imagine, this caused a problem for Norm. While he saw the whole story of living, the people of Commonville only knew a small part of it. When his mom said, "What a juicy, delicious strawberry!" Norm replied, "and so shiny and red!" His mother would scream, "Don't be ridiculous! There's no such thing as red!"

When his dad said, "Ahh, listen to the birds sing", Norm added, "Their wings are as yellow as the sun." His dad would bark, "Stop talking nonsense! A bird's wings can't be like the sun- what's yellow, anyway?" When his friends sang, "Feel the raindrops on your face," Norm sang back, "What beautiful colors arching through the sky!" His friends would laugh, "You're so strange, Norm!" For they had never seen a rainbow.

Because the people of Commonville had never experienced the visual world, Norm was sorely misunderstood. His parents loved him still, but they tried their best to train him to be Normal. They taught him all the proper things to say and do, so as not to stir up any trouble. His teachers scolded him for telling them things they knew nothing about, but he couldn't help it. His sight was a part of him, and he couldn't ignore what he saw.

But after being told so many times to stop being so Abnormal, Norm finally gave in. He found a black scarf and tied it over his eyes, shutting the door to the beautiful world around him. He went through his days like everyone else, never thriving in the life-giving scenery that painted Commonville. He became very ordinary, much to the delight of his fellow Commoners. However, Norm lost a little bit of himself each day he was blinded to the life around him. He was slowly dying. And he would have died if it hadn't been for the itchy feeling in his eyes.

The itch started as a tiny tingle when he heard birds singing. Then, little by little, the tingle grew into stinging when he felt the warm sun on his face or smelled the sweet aroma of the honeysuckle. The stinging grew into an itch so strong, Norm found himself constantly scratching at his black scarf. He knew his eyes were longing to get the whole story of the bird's song, or the sun's warmth, or the honeysuckle's sweetness.

So now, not only was Norm gloomy because he knew he was missing out on a glorious world of vision, but he was becoming angry that he couldn't stop the itch unless he took the risk of being Abnormal and untied his blindfold.

Eventually, his anger drove him out of Commonville, down a lonely road he'd never traveled before. As he furiously scratched at his eyes under the scarf, he suddenly realized the difficulty of going somewhere new without being able to see! Everything he felt, heard, or smelled was not so ordinary and so very strange. While he got a small idea of whatever he encountered, he could not get the whole story. There was so much more he wanted to know. At last, he could resist no longer. He ripped the blinding cloth away from his eyes and entered into that wondrous world of pictures!

Norm was once again not the norm. But what did it matter? He was no longer in Commonville where being blind was Normal. Here, he was free to be different- free to be himself- free to see.

He once again saw the whole story of living. At last, he could see what the yellow-winged bird was singing about. She was chirping the praises of the beautiful, golden sun setting on the horizon and painting hues of purple and pink across the sky. He could finally see the intricate design of the sweet-smelling honeysuckle. Tiny drops of nectar sat upon the tips of each delicate white blossom, sending out messages of life.

Exuberantly feeling complete, Norm greatly desired to share his re-found knowledge with the people of Commonville. He wanted to lift their blindfolds to help them gain sight. He hoped to show them that being Normal caused them to miss what life had to offer. From then on, he dedicated his life to telling the whole story and helping others see it for themselves. He helped them find the sight they had all along but that no one told them about. He lived the whole story of living.