The Land of the Blind

Lately, several of my friends have been getting cataract surgery. When I was in my mid sixties, I personally had my cataracts corrected with premium lens implant surgery. It made a drastic difference in my eyesight and brought my vision back to 20/20.  And it made my life fuller and more enjoyable.

Now before you stop reading this post because you feel it’s only for old guys, consider this: Nearly all people will develop cataracts if they live long enough, as they are a nearly inevitable part of the aging process. By age 75, roughly half of Americans have cataracts, and by age 80, the majority have them or have had cataract surgery. Cataracts represent a natural clouding of the eye’s lens over time. If this is news to you, please don’t shoot the messenger!

This morning, as I was thinking about vision and blindness, a famous fable came to mind. Its origin goes back at least as far as the 16th-century with a parable of sorts that In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king. It was attributed to Desiderius Erasmus and meant to communicate that a person with limited ability holds power over those with none.

In the early 20th-century, the famous writer, H. G. Wells, who is considered the “father of science fiction” for pioneering works that imagined time travel (The Time Machine), alien invasions (The War of the Worlds), and futuristic technology (The Invisible Man) also wrote a short-story version of the fable (The Country of the Blind).

In H.G. Wells’ The Country of the Blind, a mountaineer named Nuñez falls into a secluded valley where all residents have been blind for generations. Expecting to easily rule with his sight, Nuñez finds that the villagers, with their highly evolved other senses, consider his explanations of “sight” as signs of insanity, not a superior skill. Rather than a tale of easy conquest, it often shows that a “one-eyed” leader may be misunderstood, rejected, or forced to conform (or maybe even lose their sight—in the story, they considered cutting Nuñez’ eyes out to make him conform) —because his “truth” contradicted the deeply held beliefs of the “blind” community.

Have you ever considered that the most important vision system of a human being is not actually your physical eyes? Have you ever thought that although being physically blind is a very, very significant obstacle that presents many challenges, you can be physically blind and still live relatively well? But what about spiritual blindness? Can a person be spiritually blind and live well?

I personally can identify to some degree with the one-eyed man in The country of the Blind. But I can also identify with the blind people in the story. Before I came to trust in Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord I was spiritually blind—and I didn’t really trust the vision or ways of some religious people around me. But after I trusted in Him I could see for myself. As if for the first time, my eyes had finally been opened, and I could choose truth over blind conformity.

After that fateful day when my eyes were opened, I had a deep desire to use my vision to seek to know God better and to find purpose and mission in my new life. I’m reminded of a Christian worship song, Open the Eyes of My Heart. But I think I could add, “Fill the eyes of my heart.”—as Paul encourages us in Ephesians 1:18-19, “having the eyes of our hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might.”

Could it be that some people are blind to their blindness? I was. Does it make sense that whatever fills the eyes of your heart will control your thoughts, your words, and your behavior in the 10,000 moments of everyday life?

Isn’t it logical that if the eyes of your heart are filled with a vision for earthly, temporary, material God-replacements, your life will be lived in pursuit of those treasures that don’t truly satisfy? Doesn’t it also seem logical that if the eyes of your heart are filled with a vision for God, it will eternally change everything?

The Bible states in Matthew 6:24 and Luke 16:13 that it is impossible to serve both God and mammon (wealth/money), as a person will inevitably love one and despise the other. Jesus teaches that “mammon” acts as a rival master, urging believers to seek God’s kingdom first rather than wealth.

What about you? Could you possibly be blind to your blindness? Or could it be that the eyes of your heart could use some corrective cataract surgery? What do you think God meant when he said in the Bible, “You will seek me and you will find me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13)?

Probably, all of us have heard or used the phrase, the blind leading the blind. At the time, did you interpret that to be a positive situation— or a dangerous scenario? Be honest now…does the blind leading the blind describe the situation in your family?

One option, that wasn’t really available in the story, was for the inhabitants of the village to get eyesight, but thank God that option exists for me and you and our families. In the Bible, Jesus quotes from the prophet Isaiah when he says, “For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes— so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them” (Matthew 13:15).

So unlike the inhabitants of the country of the blind, there’s hope for each of us. Now that we know there’s hope, we don’t have to have a blind man leading our families. As leaders of our families, what do you think we should do? Would you not agree that since some of those in our families or those around us have not yet had their eyes opened, we may encounter some resistance? Maybe they can’t yet handle the truth. Would you not agree the first question should be to ask ourselves, “Can I handle the truth?”

Thanks for taking the time to read this. Feel free to share your thoughts here on the FATC FORUM about this or about whatever is on your mind. Remember our motto: It’s not just about the fly fishing.

By the way, I just herd last night that there’s still a few openings left for the upcoming May 18-22, 2026 Altar Fly Fishing Retreat in The Driftless Region of Minnesota. Over the years, I’ve attended several of these retreats and found them to be quite eye-opening. Maybe that would be just what the doctor ordered for you. If you have any interest, please contact Jim Craig, ASAP.

John Muckerman

FATC Inspirational and Leadership Lead