From Carl Jarvis, Quilcene, WA:

Sometimes we overlook the little gifts.

It was in 1965 that I became totally blind and began teaching myself braille. Someone in my church found a braille King James Bible and proudly delivered the huge set of books to my doorstep. After struggling with the good King's English for a period of time, I became rather discouraged. Then another friend told me about the Matilda Ziegler Magazine. Matilda became my braille lesson book for the next several years. I eagerly read her from cover to cover just to practice my new language.

Later I moved on to such readings as Isaac Asimov and Philosophy Today, and for a number of years, Matilda slipped out of my life. But when I began teaching braille at Washington State's Department of Services for the Blind, I once again turned to Matilda, along with a number of other braille magazines, to assist my students in their lessons.

At some point Matilda and I lost touch with each other, but after many years, I have invited her into my home again. It's like discovering an old friend after a long absence. Once again, Matilda keeps my pokey braille chugging along. What a wonderful gift to us blind folks.