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If you were to observe Norman Spence at work on his farm in Kilmarnock, a district outside of New Market in St Elizabeth, you wouldn’t guess that he’s blind. He manages his land, and his various crops are attended to. He also performs regular checks to ensure his fruits and vegetables are developing properly. Despite having no sight, he surely makes it seem easy.

“It’s a very difficult job. Take into consideration that I’m blind, but I put my heart into it and exhibit the best while I’m executing this job. In terms of how long, it’s over 30 years, because I graduated from the Salvation Army School for the Blind in 1982 and I’ve been here doing this,” he told THE CENTRAL STAR.

“My initial plan was to get myself equipped as a telephone operator/receptionist, but my parents, they were not equipped financially to assist me, so I said to myself, ‘ok, let me get involved in the farming thing and take it from there,” he added.

Spence started out by planting peas – preparing as much as half an acre. He was also involved in cattle rearing, but after suffering a broken foot, he had to stop. He focuses mainly on planting cabbage, but also fills his basket with other fruits and vegetables, allowing him to provide a wider variety to his customers.

“It’s a variety of crops. The main emphasis is cabbage, because I earn most of my money out of this. Apart from cabbages, I plant cocoa, yam, dasheen, sweet potatoes, corn, and I have stepped very recently into the production of carrots. I also plant sweet pepper but it’s not on a big scale yet. I intend to develop on that and expand as time goes on.”

Circumstances have a way of controlling people, but Spence is the one holding the control and playing the game. Not only does he run things on his farm, he runs things at home. From cooking and cleaning to washing, he’s doing it all.

“From you put your mind to a thing, you overcome so many obstacles within moments. That’s exactly what I did, so there was not much difficulty,” he said, noting that he has never had any problems navigating his land.

While he gets some help here and there from his nephew, Spence is 100 per cent in control. “I prepare the land … let me make that absolutely clear. I chop up the land, brush it up, fork it up and plant. For the spraying, it’s very difficult for me to do it, because I would have to bend forward and feel the plants to avoid crushing them, and that would put a lot of strain on the back, so I avoid that. What I do is, I acquire the service of other farmers … in this case it’s my nephew Horace,” he explained.

Like any business, there’s an up-season and a down-season.

“There are times when I harvest some very good crops, and to take it there, it’s very difficult. And sometimes, the prices are very low. I can sell up to 2,000 pounds and a little bit over that, and the income is very low. Sometimes the cost is like $25 to $30, but for this present moment, it’s not bad at all… it’s for $100 to $120,” he added, noting that he has also been a victim of theft countless times.

Spence remembers playing cricket and pushing tyres in his younger years, growing up in Kilmarnock.

“My mom and my dad, one sister and two brothers. I went to the Kilmarnock All-Age School and I started my education there. I had to go off to Kingston and completed my education at the Salvation Army School for the Blind.”

At age nine, life as he knew it was dented as he had begun to lose his sight. At age 10, it only got worse. By age 11, the Salvation Army School for the Blind was the most ideal option for the youngster. There, he met other youngsters with whom he could identify. Three years later, his vision was completely gone.

“It was very difficult, but I was among students like myself. Those students never show any form of regrets or disappointment. They were always joyful and happy so I adopt that type of behaviour as well. But whenever I was by myself, it really hit me hard, but when I get where they are and start moving up among them, it gradually diminished out of my mentality and I got over it very quickly.”

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