Helen has just been discharged from the hospital after treatment for the accident that left her blind. She makes her way home with the help of her brother Christopher, where her mother calls her. Helen resents the idea of her mother hovering over her and quickly ends the call.
Her business partner, Martin, calls Helen to discuss the future of their art gallery. Although Helen is dubious, Martin remains optimistic about assigning Helen appropriate work in the art gallery. Before Helen can relax and have a cry, her estranged husband Hal calls. Hal had an affair with a younger girl, Naomi, but still pushes to get back together with Helen, despite Helen's repeated refusals.
Later, Helen uses a dictaphone to record a to-do list, in which she initially lays out a suicide plan - but deletes it and changes it to a list of things she can do, such as going back to university or picking up piano again. She also records a diary, in which the accident is revealed: jealous of Naomi's youthful looks, Helen tried to dye her hair with permanent colour, including her eyelashes, despite the package's warning. She gets colouring in her eyes and knocks herself unconscious in the bathroom. From then on, she is blind.
Writing Disability in Australia:
Type of disability | Acquired blindness. |
Type of character | Primary. |
Point of view | First person. |