Blind blogger Eko Ramaditya Adikara had no idea that life came in colors, and only realized that he was blind when he was seven.

JP/Dian Kuswandini

“I really thought the world was dark — just like how I ‘saw’ it,” said Rama, who was born blind 29 years ago. “I never received special treatment from my parents — they told me to play with my neighbors, they took me to school.

“My life was just like any other normal kid – that was why I didn’t know that I was blind,” added the author of best selling book Blind Power: Making Peace with Darkness.

It was his friend who opened his mind about his condition, making him understand what blindness is.

“My friend asked me, ‘Rama, you’re blind, right?’. I didn’t understand, so I replied: ‘what’s blind?’, then he explained that it meant I couldn’t see things around me,” recalled the digital music composer and columnist for several online media publications. “From that moment on, I realized that I was different; I was blind.”

Although he knew he was different, Rama is living his life like other people. He studies; he makes friends; he enjoys books and movies. He even calls himself a wanderer, who loves to travel on his own with public transportation — all without fear.

“My parents have given me the support to be independent,” he said. “They used to record material in my school text books on cassettes so I could study,” added Rama, who spent only six years at a school for children with special needs, and continued the rest of his education at general schools.

“When I was almost rejected [to enroll into higher studies] at a university, they fought for me. They convinced the university that I could follow [the programs] like other students.”

Rama, who’s an English literature graduate from Darma Persada University, indeed can adapt to his surroundings very well. He catches up with the latest technology such as the Internet, the computer and other cool gadgets. That afternoon at his home, he was busy checking his emails, Facebook account and his blog at ramaditya.multiply.com — all using the common PC set.

“I stopped using a Braille computer in early 2000, simply because I found it less-practical,” revealed Rama, who also created a website he calls his “digital home” — www.ramaditya.com. “Now I’m using a regular PC and laptop with screen reader programs developed to assist people like me.”

While answering to The Jakarta Post’s questions, Rama was also glued to his computer, listening carefully to the voice produced by the text-to-speech program. For people like us, the voice might be too fast to follow, but not for Rama.

“Hearing is the blind’s thing — we are in tune with many kinds of sounds,” he explained, while still busy typing messages to his friends. He typed fast without a single misspelled word in his messages.

“Hmm… this sounds nice,” Rama smiled — this time when listening to a message from his girlfriend on his cell phone using the same technology.

The way Rama enjoys his life is also reflected in his stories posted on his blog. In his blogs, he shares his journey across Indonesia, as part of his involvement in motivational campaigns. To become a motivator is one of his dreams, where he can bring light out of darkness.

“[Being a motivational speaker] is one chance for me to prove God’s words. His every creation is simply the best,” said Rama, who had his first chance to participate in such campaigns after appearing in one episode of the Kick Andy talk show on Metro TV about two years ago. “Knowing that the audiences were motivated [by my experiences] has truly strengthened me. It has also encouraged me to become a better person.”

Thus, Rama sees a job as a motivational speaker as one way to remind himself about life’s opportunities. The job and his journey, which he carried out with some social organizations, have also opened up doors to meet many people, who he said while he couldn’t see, he felt with his heart.

“Currently, I’m writing my second book, Breaking The Limits, in which I share my encounters with people from all walks of life,” said Rama, who’s also completing his first fiction titled Five Angels.

Many would agree that Rama is full of positive energy, but he has one confession to make: He’s no saint and once made the biggest mistake in his life.

“I lied to the public that I created music soundtracks for famous Japanese games,” he said, adding his regret. That claim, which was quoted by many media outlets, he said, had made him famous.

“I was wrong to make such a claim. At that time, I only wanted to appear different from other visually impaired people,” said Rama. “Through this interview, I want apologize to the public, and to those who have put their faith in me.”

Making such a confession and having to face the days ahead might be hard for some people, especially for someone like Rama, whose social life spans in many communities. But Rama sees it more as God’s friendly warning.

“I’m ready to be punished for what I did,” he said. “I realize that what I did might harm the local game industry.”

The big lie, Rama admitted, made him lose friends.

“Life is fair and I have to accept [the consequences],” Rama said. “Now, the big homework for me is to regain people’s trust.”

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