A collection of hopes for 2025

Thank you for sharing your hopes for 2025 with us. If you haven’t already, you can email us at [email protected] to let us know about your hopes and goals for 2025.  It may take us a few days to upload your story, so please check in again then. In the meantime, please find below some contributions from the RNIB team.

“My hopes

1. Do everything I could do last year whenever I want to this year.
2. Don’t back out of something just because I am worried how my eyesight will stand up to task.
3. There will be some tangible breakthrough towards implementing vision improvements for us RP sufferers ( am not naive, it would be too ambitious to use the word “cure”).
4. The RNIB and Retina UK receive sufficient funding in order to continue with their good the work on our behalf.
5. I maintain a healthy and active lifestyle and don’t let my condition affect my mental wellbeing or reduce my physical exercise.
6. I can keep my allotment for this year and many years to come (I never feel conscious about my poor eyesight when I’m on my plot).
7. My family, friends and pets remain healthy (that should have been number 1 actually).
8. We win back the Ashes (this hope straddles the end of this year into early next)”

“My hopes for 2025 include becoming more independent again.

My favourite thing used to be driving, so when I lost my sight, I obviously could no longer do that. Relying on public transport has become the thing I have to do now. But the time it takes compared with driving is awful.
I used to drive to see my grandchildren within ten minutes, but now, including the walk at the beginning and after the bus journey itself, the journey now takes an hour!
So I now plan to try to navigate the local town on my own more. I do feel it’s such a shame that I will not be able to see my grandchildren as often as before. Taxi fares are out of reach as well.

I wonder if others find themselves in a similar position?”

“On a world scale

• That there will be a just and lasting peace in Gaza.
• That the NHS will be adequately funded and properly managed.
• That the Government will tackle child poverty.

On a personal level

• That I meet the challenge of my planned holiday to Lake Garda in Italy and have an enjoyable and inspiring experience.
• That I manage to learn enough of the language before I go to boost my confidence.
• That RNIB will continue its excellent service for many years to come.”

“My fifth book on sight loss is being published in the next week. It is called who are keeping the blind in the dark.

I am working on my sixth which is examining the service delivery model for sight loss support and is called magic in the mess and will be published sometime in May.

I am planning a further book after that which will be a short booklet on surviving the experience of the eye clinic, what questions to ask and on what to insist.

This will be similar to my guide to medics on how to treat people with sight loss in hospital. That is called chasing the catheter and is the basis of the training that I am rolling out at my local hospital. Currently we have done a course at Burton and one at Derby. Very well received and already created radical change in the clinic.

I hope to continue my work with the Moorfields vision loss advisory panel, recently having completed a film for their CVI project.

I am hoping to expand the training and work up to Doncaster. The work so far has been well received so I have great hopes.

I intend to continue public speaking to U3A, WI and similar groups about sight loss awareness. On this front I will continue to find every possible opportunity to talk about sight loss. It is too important not to.

On the private front, I have recently purchased a GP14 dinghy which will be a progression from sailability. Being stone blind I find sailing an interesting challenge and am looking to racing this year. I am also hoping to get fit enough to take up rock climbing . however, as I am 77 years old this may prove to be more of a pious hope.”

I am continuing to support as many waifs and strays from the eye sector that I can, sharing my experience, helping them through those awful first stages and assisting them with PIP and other forms.

At my age I hope that I have at least half a dozen years left for the work. Time will tell.

One thing I would love to see is my books on an audible library.

My first  - descent into darkness is with Calibre

My second First Catch your rabbit is with RNIB.

Unfortunately it appears you do not have an appetite for a patient biew self help written simply and with a bit of humour. Still there you go.

I think that is about it. I hope you find this of interest