Anonymous asked: is Mother Abbess blind, or just very poor sighted?
She is partially blind but on the verge of total blindness and has been for some years.
It was caused by AMD (age-related macular degeneration) and started in her mid fifties; since it has been untreated the majority of her sight has been lost. While she cannot see things with any clarity she can still detect levels of light and maintains some limited visual perception in her peripheral vision, and she can detect movement although details are completely lost. The glasses are more of a habit than a necessity at this point.