Certainly, the advent of Anne Mansfield Sullivan was the most important day in Helen Keller’s life. Helen was filled with wonder when she considered the immeasurable contrasts before and after her arrival in her life. On that day she stood on the porch, dumb and expectant. She was like a ship at sea in a dense fog before her education began. ‘‘Light, give me light !’’ was the wordless cry of her soul. And the light of love shone on her in that very hour. She felt approaching footsteps and stretched out her hand. She was caught up and held close in the arms of her teacher. She had come to reveal the light of knowledge and above all, to love her.
Miss Sullivan gave her a doll sent by the little blind children at Perkins Institute. She spelled into her hand the word ‘‘d-o-l-l’’. Helen was at once interested in the finger play and tried to imitate it. When she was able to spell the words correctly, she was filled with childish pride and pleasure. In the days that followed she learnt to spell ‘pin’, ‘hat’, ‘cup’ and a few verbs like ‘sit’, ‘stand’ and ‘walk’. She understood that everything had a name. Gradually she came to know that a wordless sensation was called a ‘thought’. Somehow the mystery of language was revealed to her. She knew that ‘‘w-a-t-e-r’’ meant something cool that was flowing over her hand. The living word ‘awakened’ her soul. Each name gave birth to a thought. Helen learned a great many new words that day. These words made the world blossom for her, ‘like Aaron’s rod, with flowers.’’ For the first time Helen longed for a new day to come.
