Jared Wright is a college student who is blind. He seeks greater independence through the use of a dog guide, and is currently attending The Seeing Eye in Morristown, New Jersey, to accomplish that. This feature details his experiences and reflections throughout his training, which concludes on August 17. His dog is a male cross between a yellow Labrador and a golden retriever named Kerry.

The big city. It is to date Kerry's largest testing ground. Not necessarily because it is the hardest training session done at The Seeing Eye. Many would tell you it isn't, and that in fact rural work with a dog is the most challenging. I consider it our most important training session because it is one that Kerry will find himself in a lot. I was never a country boy. The bustle of the city has always been comforting to me. And now with Kerry's help, I will be able to venture even further out into these hubs of loosely organized chaos.

Few cities are as chaotic as New York City, so The Seeing Eye's close proximity to the Big Apple is one of its huge advantages. And this morning my primary instructor and I took Kerry into the city, specifically midtown, to allow him and I to get some work in together in such a high stress environment.

I think I've let the drama go on long enough. Kerry was absolutely fantastic. So good that I got an adrenalin rush from the whole affair. Previous trips for yours truly into Chicago, New York, or other big cities were met with two annoyances. Firstly, I moved at a snail's pace. Poking around with a cane in such a convoluted environment simply doesn't allow one to get into a good flow of travel. Secondly, there were a lot of awkward moments with other pedestrians. Even with all the cane skill in the world, many pedestrians on any given block would take a tap on the ankle with the cane. I'm sorry to say that I've tripped a few people with the cane, not through any fault of mine or theirs, but just because that sort of thing happens with a cane.

With Kerry everything changed. I passed seven out of ten people as we made our way from the Port Authority up through Central Park, if not more. I'm certain that a dog guide weaving through the crowd drew attention to us, so the observant ones in front of us helped in our navigation by giving us clearance, but even still. If you've ever walked through New York City you know there are as many pedestrians paying no attention to the rest of the traffic around them as those who are. I rubbed shoulders with no more people than most sighted travelers would, and only twice did I have to correct Kerry for trying to squeeze through the crowd where there just wasn't room. And best of all, the feeling of moving laterally and being apart of the swell of humanity was so different to what I am accustomed to. It really was a rush.