An Elder Named Mr. Hudson

For a time, I worshipped with a small Presbyterian Church in America congregation in a suburb just inside the beltway of a major city. Attendance varied from a low in the upper teens to forty plus on a well attended Lord’s Day. Joining the pastor in ministry were two deacons and three ruling elders. About a half-dozen members, all women, were shut-ins, and another six were widows who attended as faithfully as the maladies of age allowed. There were two young families with a total of five children. The congregation had a tendency for formality as exemplified by the use of Mrs., Miss, and Mr. instead of using given names. One elder was known to all as Mr. Hudson.

Mr. Hudson’s profession was tuning pianos and he was employed by the county school system to keep students singing to the music in their classes. People have been tuning pianos since the instrument was invented by Bartolomeo Cristofori of Italy in 1700, however, what was remarkable about Mr. Hudson is he was blind. When just a preschooler he was abandoned to an orphanage then later went to a school for the blind. He learned the tools of his profession in Chicago. Skillfully, he adjusted the pins of pianos that control the more than 200 strings spanning the frame so that each one would provide the proper notes. Mr. Hudson was driven from school to school in a van supplied by the school system. I thought it was gracious of the county to give him a job and provide transportation to boot. Among the school children he was known fondly as “The Piano Man.”

Especially important for a tuner is a keen ear that discerns when each string is playing the correct note. The Harvard Medical School referencing a clinical study notes there are connectivity changes in the brains of the blind such that there are “connections that appear to be unique in those with profound blindness” suggesting that “the brain rewires itself in the absence of visual information to boost other senses” (see Notes). This study provides evidence confirming what observers of the blind have suspected for years. Mr. Hudson’s hearing was excellent and when I asked him how he identified his brethren in the church without sight, it was by their voices and smells. He said that many people have distinctive smells, not only perfume for a woman or after shave for a man but also the bacon and eggs they consistently had for breakfast or animal smells from their pets. The Hudsons lived in a pleasant little brick house that he had paid for with his wages. Mr. Hudson worked for twenty-seven years for the school system. Whether day or night, the house was always dark inside because they did not need lighting.

His keen ear was used in church as well. In addition to tuning the piano played by our beloved accompanist who always played just a tad too fast leaving some breathless at the end of a hymn, he led the congregational singing by reading his brail hymnbook with the fingertips of one hand while indicating the beat with the other. Occasionally throughout the year he would sing a solo during worship with his fine baritone voice. One of his favorites was “His Eye is on the Sparrow,” which emphasizes the attention God gives his people just as he cares for the sparrow. I would think this hymn was especially meaningful for Mr. Hudson personally.

During my friendship with Mr. Hudson, I learned a few things about being sensitive to the needs of the blind. I took him to the grocery store a few times and when he went to the check-out he opened his special wallet made for the blind which had four divisions, one each for ones, fives, tens, and twenties. He knew what he was paying with by the note selected from the wallet, but he was dependent on the honesty of the one accompanying him regarding the correct folding change, but coins were easy, their sizes gave away their values. He carried his change in one of those football shaped vinyl devices that when squeezed opens to reveal the change. Another lesson learned, even though I do not have evidence to prove it, is the blind may have an improved ability to remember things because without vision, the locations of objects must be cataloged in the mind so they can be accessed or carefully avoided in the environments routinely encountered. I learned that if something was moved at church, Mr. Hudson needed to know about it in advance so he could become acquainted with its new position. When he attended group functions at church he often would find a safe place and sit away from the crowd because there were too many opportunities to become confused about his location.

Mr. Hudson was an elder who ruled well in his church for over forty years. At session meetings he was quiet with an occasional comment. Presbytery attendance was not an option because of so many unfamiliar people and hazards in the host church. His wife, Jenny, did not attend services. Mr. Hudson said she was intimidated by crowds and unfamiliar locations. She was gracious when visited at home by members of the church, but church attendance was a fearsome challenge for her. Mr. Hudson and Jenny had a child who sadly died at an early age. When Mr. Hudson died his memorial service was held in his church as was the case for Jenny who predeceased him. His church had fallen on hard times with decreased attendance and the unwanted next door neighbor was an hourly rate motel. The shut ins and widows all passed away, others left for larger churches, and some quit attending church at all leaving the congregation to dwindle to just four or five. The more than century-old building was destroyed by an arsonist leaving the only testimony to its existence a vacant lot and a historical marker. Its purpose as a place where God was worshipped had ended, but the deceased saints who worshipped there had a new home.

Can anything be learned from the life of Mr. Hudson? He did the best he could with what he had in terms of gifts even though exercising those gifts was impaired by blindness. All church members have gifts as Paul instructs us in 1 Corinthians 12 including those with physical challenges. Those who are challenged should not be forgotten because they also can contribute to a church’s ministry as it glorifies God and enjoys him forever.

Notes—If you would like to read about a blind man who went to seminary and became a pastor, see on Presbyterians of the Past, “William H. Fentress, An Extraordinary Man.” The article referred to is, “Brain ‘Rewires’ Itself to Enhance Other Senses in Blind People,” Harvard Medical School, Department of Ophthalmology, Wed, 03/22/2017, at https://eye.hms.harvard.edu/news/brain-rewires-itself-enhance-other-senses-blind-people. The hymn, “His Eye is on the Sparrow,” is number 725 in the original blue Trinity Hymnal; it was written by Civilla D. Martin (1866-1948).

Barry Waugh