Just yesterday morning on Facebook my sister-in-law posted that my nephew Peter had an eye exam. They found out that he was half blind. Brenda shot back a reply and said we found out the same thing about Betsy when she was in school. In Betsy's case, poor eyesight was handed down through me and my dad. Who knows how far back this malady goes in my family? I shudder to think what she missed all those years that we were unaware of her ablepsy.
Glasses have been plastered to my face since I was 13. The month my braces were removed, following a 2-year tangle with the orthodontist, an optometrist took his place with my diagnosis of near-sightedness. I remember borrowing a friend's glasses and being surprised to behold vivid colors and solid lines replacing the fuzzy, undefined shapes I was used to seeing. I had a terrible headache one Saturday after going to the movies, so my dad booked a visit to the eye doctor only to confirm what he already suspected.
Brenda's eyesight has always been perfect until recently. Only a few years ago she began to need a little help from readers to enjoy her beloved Kindle. Joshua takes after his mother in that his eyes have needed no assistance whatsoever in seeing the world around him. I have never known a morning when I woke up without patting down the bedside table in search of my glasses. In fact, I have an over-sized digital clock next to me so I can see the time without them when nature calls in the middle of the night ( a whole other story for another time!). For a decade I have carried reading glasses to accompany my contact lenses. It didn't seem fair when my doctor told me I'd have to wear both. That revelation sucked.
I guess the only remedy would be surgery. It makes me cringe to think about that. I can't stand the thought of someone dragging a knife across my cornea. Trifocals do the job pretty well for me these days, as do contact lenses when I play on stage. So, to add to a challenged prostate, failing teeth, ear hair and rosy cheeks, glasses will continue be a constant companion.
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