June 3, 2016
Is Your Eyesight Sufficient?
For a long time, I have been the only one in my family without glasses. Even my grandparents all have a pair. Recently, though, I went to our family eye doctor and was prescribed glasses to help me see clearer. I’ve only had them for a few days now, but it’s strange how different everything is.
I guess I didn’t realize how bad my eyesight was getting until I went to the eye doctor. We had an appointment about two years ago for my eyes, and they seemed fine then. They weren’t perfect, but our doctor said that it wasn’t bad enough that I really needed them. This time, however, when I had my appointment, it was clear that I definitely needed some help this time around.
I thought that my eyesight was sufficient. I knew that it wasn’t perfect, because my parents could read things further away that I couldn’t, but I always thought that it wasn’t that bad. But at the exam, the doctor said that I definitely needed glasses and we ordered a pair that I liked at Walmart a few days later. Then, when they were ready and I got to wear them, I was shocked by the difference.
Things had been clear before. If someone held up a hand across the room, I was able to say how many fingers, and I could puzzle out the time by staring at the clock for a few seconds. But when I put on the glasses, I didn’t have to puzzle anything out. It was all so clear, so easily visible. I could read the writing on price boards across the store. I could see the little black nails poking through the roof of the department store. I could see every detail in every direction, and it was so, so beautiful.
Seeing Leaves Clearly
Of course, that was just Walmart. Going outside and driving home was even better. I could read the road signs before they were two feet in front of the car. And staring out at the trees as they sped past the car… I saw leaves before, but not like this. Not so clear from so far away. Seeing leaves is one of the most common things that people talk about when they get glasses. I saw leaves before. I knew that trees weren’t just covered with green fuzz, even though that’s what it looked like from far away. What I didn’t know was that those leaves could have such detail from so far away.
Wearing glasses isn’t perfect. I love how everything looks through them, but they can be a pain to wear. And I have this constant fear that I’m going to break or scratch them, and that worry can make it more difficult to focus on whatever I’m doing. Plus, I can see the rim of the glasses in my peripheral vision, and while it’s not a big deal, it’s taking me some time to get used to. And I constantly find myself adjusting how they sit on my nose, because no matter what I do, they never seem quite right.
I never wore glasses before this week. I always thought that my vision was, if not exceptional, adequate. At least until I actually got glasses, and I realized what I’ve been missing out on. I could manage before, by puzzling out the numbers on the clock and using context clues for road signs. But now, I don’t have to. Everything is effortlessly in focus, and I can see everything. And the best thing is, the leaves are clearer than ever.
“Reprinted from Hagel Publications, Inc. dba as Courier Newspapers”