New Glasses, Clear Computer

You might remember that last year about this time I was devastated to learn that cataract surgery wouldn’t cure my eyesight woes as I had been told by doctors for more than thirty years. 

You might also remember that I was then sent to a specialist who fitted me with scleral contacts which force my corneas to conform to the correct shape and greatly corrected my vision. I can again drive at night and see the televsion. My phone and kindle were much clearer. I hadn’t realized how badly my vision had deteroriated because all my life I’ve compensated for less-than-perfect vision. 

But there was one fly in the ointment. And it wasn’t a small one! Many, many days I had to work very hard to see my computer clearly. Which meant lots of eye strain and lots of stress, since both writing and editing require long hours looking at a screen. So when I returned to my contacts doctor for my yearly appointment, I talked to him about this. 

What I love about this doctor is that he wears the same lenses I do—including in monovision, which means one eye is set to see near, one eye set to see far. I had noticed he also wears glasses but this was the first time he explained that to me. You see, monovision is generally great. But the middle distances can suffer. And that distance is often where the computer sits. 

So I opted for progressive lenses to help with that middle distance. Normally, adding glasses to contacts (when I’d hoped cataract surgery meant neither!) would have made me sad. But not this time! For the first time since junior high I was not told that I could only choose from a few frames due to my prescription. In fact, the last time I replaced my actual non-contacts glasses two years ago, the optician (at the specialty optical store!) told me he could only put my lenses in one frame. 

One! 

Thankfully there were cuter than I expected. 

But this time? This time I had no limits! Well, I had some limits. I tried on one pair that was $500 for just the frames! I reined myself in and went to the more affordable ones, which still offered a plethora of choices. 

I chose a cute pair of blue tortoise shell frames, because if I get to choose and only wear them when I work, shouldn’t they be fun? Then I waited. 

When they arrived, I went immediately to get them. When I sat down at the desk across from the employee, I looked over and saw business cards on a small stand. The words were blurry. Then I put the glasses on and looked again. I could read them!

Yes, it is taking a little bit of practice to tip my chin up to be able to see the middle distance, but I’m learning fast. Again, I didn’t realize how much I’d been coping with blur. I’m suddnely understanding how close to my face I’ve been holding my devices, including my computer. But now I can read them from a normal distance, which is fabulous! 

I’m so grateful for my new glasses and crisp, clear words on my computer. I’m especially grateful considering I had no idea how much more clearly I had the capability to see! And yes, there’s defnitely a spiritual lesson in there! Maybe I’ll write about that one day.