Another Sign of Something
I wear eyeglasses a lot of the time; I need them to read, and my work requires an awful lot of that.
Back when I didn’t use them as much, I would often see co-workers and friends fuss with their glasses a lot—checking for smudges, adjusting them for comfort, etc.
One senior co-worker some time ago expressed some concern about not being able to read his computer screen—he had not known how to make the fonts larger, and was always squinting through his glasses to see well.
Then I noticed all the spots and smears and whatever on those glasses. Being younger at the time, I of course chalked it up to how people get at “that age” and went on my way. “How can you not notice that,” I smugly thought.
Fast forward to this past summer. I was painting a ceiling at home, and wore an old pair of glasses so I could do the detail work in the edges. All went well, the project was a success with very little mess, and I felt appropriately good about myself.
Until a few hours later, when I took off the glasses and set them on the counter…and could see how much paint splatter was on them. Notice, I did not see any of it while actually wearing the glasses…but sitting there alone, the white polka dot pattern was hard to miss.
After a heavy sigh, I washed them off and realized that by gosh, I *could* see more clearly now. Then I thought of my friend and co-worker from years ago, and his glasses.
Life has a way of giving you a come-uppance when you need it. It may be delayed by a year or a decade…but there it is. I’m much more understanding now…and have taken to cleaning my glasses much more often.
