Friday, November 26, 2021

The Fall Colors

 

Last week I was driving to work and noticed how beautiful the fall colors were. Anyone else notice the peak week for fall colors has changed? When I was growing up it was always the 3rd week in October. For the last several years, however, it has been the 2nd week of November. I guess climate change has something to do with it. I told my wife we should call and make reservations in Gatlinburg next year for the 2nd week in November because most people still go the 3rd week in October. If you just thought, "That's a great idea!", you're welcome. Anyway, back to the fall colors.

As I was admiring the deep red and golden yellow leaves, the thing I was most grateful for is that I could see them at all! Most of you know that I had a 2nd detached retina at the beginning of the month and a 2nd retina repair surgery on November 3rd. As you might guess, the whole ordeal has been quite frustrating. It took about 3 months for me to regain the sight in my left eye after the retina repair surgery last February. Because of the damage to the retina, however, my sight was even worse than it was before. As things settled, I got a new prescription, which meant new glasses and new contact lenses. But wait, there's more!

One of the side effects of the surgery is the development of a cataract. So over the summer and fall the cataract was growing, and growing fast. Those of you who have had cataracts know how frustrating they are. By December the cataract was "mature" and I had cataract surgery, which means I got an implanted lens. My sight improved to about 20/35, the best my poor damaged retina could do. This, however, created another problem.

For most of my adult life I have worn both contact lenses and glasses. As my "over-40" vision came into play, I needed readers with the contacts. I had become very dependent on the readers by the time I was 50, so I favor using glasses with progressive lenses whenever I am reading, studying, or working on the computer, which is a lot of the time. The problem was that my left eye had now been corrected to 20/35 but the vision in my right eye was still horrible. The difference between the two was so great that I could no longer wear glasses. My brain couldn't process the disparity. Contacts still worked, but I had to have my readers on all the time.

So after a lot of discussion with my ophthalmologist, I decided to have Lasik surgery in the right eye, which took place in June. Since then, I have not needed contacts and have been able to wear my glasses any time I needed to read anything, like my Sunday sermon! But now I've had another retina repair, which means another cataract, and eventually another implanted lens. So the money I spent on the Lasik surgery was pretty much wasted. Such is life.

The reason I tell you all this is that I want to tell you that, in spite of all these eye troubles, I am SO thankful to be living in this time! Had I lived when my grandfather lived, or even when my father lived, I would be blind right now. Retina repair surgery has been around since the 1930's but with limited success. The retina repair surgery I had was not invented until the 1960's and really not perfected until the 1980's. The surgeon who did mine studied under the man who invented it. Today it is done with great success. What a blessing!

Thanks to God's gifts of curiosity, ingenuity, and intellect, human beings have found a way to consistently repair detached retinas, perform Lasik surgery, remove cataracts, and implant lenses to correct vision. And because of this I can see the beauty of the fall colors this year! (Albeit with only one eye right now.) In a few months, God willing, I will regain my sight in the right eye, then have another cataract surgery a few months later, and receive a new implanted lens. How incredible is that?!?! Then I will be able to see with both eyes, at least as well as my poor damaged retinas will allow. For that, I am truly thankful.

The Apostle Paul says to give thanks in every situation. (1 Thess 5:18) It isn't always easy, but it is always possible. Gratitude is a choice we make. And the more we make the choice to find things to be grateful for, the easier it becomes.

Grace and peace...

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