September 16, 2012
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LASIC
I can’t tell you how grateful I am for this LASIC surgery. I have dreamed of not having glasses ever since I got glasses. When I was 15 and first saw the billboard for LASIC eye surgery, I knew I wanted it. I planned. I schemed. But to no avail. My parents said my eyes had to finish growing first. In my 20s, I thought about it, but managed pretty well with my contacts. All my money was going directly into my trips to Brazil anyways. Two years ago I got serious. I made the appointment and had my eyes checked—yes, I could have the surgery. Next Friday? $2800. I couldn’t justify that much money on myself. I didn’t have that much money.
This summer Supercamp offered me a good paying job in Hong Kong. With the money, I decided to make LASIC a priority. And June 18th, 2012 the deed was done. 36 seconds of laser in each eye. It was all so easy I wondered if it was a scam. The price went down as well.
The recuperating days were harder than I had thought. I had to get the PRK since one eye is oddly shaped, and I have abnormally large pupils. Did you know that? I have abnormally large pupils. Isn’t that interesting? But it means the surgery takes longer to heal. And I had 4 days of quasi-blindness and no strenuous activity. I realized everything in my life involved my eyes and strenuous activity. Except for listening to music and radio theater. But even that gets old.
It took a month and a bit, each day different—some better, some worse, but then I didn’t notice anymore. I could see. And it is something you love without learning how. Only in the little moments did I notice it—when I woke up and fumbled for my glasses…oh, no more of those! When I could use sunglasses. When I was at the beach—I’d never been in the water where I could still see well—it was amazing.
Something I didn’t account for was my self-confidence. I’ve always felt self-conscious in my glasses, but have worked hard to get over that. One boy called me “four-eyes,” and it only took one. I figured that my confidence would rise without having to use glasses or have the constant worry of contacts. True, but it affected me more in a different way. For the first time in my life, I made the choice to invest in myself. A significant amount of money for nothing necessary—only a desire. I was saying, loud and clear to myself, that I was worth the investment. I was worth investing in. and that is powerful.
In Brazil I appreciate LASIC more than ever. The convenience in a place where I am very mobile and staying different places and plans that always change at last minute—it relieves so much stress to not have to worry about contacts or glasses. But even more so is with the children.
I work in hot, humid, and dirty conditions. I take multiple showers a day when working. The roads to get to the children are dusty in summer and mud in rainy season. Daily sun and sweat gathers everywhere. If I choose glasses, they slide down my face and get smudged by a thousand tiny fingers. If contacts, my eyes burn red from the dirt that gets perpetually blown into my face. It is something simple, little—my eyes—but such a difference. And to have one less thing to worry about lets me focus more on what is important: sharing God’s love with these precious children. My gratitude cup is full.
