New Eyes

Today I took Betsy to pick up her first pair of glasses. I remember very well the day I got my glasses in third grade. Such a range of emotions surrounded this permanent change in my young life.

Elizabeth was precious examining herself in the mirror and unable to keep from smiling. She could hardly wait to show the family.

On the way home and I remembered something that my mom gave me several years back. It is a typed page written by her that describes the day that she took me for my glasses. It is such a blessing to have this record of that day. More importantly, I cherish this insight into her thoughts as a young mother. In a sense, it's like reading my mom's blog. I hope that my children find my words in the years to come as a window into my heart for them.


Look Mom New Eyes

We had just drove our car to the optometrist office for our daughter's first pair of glasses and the excitement was overwhelming. This was the day she had been waiting for. All the questions came pouring out. "Will the kids still like me? Will I still be pretty to you and Dad?" How thankful we are that she had shared all these fears with us. We reassured her that she was the same beautiful wide eyed child we had always loved.

Our name was finally called out by the receptionist and she sprang out of her chair. The doctor placed the new glasses on her head and she turned to the mirror and shed that same beautiful smile we had always seen (except for a few teeth missing). It was the same old Monica. All the fears were gone. It seems children always look so studious and wise when they wear glasses. She seemed like a miniature grown up as she listened intently on how to care and clean her new "eyes". The doctor explained that if she complained of any blurry or fuzzy vision to call. So out we went into her new world. The doctor said that she had never seen bricks on buildings or leaves on trees. So it was a new world for her.

I reminded her of what the doctor had said and that I could not look through her eyes, but only she could tell me if the world seemed blurry. I had to smile as she promptly corrected me. "Oh, mommy, someone else can see through my eyes." I dumbly asked, "Who?" She said, "God sees through my eyes." What real insight children seem to possess. As a mom who loves all her children and tries to shelter them from this world when I'm able, I needed to be reminded that God is in this child. And in this case He is helping her to see the world through His prospective. Isn't God good to His children?

We arrived home to find Joseph riding his bike on two wheels and solo for the first time. Do we all have to grow up in one day? Give this mom's heart a break!