THESE EYES

If the eyes are the windows to the soul, then I need to re-pane my windows because my soul is looking kind of obscured. I am finding that, as I age, my eyes seem to deteriorating, well, right before my eyes. I seem to be looking at the world through “fuzz” covered glasses and it's time for, yet another, new pair. It would be very convenient to go to one of those “get your glasses in one hour” places where they give you a “free” eye exam and then charge you twice the price for frames and three times the price for lenses, but, being on a fixed income, I really can't afford to take out a high interest loan just so I can.......what's that called?.....Oh, yeah......see! I go to the VA where the price fits my income potential these days – they are, essentially, free. I say “essentially” because there is more of a price to pay that just cash for lenses and frames. Here's how the process used to go: The veteran (in this case.....me) goes to the VA and gets his or her eyes examined by a qualified optometrist who then sends the patient (still me) across the hall for a voucher. The vet then drives about 5 blocks to an eye glasses store where he, she (or me) tries on free frames from a selected group and goes home, only to receive a phone call within about 3 days saying, “Your glasses are ready.” Pretty standard procedure. It's a routine I had been through every year since I've been using the VA, so I assumed that this time would be the same. I have been having trouble with my eyes for a few months because I'm, apparently, aging faster as I get older and my vision has developed a mind of it's own. They gave me an appointment for three months later, which is about “par for the course,” so I dug in, convinced that, if I tell myself I can see, I will actually be able to. It's my wife's “mind over matter” philosophy and it works.....to a degree but you might want to stay off the roads any time I have errands to run over the coming weeks. My trip to the VA eye doctor started out the way they all do. I drove the 40 minutes to the VA, took my number and sat in a big room with a passel of other Vets, anxiously waiting to have their eyes examined, blood drawn or prosthetics fitted. When they called my number, as always, I stood up and walked into the exam room saying hello to the doctor, who has been there for years and who answered, “It's nice to see you again,” at which point I responded with, “Hopefully I'll be able to see you again when we're done.” She finished the exam and dilated my pupils, a standard portion of an eye exam when you are diabetic, which is always my favorite part because it makes my eyes light sensitive and I get to wear that very fashionable wrap around, plastic eye shade that covers most of the top of your face and falls off every time you turn your head. I always have to put my glasses on over it to drive home which looks incredibly ridiculous and gives me the satisfaction of knowing that I'm providing a big dose of entertainment for anyone who happens to be on the road at the same time. This time, however, she didn't direct me across the hall for the voucher, she handed me a sheet of paper and, did so with an apology and told me to go home adding, that they will call me (once it gets approved from Miami) and set up an appointment with the glasses place to pick out frames (so I can drive the 40 minutes back to that area)and then go back home and..........wait. When they are ready, I get to make the 40 min. drive for a 3rd time. This should take a good 30 days. She said, "This is to speed up the backlog." Huh?? So, after a 3 month wait to get in to see the optometrist, I now get to wait and see if they call within the 30 days to fit me for frames. If not, they gave me a number to call. It's for the prosthetics dept. at the VA. If I don't get an appointment for glasses by that time maybe they'll give me some prosthetic eyes. I'm not quite sure how it works at that point. I only know that if my “windows” aren't re-paned soon, the only thing I'll be able to do will be to get out the Windex and clean them off a little. My soul will still look “fuzzy” and I'll still bump into things but, at least, I'll know there's something there to bump into.