Clarity

So there I was. 15 years old. Sophmore in high school. Math class. Class hadn't started yet and I was goofing off with some friends before the bell rang.

One of my friends who wore glasses had taken them off and set them down on his desk. While he was turned around talking to someone behind him, I snatched up his glasses, put them on, and began to do an amusing imitation of him.

Up to this point in my life, I had never really worn glasses before. As far as I knew, my vision was just fine. Besides, people who wore glasses were nerds, right? Or so I thought at the time.

Within seconds of putting on my friend's glasses, I happened to look out the window. It was a sunny day and there was a large tree just outside, leaves glistening in the sunshine.

Leaves. Individual leaves. The tree wasn't more than 30 ft away and I could see each individual leaf on this tree. Not only that, but I could see the detail of the exterior bricks that enclosed the school, and beyond that I could see cars and license plates in the parking lot below and faces of people walking around the outside courtyard.

I couldn't believe it. I removed the glasses, and examined again the objects I was just looking at without them. They were slightly blurred. But until this moment, I had no idea that everything I saw at a distance was slightly blurred. I spent several minutes applying and removing the glasses, fascinated and astounded at this amazing discovery and the difference in clarity.

I was shocked. I never knew the world around me could be this clear.

I never had any reason to think I might need glasses. My vision had always seemed just fine, even objects at a distance. Or so I thought. I never blinked twice (figuratively) that I apparently had to lean forward and squint when seated in the back of the classroom to see the chalkboard sometimes. Didn't everyone do this?

With excitement and surprise, I exclaimed the awesomeness of my discovery to my friend and owner of these hallowed glasses. You would have thought by my reaction that I'd been blind and was just given the gift of sight. He seemed not quite as amused as me, and asked for his glasses back as the bell rang and class started.

I sat there the remainder of math class staring out the window, saddened by the blur of leaves swaying back and forth outside and faceless people down below, wishing I could have that clarity again.

Not long after, I got my own pair of glasses. I was nearsighted, although not severe. However the optometrist recommended I wear them when driving at night (something I had just started doing at age 15 almost 16) or when seated in the back of a classroom. This inconvenience of constantly taking them on and off was tiresome, and I was enjoying my new-found clarity in life, so eventually the glasses just stayed on at all times. Coincidentally it was decided around this time that just because you wore glasses, it didn't necesarily mean that you were a nerd...

As I've gotten older, I often think back to this moment of discovering my need for corrective lenses. I didn't know the clarity I was missing out on. I've related this experience to other moments of discovery in my life, like a level of happiness I didn't know existed, or experiencing a deeper love I never felt before, or gaining a clearer understanding of an educational or spiritual truth I hadn't understood before.

Also as I've gotten older and continued to wear glasses and contacts, my natural eyesight has gotten worse, and the need for continual adjustments in clarity are constantly present.  The same could be said with life experiences and feelings.

What if I had never put on my friend's glasses or any pair of glasses? How long would I have persisted in my blurry world, not knowing there was something wrong or more importantly, something clearer out there? Or what if I'd gotten my first pair of glasses and decided that was it, that's all the clarity I would ever need?

The answers are self-evident, as is the analogy. To wherever you're at in your life, whatever clarity you feel you've achieved, there is always more. There are always adjustments to be made.

I'm inclined to never accept things as they currently are to be the best they will ever be. To reach the peak of clarity is an encouraging albeit unattainable goal. Any belief I have can be doubted and challenged. Any life choice I make can be altered. My opinions may change, my understanding may broaden, my feelings may enlarge, and my vision may adapt.

Fortunatly we all live in a world where even if we tried to remain the same, the changing world around us will inevitably rub off on us, forcing most of us to seek change and clarity.

All it takes sometimes is the curiosity to reach over and try on a new pair of glasses.