where waves grow sweet

When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful. Proverbs 29:18 NLT

I don’t have stellar eyesight, but didn’t realize it until a few years back when a coworker pointed out that my face was close enough to my computer to kiss it… and I was still squinting. My handy Costco optometrist discovered the problem: astigmatism, which means that my eyeballs are football shaped instead of volleyball shaped. In practical terms, it means that everything is slightly distorted or kind of soft and fuzzy. Not the sort of issue that interferes much with life, and actually lends a nice impressionistic look to things. There are times, however, when it proves to be quite ineffectual. Say, for instance, when I’m on the freeway trying to make out the words that would tell me where to get off.

When I got my glasses, the soft glow of life found definition. As it turns out, I don’t look nearly as young as I thought. No wonder I don’t get carded anymore. And things I thought were clean, like bookshelves or the corners of my room, apparently were not. So I restricted the wearing of my glasses to special occasions. Like at work while trying not to romance my computer. Or on the freeway while trying to avoid another accidental crossing of the Mexican border. But on other occasions, like looking in the mirror or taking in my surroundings, I pretended that reality is what I perceived through imperfect vision. It seemed to spare my vanity unnecessary grief.

Lame, I know. But I don’t think I’m totally unique here. We tend to like the edges of our lives softened. We feel better about ourselves that way. The world likes us better that way. It’s not that we don’t want truth. We do, but the purity of the Word can bring some shocking definition to our thoughts and desires. It’s not always such a pretty image. So we seek it out only in small measure. Or in certain circumstances, like when we’re in crisis mode on the freeway, and not in others, like when we’re standing in front of the mirror.

I now wear contacts, which is a good thing because it’s inconvenient to take them out every time I want to avoid something unpleasant. I’m able to see things I couldn’t see before and make some good changes. Like choosing to accept who I am and what I look like. Or clean things that are dirty. I was particularly glad this morning when I looked in the mirror and was able to quickly identify and remove the cheese on my eyebrow before heading into work. I’m also happy to report that I’m learning to enjoy the vision the Word is bringing, as it helps me to accept some things, clean up others, and most definitely get me where I need to go.