Unless you've lost it. Although, if you've lost your mind you've got other issues beyond the scope of this blog. So for now, let's presume you have most of your mental faculties.
We know our minds can deceive us. But in so many ways, our minds do a phenomenal job of synthesizing the information around us, gathered in by our senses, to keep us safe, keep us fed, keep us warm and even keep us happy.
Or nervous system can sense not only temperatures, as we've been reminded of again and again lately when my son dubs anything, "hot!" that's not room temperature, but we can sense the states of matter as well. Stick your hand in a liquid and you know it's some kind of fluid. Of late though, I've been thinking a lot about my vision.
I've had lens replacement surgery in both eyes now. It's not quick, immediate vision improvement like you get with LASIK surgery. It's time and it's work. And I'm not finished yet. Or, rather, my vision isn't done improving yet. There are two small additional procedures to get things just so. And then there's the homework.
The homework consists of, at first, not working the lens. Use reading glasses for all close-up vision needs. After a few weeks when the lens is well in place, you then begin to work the muscles of your eyes to flex and focus and eventually become strengthened to pull all sorts of things into crisp, clear focus.
So in addition to all the other things you focus on every day, you practice word search puzzles. They come in increasingly smaller font sizes as your vision improves. And let me tell you, you start to get a sense of pride when you can move to the next smaller font size because your eyes are improving. Eyes don't usually improve as you get older so it's pretty darned exciting if you ask me.
I've never done a lot of word search puzzles before. And in this case, I'm not doing it for relaxing fun. I'm finding time in the day, wedging time in a lot of cases, sometimes in the tub at night even, to search for words. I don't particularly care about all the movies Sean Penn has been in, but there is a higher purpose.
I get torn because I want to be done with the puzzle. I want to move on to other things, but I know the longer it takes to find all the cities in Ontario, the more exercise I've gotten for my eyes. So I plod on.
I've discovered something remarkable, yet wholly believable. My brain knows. It knows where those words are, even if my eyes can't see it. I think I saw, "lettuce" there... no, it's not there. Hm, I've looked all over the board and it's not there.. oh wait, it's right there in the area I thought it was from the start.
That scenario has happened so many times now that I have started trusting my brain. If it thought it saw, "Duchamp" then I believe it. I just hone in on the area until I find out where it is. Cheating? I don't think so. I have far too many word search puzzles to worry about implementing short cuts.
The Big Boy Update: Sleeping under the star. His Mimi taught him the word, "star" a while back because she has a shirt she wears with stars on it. He has a blanket his Nana and Grandpa gave him that has a huge star right in the middle. Daddy figured out you can drape the blanket over the crib so he can look up at the star. He likes sleeping under his star.
The Tiny Girl Chronicles: The Mount Everest Syndrome. She wants to climb it, just because it's there. Your legs, the pillow mound, anything in the way. Uncomfortable, hard, pokey? Not a problem.
Fitness Update: Moths taste mothy. Two runs now I've had a moth fly into my mouth while I was talking and huffing for air. They're really not that tasty. Maybe without the wings they'd be more palatable. Maybe with a little salt?
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