By Linda Shaffer
Last week I wrote about our accessories and neglected to mention a couple of them that are pretty darned important. First, how about those eye glasses I’m wearing right now so I can write this? They are also allowing me to see a hail storm and a rainbow at the same time. How could I forget about them? I wear them every day. I can see distant things without them but I do very few important things at a distance. It’s the close-up experience that’s important to me. I like to see things like this story I’m writing. I like looking at weird stuff like my toothbrush, the food I eat and the bits I pick up off the floor. I even enjoy reading and sewing which both make my old eyes tired.
Yes, I had “the surgery.” Cataracts are the bane of Geezer existence. Dang those buggers. You must pick one outcome. Up close vision or far away. Most people pick far away but I’m not sure why. The outcome is that you will need to wear glasses to see anything you do close-up, which is where you spend most of your time. I do not hunt and can barely hold a pair of good binoculars upright. I don’t watch the neighbors and could care less about anything else beyond what I can comfortably see which would be anything over my fence.
I drive sometimes but it is with the attitude of a hawk. I may be old, but by the time I get all my necessaries into my vehicle and put it in gear, I’m alert and ready to drive safely. I can do it but it’s a good thing this doesn’t happen often because it’s a real pain. This is an excellent reason to have a friend or close relation nearby so they can “Drive Miss Daisy.” Lucky me, I’ve got the neighbor lady daughter right next door. It helps that I have become highly skilled at living without leaving home. I’d hate to wear out my welcome. We’ll talk more about this later but if you hear that Pulitzer will give a prize in this category, let me know.
YES I TOTALLY FORGOT HEARING AIDS LAST WEEK. I’m trying to make it up to you all by saying it louder. I’m asking you to forgive me for the oversight because I am a newbie and just got my first set of hearing aids. I did not get a test or a prescription because I don’t want to, at this time. Those of you who tested, and got appropriate hearing aids are to be thanked. Why? You have done the right thing for yourself and those around you. Me? I’m trying to do the same but in a different way. When it comes to hearing, I have to believe that anything you can do to preserve the sound of the world is a good thing. Having said that, let’s all go to the other side of hearing.
OK, we’re here. It is a fact that some of us lose our ability to hear sounds over our lifetimes. Noise thins to a buzz or background slushing which is difficult to override. Well intended or not, sound can really mess up the world for a person who has lost most of their hearing. I watched my grandpa take those hearing aids out at more than one family celebration and knew exactly what he was doing. The lovely part is that he kept on smiling and paying attention to all the kids because he could, and he had mastered the art of acting like he could hear. The great news is that he continued to be able to hear his OSU basketball games and other sports by keeping a small portable radio close to his best ear. At that point in his life, I’m pretty sure he’d heard enough from the rest of us. When you start with 8 children, the sound of family love gets exponentially huge. Sports do not.
So here we are. I tried those hearing aids and found out that I could REALLY hear things. It scared me so I backed off. I did learn that if I wore them for awhile it got easier to adjust to the sounds of my world. On your average da,y I do not hear oxygen coming through my line. I do not hear the living room heating unit. I do not hear the minor clunking and clacking of my refrigerator and water heater. I had no idea that my beloved Bitey Boy sings the song of his people at operatic levels. With exception of the neighbor cats, who knew this fact until now? This is one loud cat warrior.
I took that hearing aid out and put it in its little rechargeable house. I will deal with this hearing issue one step at a time but I will deal with it because I love the sounds of life. My mother has all but lost her hearing over the years but we are still able to talk on the telephone. I’m not sure about how much longer we will be able to do this but at least I understand why she doesn’t want to “amp it up.”
Have a great week my friends.