If you know anything about my person at all (or, y'know, if you glance at my profile picture below), you know that I wear glasses. They're always there-- always have been, and always will be until heaven-- and they are the aspect of my appearance that people (usually) first focus on when they see me. It's pretty unavoidable, considering they make my eyes look huge and take up a good deal of my face.

{Behold: baby-Em wearing glasses for the first time.}

The thing about having glasses is that it feels like they are a big part of my life... but then again, it also feels like they aren't. I have been wearing them since I was a baby, and don't know anything different, so I don't spend much time or energy focused on my glasses at all (unless something is wrong and they require my attention, or I'm getting new ones). That being said, there are universal joys and struggles that come with being a regular glasses-wearer, so I wanted to take the time to give all of you a shoutout: Oh my goodness, I feel you.

1. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

I get that this is usually a joke (or at least, I sincerely hope it is), but please rest assured that I can see basic shapes and colors without my glasses. Especially if said fingers are inches away from my face. Not having my glasses on doesn't mean blindness; it just means a general fuzziness-- and the extent of this fuzziness is different for everyone. I actually have a somewhat more extreme version of poor vision (not having lenses and being neither nearsighted or farsighted), and yes, I can still see how many fingers you are holding up.

2. That one pair of glasses that you are deeply ashamed of.

We all go through style phases with glasses as with everything else, and there are definitely some styles of glasses that we wouldn't ever wish to repeat. We all have that One Awful Pair; mine was a pair of small, bright purple frames with neon yellow stars along the earpieces. They were my favorites and coincided with my fashion sense back then; I wouldn't wish them on my worst enemy now. And yes, as you might have guessed, these were my early-middle-school glasses.

3. The struggle of sunglasses.

We glasses-wearers have three choices when it comes to sunglasses: wear clip-ons, wear a pair of sunglasses over your glasses, or get prescription sunglasses. I have done all three; I never liked clip-ons growing up, so when I got to middle school I thought wearing sunglasses over my glasses was an absolutely brilliant idea. (It really wasn't, but bless my parents for letting me try.) It wasn't until I got to high school that I was able to get prescription sunglasses, and I can now assure you that this is the best choice and so worth the price.

{Completely inconspicuous. You definitely can't see the glasses behind the sunglasses or anything. *cringes at past self*}

4. Speaking of struggles-- rain.

(See also:: Opening a just-finished dishwasher.)

You know that moment when you've just cleaned your glasses, and then you walk outside and it's pouring down rain? Yeah, that is not a fun moment. Steam or humidity or water in your face = fogged-up glasses. Fogged-up glasses mean that you can't see and, in my case at least, get a little bit antsy over that. Plus, you have to clean them all over again. The struggle is real.

5. "Why don't you just wear contacts?"

This question doesn't bother me now, but it did when I was younger because I did want contacts, desperately. At the time, I didn't know whether I would be able to wear them or not, and my ophthalmologist wanted to wait until I was older since I was a unique case and prescription, so I was hopeful that I could someday. Some people with glasses are able to switch back and forth between those and contacts with ease; I, as I learned a couple of years ago, am not. The strength of my prescription is so high that, even if I was able to get contacts (with the added factor of bifocals), I would still have to wear reading glasses, and even then they might not make my vision as clear as it needs to be. Some of us simply cannot wear contacts; they don't work for everyone, and that's perfectly okay. All the same, it would be nice if people took that possibility into consideration-- especially when talking to teens who wish more than anything that they didn't have to wear glasses.

6. Not knowing what it's like to see clearly while putting on makeup.

I have tried eyeliner exactly one time, and in that moment I swore that it was a futile effort that I would never attempt again. With foundation, I can only hope that I'm getting it right, and often have to put my glasses on to check, sigh, and go back and fix it. Eyeshadow usually turns out alright, as does mascara, but please don't ever ask me to do anything complex with either. On normal days, I just avoid the two altogether and stick with what comes easily to me. I've often wondered what it's like for others to actually be able to see what they're doing when they put foundation and eye makeup on; it must be nice!

7. The hipster glasses trend.

Y'all... glasses are not a fashion statement. They can be, yes, and that does make wearing them more fun, but that is not their true purpose. Again, going back to the struggle behind the contacts thing-- some glasses-wearers, especially teenagers, envy people who don't have to wear glasses and who can actually see their own eyes clearly in the mirror without a glass barrier in the way. Yes, people do look pretty cute in fake glasses, but it's important that they remember that for some of us, this is a very real and everyday thing-- that we can't just toss our glasses aside when the trend goes out of style.

8. The excitement of getting a new pair of glasses.

Finding a pair of glasses that is 1.) my current style and frame of preference, 2.) stays on my tiny nose despite my strong prescription and thick lenses, and 3.) fits well, looks great on me, and lets me see clearly (the most important thing) is one of the most victorious moments of my life. The day that the glasses finally come in and I can wear them home? Best. Day. EVER.

{The amount of new-glasses selfies I have from over the years is slightly ridiculous, but...}

9. Realizing how awesome your parents are for caring so much for you and your poorly-sighted eyes.

Nineteen years of new glasses, each with slightly different prescriptions that all cost a lot, plus the cataract surgeries I had as a baby that started this whole glasses adventure-- it adds up to a lot of financial investment in my sight. Add that to their acute knowledge of my medical history, their constant support and encouragement, and their never once letting me believe that needing to wear glasses was a bad thing... suffice it to say, I truly have amazing parents. I'm so grateful that God knew exactly what He was doing when He wrote our family's story.

~

To those of you who wear glasses often: I understand the sometimes-struggles and the wondering what clear vision would have been like... but there are also fun and joyous things about wearing them too. And remember-- someday, we will be with God, and we will see things clearly, both figuratively and literally. Isn't that a beautiful, hope-filled thought?

"Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely."
// 1 Corinthians 13:12, NLT //