What I Learned in a Visit to an Ophthalmologist

The Benefits of Sitting Still

Sitting still in the winter garden at Evergreen, hoping that Wisdom will pay me a visit! Photo by Rob.

My eyes are developing cataracts which need to be removed if I want to continue to see my grandchildren’s faces, the evening star and oncoming traffic. So, last week I had an appointment with an ophthalmologist.

First, I underwent various tests with a nurse, like guessing fuzzy letters on a white chart, following a green cross darting across a dark screen, and being told to keep my eyes fully open while a dazzling white oblong box almost blinded me with its antics.

‘Don’t blink,’ the nurse said from time to time.

This was an almost impossible feat. She may as well have asked me to stop my heart beating. My inability to comply with the No-Blinking rule forced her to repeat some of the tortuous proceedings.

Then she sent me through to the ophthalmologist. He put dilating drops into both my eyes and told me to look first at his left ear, then his right, then the door, then the floor, while he peered at my now almost dysfunctional eyeballs.

When all the testing and assessing was finished, I sat and stared across to where I knew the ophthalmologist was sitting because I could hear him talking to me, although I could see no distinguishing features. The whole world had become a blurred mishmash of pale colours shot through with daggers of light.

I was guided back to the waiting room where I sat for the next forty minutes waiting for Rob to come and pick me up. He’d lost himself in the giant Bunnings store, looking at curtain rods, screws and powerful glues, and checking out the Promotions aisle.

Because my eyes were stinging, aching and very sensitive to light, I couldn’t read, check my phone, or admire the décor of the place. All I could do was sit still and wait.

That’s when I realised that although it’s difficult not to blink, it’s almost impossible for me – a modern Western woman – to feel okay not doing anything. Just being still.

While sitting there with eyes closed against the glare, I recalled a quote from an Eckhart Tolle Practitioners & Students site on Facebook:

Wisdom comes with the ability to be still.

Ah, if only it were that easy!

I’m not sure the next forty minutes upped my level of wisdom, but I could sense that my forced stillness opened a back door in me that let in two rare visitors: Peace and Quietude. They didn’t bring Wisdom with them. Maybe next time.

The Benefits of Sitting Still

Since getting home from the appointment, my eyes have returned to normal. But after experiencing the pleasant side effects of being forced to sit still in a waiting room chair, I’ve decided to step into a state of stillness at least once each day.

A few minutes with my new friends, Peace and Quietude, throughout the day is relaxing and refreshing, and if Wisdom ever turns up, that will be a bonus.

With love, Marlane