A few years ago, as I tried to read the list of ingredients on a can of cat food, I groused to my husband, “Well if they want you to be able to read this, why don’t they make it bigger?” It wasn’t too long afterward that it occurred to me that I might need reading glasses. The next time I was in a discount store, I stopped by the display of reading glasses and bought a pair. Problem solved. I’ve actually purchased readers of different strengths for needle work and computer usage and have a pair in almost every room of the house. While my deteriorating vision is frustrating, it is easily rectified.
While going through pictures for the May 14th blog, Sewing Reusable Menstrual Pads, I ran across the above picture of a lady reading a pamphlet. I asked Kay Green about it. She told me that there were always some students who could not see to thread their needles. The teachers watched out for them and advised her when they noticed a student struggling.
Kay had a supply of reading glasses and used the only thing she had, which was a Daily Bread devotional, to determine what strength the lady needed. She had her read the largest text, then medium, then at the very bottom of the page where the smallest text appeared. They would try various pairs of glasses until they could see the text at the bottom. One of them could not read, but said she could identify letters. This went on at each of the three sessions that was held. Kay wrote that this definitely was a needed ministry, and she would not travel again on a mission trip without a supply of reading glasses.
The need for glasses is a minor inconvenience for me. It’s more a reminder that I am getting older than anything else. In Liberia, the need has a far greater impact on a person’s life and not just in rural communities. Not being able to read without corrective vision can end an education. A severe vision impairment can impact the type of work a woman can do. The ability to see clearly can change that.
Kay found it both fun and gratifying to help the ladies who took the sewing classes, adding that they were so grateful. Her foresight to be prepared with reading glasses and a way to test vision may have a far greater impact than she realized!
While going through pictures for the May 14th blog, Sewing Reusable Menstrual Pads, I ran across the above picture of a lady reading a pamphlet. I asked Kay Green about it. She told me that there were always some students who could not see to thread their needles. The teachers watched out for them and advised her when they noticed a student struggling.
Kay had a supply of reading glasses and used the only thing she had, which was a Daily Bread devotional, to determine what strength the lady needed. She had her read the largest text, then medium, then at the very bottom of the page where the smallest text appeared. They would try various pairs of glasses until they could see the text at the bottom. One of them could not read, but said she could identify letters. This went on at each of the three sessions that was held. Kay wrote that this definitely was a needed ministry, and she would not travel again on a mission trip without a supply of reading glasses.
The need for glasses is a minor inconvenience for me. It’s more a reminder that I am getting older than anything else. In Liberia, the need has a far greater impact on a person’s life and not just in rural communities. Not being able to read without corrective vision can end an education. A severe vision impairment can impact the type of work a woman can do. The ability to see clearly can change that.
Kay found it both fun and gratifying to help the ladies who took the sewing classes, adding that they were so grateful. Her foresight to be prepared with reading glasses and a way to test vision may have a far greater impact than she realized!
Kathy Beth Stavinoha
Kathy Beth lives and works in Austin, TX. She graduated from high school in Monrovia, Liberia in 1977.
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