Where does one start. The sights, the smells, the 10 hour days, the team support, rough 2 hour rides in a small bus when every muscle hurts. For all team members we likely will start with the miracles of sight that happen every day during a TWECS clinic.
The traffic in Lima is the most chaotic and dangerous I've ever experienced anywhere in the world and it has its consequences. It has been another long clinic day and I thought all the patients had been seen. I was surprised to to see this old gentleman holding his registration form sitting on a dispensing chair. He was patiently waiting so I took his form and studied the doctors prescription. He was 86 years old and legally blind. His shoes were worn, his jacket thread bare, he looked tired and hadn't shaven for a couple of days. I dove into the glasses and to my amazement found a pair matching his special prescription. I was delighted to think we may be able to give him some sight back. He put them on we tested his sight. He could see the top line on the chart. I thought this is a win, in fact I was ecstatic. He started to cry almost uncontrollably and brought out a large handkerchief. An interpreter was close by and I asked him if he could understand what the man was saying as he wiped his tears away. He was telling us that his wife had been run over 3 days ago by a hit and run driver and he now had no one to help take care of him. Even though the glasses helped there was no way they could replace his wife's eyesight. I felt defeated. I helped him down the stairs and out to the street. He turns and embraces me with a most gracious hug. Sometimes small miracles just don't seem enough.
Doug Higginson
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