I was driving to the TV station last week, when I started seeing the "floaters." You know, like when someone takes your picture with the flash on, and it leaves a spot in your vision? I knew what was coming...
An ocular migraine headache. It starts with those little flashes, and then turns into a giant backwards C-shaped lightning bolt that steals vision in one of my eyes for about thirty minutes. After that, the headache comes. It always passes, and I'm fine. I was fine that day. Appeared on-air at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m., and no one would've suspected a thing. But it bothered me that it happened in the first place.....
Then yesterday, the text came from Craig around noon that said "I'm out at 5 and 6 today. They've dilated my eyes. I'll keep you posted."
(*thinking to myself* 'is something in the water down here that's messing with our eyesight or what?')
But as it turns out, he had a detached retina, which is, in fact, a medical emergency, and they operated immediately. He says he's fine and his vision is okay. However, he does have to lay on his side for the next five days with his head tilted down, all while wearing a patch! Needless to say, you won't see him on the show with me.
Weird that we're both having issues with our eyes. I typically don't have ocular migraines unless under intense stress. I don't feel like I'm under stress, at least not the kind of stress I experienced a few years ago.
I don't think Craig is under intense stress either. He's getting older, though, and life changes constantly. He told me he's already going nuts having to lay there and do nothing - anyone who knows him knows it's just not Craig to sit there and do nothing.
It's not really me either, and during my migraine, I was forced in a dark room for about 45 minutes with my eyes closed. It took a lot for me to stop. Just stop.
Maybe that's the lesson for both of us... for all of us.
To pause...
To take a moment...
To breathe deeply and often...
Slow down and notice the life and the beauty all around.
Afterall, it's often it is the simplest of things that make life worth living. Yes?
