The car park was already full when we reached the Cathedral for the Sunset Mass yesterday. Peter dropped me off at the exit and went looking for an empty spot by the road outside. Thinking that we were late, I started to wheel myself to the ramp leading into the Cathedral.

“Uncle, uncle,” I heard a voice calling from behind.

I stopped my wheelchair, turned around and saw three teenaged boys trailing from behind.

“Can I help you?” the chubby bespectacled Indian boy asked me. I looked at the other two boys, both also of Indian descent, and appeared very determined to lend a helping hand in pushing me.

“I can manage, thank you,” I smiled and waved to them, indicating that I did not need help.

They smiled back, and I went on my way.

When I reached the ramp, I realised that I needed help indeed. It was too steep. Looking around, I saw the traffic warden and asked if he could push me up the ramp into the Cathedral which he did without hesitation.

How wonderful it is that the young have been inculcated with such caring attitudes and adults who lead by example by helping willingly. There is hope yet for Malaysia.

I have almost forgotten how wonderful it is to be able to read small prints without squinting and holding the text as far away as my arms could extend. Books gathered dust in the shelves. Reading the Bible was an unpleasant task. I never got to finish the occasional newspaper from front to back in one sitting.

The pleasure in reading just went out the window when words became lines and lines of fuzzy misshapen curls. Fifteen minutes with a book was all I could muster before the strain sets in. The only reading I did was on the monitor, and that was because I could enlarge the fonts.

Last Thursday, I finally decided to get my eyes tested for a pair of reading glasses. After my transaction at the Sungai Dua Hong Leong Bank, Wuan, Peter and I hopped into Uni Eyecare which was just next door to the bank. Wuan helped me select a frame. Ms. Yan Mei Ling, the optometrist, was patient and very friendly. Testing was a breeze.

We went to collect the glasses on Saturday. Suddenly everything is so much clearer. There is depth. Colours have become more vibrant. The best thing is that I have started to read again. There are at least ten books that are waiting to be read. It is simply amazing how correcting my eyesight can bring so much joy into my life again.

Ms. Yan checking my eye refraction.

Reading the charts.

Uni Eyecare, Sungai Dua, Penang.

Bespectacled.