When I was three, it was determined that I could see almost nothing with my left eye. I was subsequently diagnosed with a birth defect in the lens that led to surgery at age 5 to remove it and start down a path of patching, contact lenses, and bifocals to try to get any functioning vision in that 20/2000 uncorrected eye. In the 80s, there was no concept of progressives, so the bifocal line and the patch I had to wear to force usage were very visible to other kids in my elementary years.
Especially in 3rd and 4th grade, I remember a ton of playground teasing. "Arrrrrrrrr! Heather's a pirate!" was annoying, but "four eyes" was definitely the most frequent. Not willing to just accept criticism for something I had no control over needing, I trained myself to retort "No, I have six eyes -- two eyes, one contact lens, one regular glasses lens, and two halves of bifocal lenses." It seemed to work in that people teasing me. I assume they mostly rolled their eyes at so much explanation, but I felt like I was taking control of that situation.
Having glasses (or being a smarty-pants know-it-all) meant I didn't have many friends. Most people just ignored me when it came to kickball games or group projects or parties. I knew I was different, but I didn't know how to keep those differences from ostracizing me.
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