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| An Aging Lawyer Yesterday
it finally happened. I’d been fighting it since everything started
to go blurry every time I picked up a book.
If you really want to know, it was some time after my 40th
birthday. But this was the
first time it ever happened in court.
I was standing with my client in a packed
courtroom, waiting for the judge to take the bench. And the prosecutor handed me an eye witness
statement against my client. Showing
me just how guilty she thought my client was.
What struck me was how small all of the printing was on the
paper. How blurry it was. I actually had to borrow a set of glasses from
one of my attorney buddies, okay one of my less vain buddies who was not in denial … like me!
I’d never done this. And
I knew it was time! BLURRY HAPPENS You see, I’ve had better than 20/20 vision
my whole life. Heck, I could
see forever, whether it was light or not.
I just accepted it, like eye color.
Or mosquitoes in summer. And
to think otherwise would be to acknowledge … well … something I guess
I wasn’t prepared to accept. Now, I guess I knew this was coming. Some months ago, for the first time ever, my
wife Marlo embarrassed me into going to
see an optometrist, “just in case it isn’t old age.”
“Yeah, funny.
I get it.” She just
laughed. Worse, if you can believe it, the optometrist
seemed equally amused by my distress. Oh sure, he smiled but I could tell. His smile, too wide. My suff He sat me in a chair and turned out the
lights and then lowered this machine in front of my eyes. It reminded me of something. I mumbled to myself, “Luke, I am your father.” My extremely pleased optometrist had me
look at a chart through the lenses of the machine. He explained, with no small delight, that as
we get older, our eyes become less flexible and we need glasses in
order to read. “Jack,” the smile returned, “you’re getting
older.” “But,” I insisted, “I’ve got 20/20 vision.”
For some reason, I felt compelled to hold on to this position.
Like it helped! He smiled at my torment. “Really? Not anymore.”
He then, with some glee I might add, showed me what 20/20 should
look like through the machine. The
smile returned. He continued. “You’re here.” He flipped another switch. Blurry. As if this weren’t bad enough, he seemed to
enjoy saving the best for last. “In
five years, you’ll be here.” He
flipped another switch. Blurrier. “In ten … .” “Thanks Doc. I think I get the gist.” So I paid my fee and walked out the door
as fast as I could. I had a
recommendation in my sweaty hand to buy some reading glasses as soon
as possible. CAVING TO THE REAPER That was some months ago. Before the incident in court. I bought them today. Self conscious the whole time.
Feeling like I caved to the reaper. So, here they sit in front of me. Their black frames and plastic nose guards staring
back at me. Inviting. No, taunting me. Oh yes. Somehow
daring me to try them. I can almost hear them daring me. Like a drug dealer. No, … no. Like some Carnival Huckster trying to get me
to spend my last dollar. So, I accept and put the contraption on
my face. Looking
like some sort of Buddy Holly reject.
But with more wrinkles and gray hair. And, you know what, these glasses aren’t
bad. I see things around me
that I hadn’t noticed. And
they don’t seem to get in the way.
They’re not too heavy. Yeah,
I like them. And I wonder why I hesitated so long. I then decide it is time for the ultimate
test. I pull out some discovery
from one of my latest criminal defense cases.
I look down at my client’s completely Mirandized
confession. Oh … How he admits
to doing everything. Ugh … And I see every word. It is crystal clear. And I wonder. Maybe getting glasses was not a very good idea
after all. JACK RICE is a former CIA Officer, trial lawyer, and
writer. He is also the host
of The Jack Rice Show on WCCO Radio (830 am). |
