My Sweet Miracle

I love a miracle as much as the next guy. It isn’t possible to pick up a December magazine that isn’t chock full of miracles. That’s how I got a case of miracle envy.

I wanted a miracle and I wanted it by deadline so I could brag. For a week I’ve been wishing really, really hard.

Nothing happened. Not even a happy coincidence.

Then last night I got it. My middle child announced, “Fifth grade is the easiest grade so far.” Casual conversation for most kids, but from her those words were my own personal miracle.

For some kids, learning doesn’t come easy. School is a frustrating experience and failure lurks behind every assignment. They try to compensate by picking up information in alternate ways, but it’s hard not to feel stupid when they just can’t “get it” when they try so hard.

My daughter is one of these kids. She loved her teachers, loved her friends, but hated school. She’d come home exhausted and then struggle for hours with homework that should have taken minutes.

Her standardized scores varied by as much as 80%. Spelling was torture. Reading was to be avoided at all costs, tasks that required a good sense of directionality like clock reading and shoe-tying were incredibly frustrating.

She had trouble remembering addresses and phone numbers. She often transposed numbers, reversed letters, and missed words and parts of words when reading.

Things were getting worse. In desperation, I called my Reading Specialist friend Sharon. She’d tell me the truth. What she said scared me. She told me to hang up RIGHT NOW and call an Optometric Vision Therapist. She recommended Dr. Dennis Spiro in Whittier and was impressed with his honesty and results.

I could only think one thing: Whittier is a long drive.

But we did it. My daughter was tested thoroughly and Dr. Spiro
recommended 32 45-minute sessions of Vision Therapy. He did not promise a miracle, but he expected she would be at grade level at the end. Glory Hallelujah!

Dr. Spiro explained how vision is developmental. It is learned, just like walking. Seeing has to do with the eyes, but vision has to do with the brain.
The number one red flag is a bright child who does not like to read.

Although my daughter has 20/20 vision, she had difficulty focusing and problems with her peripheral vision. We signed up and noticed immediate improvement. She knew now she wasn’t dumb. The words stopped jumping around and reading became easier. The long drive gave plenty of practice time.

She retained numbers better, transposed letters less often and became more confident. She retained numbers and spelling improved. Here reading rose two grade levels. We finished in September. Fifth grade would be the test.

Her teachers challenge her every day and she is succeeding brilliantly. She feels good about her accomplishments and loves school. Now—for the first time--she sees school as easy.

All I see is a big fat miracle.