Patch The Pirate
One question that I used to get all the time was “why do you wear sunglasses indoors?”
Let me tell you. I wrote about this back in 2009 but I've found out some new things
and I thought I would write an updated post.
Life is like a road. God puts people right in your path right when you need them.
This has been very evident in my life.
I was born with amblyopia. It's also known as lazy eye.
I recently decided to look up the term “lazy eye” and found out that's it's actually a contradictory term for amblyopia. It's not a “lazy eye” at all because it's not actually a problem with the eye itself. It's a problem in the brain and the optic nerve that carries the signals to the brain. It's a signaling problem. My brain won't use my right eye unless I patch the left eye. My brain favors my left eye for whatever reason.
When I was 2 and 3 years old I had 3 eye surgeries on my right eye.
I wore an eye patch for 7 years.
I was clueless when I was little so I had no idea I had eye problems and my parents didn't tell me because they wanted me to be as normal as possible. Thankfully I have no memory of wearing an eye patch for those 7 years so if I got bullied for it I have no memory of it.
When we switched doctors years ago I quit wearing it because nobody told me that I had to wear it. Actually my pediatrician at the time told me there was nothing they could do to help it after age 7. So that's why I quit wearing it.
I was probably 10 years old when I figured out that I still had eye problems and couldn't catch a ball or throw one for that matter because I couldn't aim straight. One night when I was at church at youth group all of the sudden I realized I couldn't do things other kids could do. I realized I was different. It was like someone had dropped a bomb on me.
Thankfully the youth group leaders wife, Jen totally understood and took me under her wing. I was her little buddy. She would take me aside during game time and I'd help her prepare the snacks or help her do other things. She had my back. Thank you Jen!
Her husband didn't understand me at all. Years later her husband and I got things resolved between us.
Jen has been there for me ever since. She's been like a second mom to me.
God brought Jen into my life right when I needed her. We've kept in touch ever since. I see her about once or twice a month.
I remember leaving youth group that night in tears and going home and telling mom that I needed to be told everything. That night mom told me everything. I was told about my eye surgeries.
Surgeries I was told was “supposed” to correct the lazy eye when in reality it just made it look like I didn't have a lazy eye. It was basically a form of plastic surgery if you will. It was basically to align the eyes so they look normal.
I have to digress here to say this: when I was 9 years old I was in piano lessons for 9 months. I kept losing my place on the music but never understood why.
I dropped out of piano lessons.
There was 2 different issues going on that I didn't know about yet.
(Severe lazy eye and light sensitivity)
I played piano off and on for several years. I knew I wanted to play the piano it was just too hard and too frustrating trying to track the music because I would keep losing my place.
I also had a hard time reading. I could only read for 10 minutes at a time because
- I kept losing my place on the page
- My eyes would get bloodshot red and hurt very badly.
When I was really little I liked to wear sunglasses indoors.
Looking back there were signs of light sensitivity but nobody knew about it at that time.
When I was 12 (2004 ) I got colored lenses on my glasses from Irlen Institute. Link
What a huge difference that made! I can read for hours now without getting bloodshot eyes. But I was still losing my place when I read or played piano.
When I got colored glasses I started to get bullied a lot by other teenagers and adults. Thankfully irlen gives you cards that explains about the colored glasses.
This saved me from harassment so many times.
I remember I was at Awanas at Calvary Chapel East Hills.
I knew I couldn't play the ball games because of my lazy eye.
Because I could never catch the ball or throw it straight because I couldn't aim straight. I am not able to catch moving objects or throw anything because I have no depth perception and I only use my left eye because my brain doesn't acknowledge that my right eye is there. So my brain shuts it off.
The Awana game leaders didn't understand this. Mom had to write notes to them explaining my eye problem. The teenagers and adults would bully me because of my colored glasses. For some reason people don't like it when they can't see your eyes. This makes no sense to me.
I now know they just didn't understand.
Sometimes people are afraid of what they don't understand. So they bully you instead of trying to understand you.
But God again brings the sweetest Awana leader into my life right when I need her . Miss Jessica. We start talking and I find out that we have a lot in common. She is also light sensitive and totally understands my eye problems. I was able to tell her about irlen and that it would help her. She so sweetly takes me under her wing and pulls me aside during game time and lets me sit with her and just watch. We had some great conversations. I was her little buddy.
I treasure those conversations and that time with her. I'll never forget that. We've kept in touch over the years.
I also had a family member who was light sensitive and I was able to tell her about irlen.
For at least 10 years after that I got nothing but grief about my glasses everywhere I went. For some reason at that time people had a problem with you wearing sunglasses indoors. I don't know if it was a biblical issue or what. But I know it was a major problem for many many years. Especially at churches. I never understood that. I remember going to a homeschool group meeting and mom told me that they had some rule or something against hats and sunglasses. That made no sense to me. I was probably 10 years old and was just figuring out that I was light sensitive so I was wearing a hat and clip on sunglasses and that was a real problem because it went against their rules.
To this day every once in a while I'll get asked about my glasses.
Especially at event where you're going to have your picture taken.
The main question I get asked all the time is “do you see the world through rose colored glasses?” The tint on my glasses is a purple-Ish color.
No, I don't see the world as being rose colored.
To me the world looks totally normal. Let me explain to you how the irlen filters work.
Here is some information about how the irlen filters work straight from the irlen website.
“Treatment with Irlen Method
Irlen Spectral Filters are able to filter out the offending wave lengths of light which create the stress, thus allowing the brain to be able to make the normal adjustments for various lighting conditions, glare, and brightness.
Sunglasses are not enough. You may think they provide comfort and protection, but individuals who are light sensitive need to be protected from all lighting, not just sunlight. Individuals with light sensitivity wear their Irlen Spectral Filters from the time they wake up until they go to bed at night. Irlen Spectral Filters do not reduce brightness or contrast (meaning they don't change the color of anything) while providing the same comfort as being in a dimly lit room. Since they do not make things darker, like sunglasses, they can even help with headlights at night.”
From what I'm told by irlen you know you have the right color for your glasses when everything around you looks the right color. The color that it's supposed to be.
For me the funny thing was that the colors in my colored glasses ended up being my favorite colors. Irlen tells me that our favorite colors can sometimes be the color that is most comfortable and relaxing to our eyes. That was really interesting.
Another thing that had happened was when I was 16
(2008, that was a year that I started to really figure myself out)
I was playing the piano and I kept losing my place on the music. I knew I had a lazy eye and started to wonder if wearing an eye patch would solve the problem.
So I got out my sewing machine and sewed myself an eye patch to go over my glasses. It was a square piece of fabric. It's big and really tacky but sure enough it solved the problem.
Once I had the eye patch on I quit losing my place on the music.
I was also able to memorize music faster with the patch on.
My neurodevelopmentalist told me that your brain works better when you are completely either left side dominant or right side dominant. I’m very right side dominant but left eyed because my right eye is lazy. I guess this messes with my brain.
When I wear the eye patch I feel relaxed like I never thought I could feel.
It's because my left eye (my good eye) is much more light sensitive than my right eye (lazy eye).
.
I also discovered that I can't bowl without it. I have been bowling several times. I always have to use bumpers because I can't aim straight. Again it's because my eyes don't work together at all. I recently discovered that if I hold my left eye closed when I bowl I can aim straight and I get lots of strikes and spares. Should have used the eye patch when bowling. That would have made all the difference in the world. But I feel so self conscious wearing it because it's so big and tacky.
I don't wear the patch for piano much anymore because I've come up with a trick that works almost as well.
This little trick is something that I wish my piano teachers had done
Unfortunately most music teachers don't do this. I came up with this idea myself.
One day out of nowhere I got the idea to mark up my music using pens and highlighters.
- First I mark with a pen when and where I want to move between a c and a g position. For most songs you can pretty much stay in a C or G position. I only have to do this for the treble clef since I play chords on the left hand.
If you play the bass clef with the left hand you will want to use this trick for both the treble and the bass clef.
- I mark with colored highlighters the different parts of the song such as the verses, the chorus, the refrains, etc.
I mark the verses in one color, if the verses repeat I'll mark that in a separate color,
If the verses change I'll mark the verse changes in a separate color,
The chorus in another color,
The refrains in another color, etc.
The colors allow your eyes to jump between colors instead of having to track the music itself. You know what part of The music is in what color. If you lose your place you know what color to jump to and it's easy to find your spot again.
This simple easy trick has allowed me to play the piano without wearing the eye patch.
If I don't do this trick then I have to wear the eye patch when playing piano or I'm not able to play piano because I can't track the music.
I also found when I marked up my music with colors I was able to memorize the music.
I'm not able to memorize the music without using this trick or the eye patch.
My friend at church told me that both of those are techniques that most people don't do. She said that's actually advanced piano technique. I had no idea. Just some tricks I figured out on my own.
I've been doing it for years! I have to to be able to track the music. I'm thankful for my eye problems because it's making me a better piano player. It's making me do things that I probably normally wouldn't do.
I would highly recommend trying this trick with everybody. Especially the kids. Adults are able to express what helps them learn but kids aren't. Kids often don't understand themselves well enough to know that certain struggles aren't normal.
When I was in piano lessons when I was 9 I was extremely clueless and I didn't know that I had eye problems.
I thought constantly losing your place on the music was normal.
I thought everybody had that problem.
If my piano teachers had thought out of the box a little bit and had used this little trick with me it would have made all the difference in the world. It would have avoided a lot of frustration. I would not have dropped out of piano lessons.
I would love to see all music teachers use this trick.
I've also found a wonderful piano app on my iPad that moves the music along as you play it so there is nothing for you to track.
I've loved piano for years. I knew I wanted to be able to play the piano but my eye problems kept getting in the way. Sometimes it just takes a little time to figure out other ways to do things. I didn't give up. I eventually found tricks that allow me to play the piano. I found ways to get around my eye problems. Where there's a will there's a way. Don't give up.
When I was first discovering my eye problems mom gave me a book titled “Beautiful, Seeing Yourself Through God’s eyes” by Angela Thomas
link
Here is her biography that is written in the front of the book.
“ I’ve worn glasses since I was 18 months old. My first pair had cat eye frames, and everyone thought I looked so cute in them. “Oh, look at that little baby with glasses. Isn’t she the sweetest thing?” Then I began to grow, and for about a year, I had to wear a patch over my right eye to make the left one stronger. I guess it was a decent idea, but it didn’t work. It caused my weaker eye to become the dominant one. Don’t you know I was a stunner in the Captain Hook Patch with cat-eye glasses on top? In elementary school, kids tagged me, of course “four eyes” I was special- one of maybe three “four eyes” in the entire school. Me and my wire-rim, stop sign-shaped glasses. How cool can a girl be with traffic signs in front of her eyes? Not very. And a few years later, for the full effect, my frames got bigger, and we added three a half years of braces. Railroad tracks. Tinsel teeth. That was me…..Thick bottle caps before my eyes, tin on my teeth, and to make things as awful as possible- I was smart. Girl’s don’t want to be smart in Junior high. They just want to be pretty. “ - Angela Thomas
I can so relate to her story. Like I said, I wore an eye patch for 7 or 8 years, I also had several years of braces. I’ve had glasses since I was 2 years old. I also had cat eye framed glasses when I was little.
For years that book went everywhere with me. That book was a real blessing and encouragement to me during my junior high/high school years.
God gave me that book to let me know I wasn’t alone in my struggles.
That there was someone else out there that went through the same struggles I did.
I understand what it’s like to be bullied. I was bullied because of my eye problems and my colored glasses.
God also gave me another person's story to let me know that I wasn't alone.
I had grown up listening to the Patch The Pirate cassette tapes. I don't remember them though. I never knew the story of Patch The Pirate himself. Ron Hamilton. When I was 16 I found out about how Ron Hamilton became Patch The Pirate. Patch had come into my life when I was probably 10. The beginning of this year God brought him back into my life.
How Ron Hamilton became Patch The Pirate
His story really hit home for me and was very personal for me. I could relate to him. Having eye problems myself and only using one eye. I realized I wasn't alone in this. He understands what it's like to have no depth perception.
He also understands what it's like to be questioned or teased.
I've been teased because of my eye problems.
Sometimes I still have to patch my left eye for doing certain things and Ron Hamilton, Patch The Pirate wears a patch on his left eye ( I sometimes have to patch my left eye). I then realized we have this in common. Just like God used Ron Hamilton’s eye problem to create a Christian Legend, Patch The Pirate, God has used my eye problems to help others. Like Ron Hamilton says “He had no plan on becoming Patch The Pirate but he began to see that was God's plan”. I love the first line of his song “Rejoice In The Lord”. It goes like this. “God never moves without purpose or plan”.
Isn't that so true! God always has a purpose and plan even if we can't see it.
God can turn a trial into a blessing.
God can always use our trails for his Glory.
In Jan of this year I started digitizing all our cassette tapes. Mom pulled out all of our cassette tapes that we have and in that huge pile of tapes was the Patch The Pirate treasure box set volumes 1 and 2 cassette tapes. For some reason I looked him up and found his facebook page and found out that he was going to be doing a live concert in my area. I had always wanted to see him. God beautifully orchestrated the whole thing. That's another story for another day.
On Saturday March 17th 2018 my dream came true. I got to have my picture taken with Ron“Patch”Hamilton!!!!! It means a lot to me and is so personal because of my own eye problems.
After the concert I bought all the Patch The Pirate adventures.
I was listening to one of the Patch The Pirate Adventures (Ocean Commotion)
In the course of that adventure Patch gets teased for wearing an eye patch.
Evil Wise Guy- “how would you even see a storm coming, you only have one eye”
Evil Wise Guy “what’s that thing on your left eye?”
Patch- “it’s called a pirate patch”
Wise guy- “my dear outlanders, these strangers have pretended to be our friends, it is now clear why they are here. They are pirates. Scoundirel, ruffian,
Sissy seagull- “we’re not that kind of pirate.”
Wise Guy- “you must leave this peaceful paradise you pessemistic pirates.”
Jolly roger crew- “ Those people weren’t very nice. Why were they so mean?”
Patch- “Sometimes people don’t want to hear the truth and don’t want help. But we still need to help them if we can.”
Jolly Roger Crew- “why won’t they believe us?”
Bootstrap Ben- “They are afraid. “
This was such a good reminder for me when I get asked or teased about my colored glasses or my eye problems, to view the situation with compassion and empathy.
Bullying is a way for people to deal with their fears.
They are trying to seem big and brave when really they are afraid.
Often people are afraid of what they don’t understand.
Instead of getting defensive, realize that they don’t understand and use the opportunity to educate them about it and tell them your story. Turn your trial into a testimony.
A lady at church came up to me one Sunday and was concerned about me because the spot on my nose where my glasses rest was red. I had taken off my glasses to clean them and she saw a red line on my nose made by my glasses and she was very concerned that it was very painful for me. I had no idea that my glasses made an indent on my nose. Go figure. I don't even feel it. She kept telling me to take off my glasses for a while and let my nose have a break. I had to explain to her why I wear glasses. I told her my story.
This kind of thing used to bother me. But I can look at it now and realize that she was trying to be nice and she was concerned for me and she just didn’t understand.
For some reason it really bothers people when they can't see your eyes.
Photographers ask me all the time if I want to keep my glasses on for pictures.
I have to constantly tell them yes or if they keep bugging me about it I have to explain to them why my glasses are tinted. I'm used to this now so it doesn't bother me. But it does take me by surprise every time.
It's funny because I've been wearing “colored” glasses for 15 years so I forget that my glasses are tinted. I forget that you can't see my eyes.
Every time I get asked about my glasses I remember ‘oh yea, my glasses are tinted, they can't see my eyes’. I have to stop and think and realize that the person asking me about it is clueless and doesn't understand because they haven't walked in my shoes so to speak. Instead of getting defensive about it I need to come at it with compassion and empathy and use the opportunity to educate them and tell them my story.
Someone told Ron Hamilton “don’t waste your trials. Don't waste your wounds.”
So true. Your testimony could be an encouragement to someone else.
I also think that having constant struggles makes you more empathetic towards others.
Like Ron Hamilton I need to not be afraid to wear an eye patch if I need to no matter how self conscious I feel about it.
Even though I have this problem, I have been able to help other people because of it. It is a blessing in some ways. It makes you appreciate the little things in life. Don't take life for granite. It's not worth it. I'll tell you that from experience.
I love what Ron Hamilton says “God often hurts us to draw us close to Him, to get us on our knees, and to get us to realize where the real power is.
When I'm hurt I realize that I am weak. I don't have any strength. The strength is in Him. The power is with Him, the power is not with me. “
“When you go through valleys God teaches you things that you learn no other way. “
I love that. It's so true.
We can often see God's hand in our lives more clearly during hard times than in good times, because we have to look to him during hard times.
It's been a real character building process for me. It makes me constantly think about where other people are coming from. They haven't been through the same struggles that I've been through. They haven't had the same experiences that I've had.
The biggest thing that I've taken away from these situations is this:
There's no way people will understand me unless they've walked in my shoes.
Nobody can fully understand another person's struggles.
Even though I have struggles God has made himself known and made it so clear that He sees everything. Why else would He time and time again keep bringing people into my life to be there for me right when I need them or giving me someone else’s story to let me know that I’m not alone?
There is a line in Ron Hamilton's song “Rejoice In The Lord” that sums this up so perfectly. It goes like this:
“Give thanks to the lord,
though your testing seems long,
In darkness, He giveth a song”
In hard times God often gives us a ray of hope or somehow in some way shows us that He's there with us and that He cares. This has been so evident in my life.
This is a sketchnote that I did of one of Ron Hamilton’s/Patch The Pirate’s sermons and I feel like it sums this up so perfectly.
Written in June of 2018