THE EYES HAVE IT

 I can hardly think of a more precious gift that we have than our vision.  Here is what you need to know about your eyes.  It's not every part but enough so you know what's going on.

The first thing you see is the cornea.  It protects the parts behind it.  My son got his scratched by a girl when he was about six and had to wear a patch over his eye for a while.  I think he liked it.

Under the cornea is a fluid chamber.  This fluid is over and under the next part which we call the iris.  That fluid has to be able to move around so it doesn't build up too much pressure.  If it does, that's a problem they call glaucoma.  I have had two little holes lazered into this area so that I don't get sudden glaucoma.  I got those holes a few years ago.

The iris is the colored part of your eye - or should I say pigmented?  Mine is kinda blue, kinda white, kinda green.  My icy stare can make children cry.  The white part that we call the eye-ball is really called the vitreous cahmber.  I guess the white is called vitreous.

In the middle of the iris is the pupil.  The pupil is the entryway for light which is what the brain sees.  The pupil changes it's size to accomodate the right amount of light to pass through.  (Large opening in the dark and small opening in lighted areas.) 

Behind all this stuff is the lens.  The light travels through the pupil, through the lens to the back of the eye - to the retina and optic nerve.  The lens is shaped to properly see both near and far.  Some people's lenses work lots better than others.  Lenses get weak over time and people need other lenses (glasses or contacts) to see near or far or both.  

Also, when a person is very old, the lens gets covered with a film.  They call this situation cateract.  The only way to correct the problem is to use a microscope and slice a hole on the side of the eye, send in a roto-rooter.to break the lens into pieces and then vacuum it out.  If all goes well, they can then slip a new lens made especially for your eyes through the hole and spread it into place.  Voila!  

Do you see?