Goodbye Light
Logan Lawson
8:30 A.M august 20th 2017
The morning was starting normally for Tom Smith. He had his usual off-the-bus greetings from his friends. As he went to his first hour class, he took for granted that he was the smartest kid in school and the football captain. He was only thinking about the historic eclipse happening the next day. Tom was really excited about the eclipse, and couldn't wait to see it. Thankfully, school would be cancelled tomorrow. The total solar eclipse tomorrow would not happen where Tom lived again for over 300 years. He hoped his solar eclipse glasses would arrive at his house in time.
12:57 A.M. August 21st 2017
When the UPS truck arrived, Tom signed for the box as fast as he could. As he ripped the box open, he noticed the packaging seal on the glasses was taped closed. That was odd, since the glasses were brand new. In A hurry to get his eclipse glasses on, Tom didn't notice that his glasses did not have the safety ISO code. His school teacher had warned him that this code should be there. He stared up at the sun in wonder and watched as the moon took a bite out of the sun.
1:03 P.M. August 21st 2017
Tom looks up again and sees nothing. He realizes that his glasses are so dark he cannot see the totality of the eclipse. So, he takes off his glasses, looks up, and sees the most beautiful light he has ever seen. In amazement, he stops and just stares. He knows he should put his glasses back on, but he can't bring himself to do it. Then as quickly as it began, the totality ends, and the sun's unfiltered rays flood Tom's retinas. He feels a painful tingly feeling in his eyes for a moment. But once he puts his glasses back on, his eyes start to feel better. Tom feels a dull ache in the back of his eyes, but he assumes it's no big deal. Suddenly it stops. He feels normal except a slight aching.
7:30 A.M. August 23rd 2017
Yesterday, Tom knew that his eyesight was getting worse, because he kept seeing swimming spots and flashes of light. But today, as soon as Tom opens his eyes, he realizes something is terribly wrong. He opens his eyes and sees nothing but blackness, punctuated by few bright swirling dots. He rolls out of bed, fumbles for his phone, and uses the voice dialer to call his older sister. "Susan, it's me. Something's happening to my eyes," says Tom, trying to sound braver than he felt. "Please come get me."
9:45 A.M. August 23rd 2017
“Tom Smith to Exam Room 3, Tom Smith to Exam Room 3,” calls the front desk. "Why do they always do that? Repeating the room number. I'm not deaf," Says Tom. Afraid, with tears in her eyes that Tom would never see, Susan guides him to Exam Room Three. The tests begin.
10:00 A.M. August 27th 2017
Dr. Hunkler is not sure how to say it, so he speaks directly and calmly to the young football star. “Well, Mr. Smith, we have checked everything and re-checked. It seems you are permanently blind. The condition is called solar retinopathy. It occurs when bright light from the sun floods the retina on the back of the eyeball. It seems that the combination of your counterfeit glasses, and the time you spent looking with your unprotected eyes have caused........." But Tom was no longer listening. He was only weeping, silently.
10:45 A.M. July 26th 2034
Although it had been more than ten years since his sight was stolen from him, Tom still dreamed in full color. In the middle of his dream of playing football for the Fighting Irish, Tom wakes up with a jolt. He realizes it's because something scratchy just ran over his uncovered feet. He sits up and continues crawling around cursing as he scrapes his knee on a chunk of concrete. A couple days ago, Tom was beaten and robbed of his shoes and his cane. Since then crawling, was easier than walking on broken glass or the discarded needles near his “home” under the overpass. Plus, it made it easier for him to feel where he was going. He knew he was close to the highway because he heard the semi-trucks, but he wasn’t quite there yet.
12:06 P.M. July 26th 2034
Tom hears the sounds of cars and trucks passing by closely, and his hands feel the hot sunbaked concrete. He finally stands up, glad to be off his hands and knees. The sounds of the interstate keep getting louder as Tom walks forward. Suddenly, Tom hears only a deep bellowing truck horn and eighteen screeching tires. At that same instant, Tom sees a final flash of light. The sun overhead stares down at Tom, unfazed, waiting patiently for the next eclipse.