Connie Parke began to notice changes in her vision in 2003. A consultation with an eye doctor in Montana, Colorado where she lived and worked, confirmed that her vision was deteriorating.
At first, doctors said Connie had glaucoma. Other doctors’ opinion said her vision problem was due to detached retinas and told her it was incurable. True enough, she lost 85% of her vision months after.
The thought of being blind devastated her whole family. Connie was in a state of denial for a long time. She tried to live independently but always inflicted harm on herself. She groped the walls to walk, bumped herself, and singed her hand on the stove every time she cooked. One time, her curtain caught fire.
Daughter Barbara came to help her out by putting her in a school to learn Braille. Somehow, this would help her mom cope with blindness.
Barbara said, “She is my mom and I will always be there for her no matter what happens between us.” In that instance, she fulfilled her promise to be there for mom if she needed her and that she would never let her stay in a nursing home.
Connie was coming to terms with her condition until one day when she received life-changing news.
“A retina specialist saw me and he said that I was misdiagnosed and there was nothing wrong with me. He told me that I needed to go to a cataract specialist,” Connie said.
She immediately went, and two cataract removals later, Connie had her sight back. During the test, her eyes even proved to have 20/20 vision.
Connie reunited with the family whom she hasn’t seen for 15 years. It was a happy reunion full of tears of joy.
Exodus 20:12 says, “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” God has seen the faithfulness of Barbara to her mother Connie and rewarded them both.