His Name Is Gary

When someone says, "can I tell you a story," is it bad that I think about this blog?  When it is a great story like the one I heard today, I am ready to push the person out the door and get to my computer.  Unfortunately, I had some work to finish up before I could write.  There are days I work hard in the candy shop.  I know, you don't care.  You want the story.
Gary comes in.  He is excited about coming to the shop for the first time.  That is not unusual for a child.  For an adult it is.  He started looking around.  Mentioned what a great addition this is to our town.  I'm thinking, well if people like you never come in, not sure how great it is.  Gary said, "I used to be blind."  Maybe you saw me walking around with my dog.  I said I had not.  I asked if he had surgery to correct his blindness.  He did not.  Gary has multiple sclerosis.  He has overcome many obstacles with his disease.  There was a time he was in a wheelchair.  He had feeding tubes.  He had several trachea tubes.  It is not uncommon for people with MS to lose their vision.  The optical nerves in their eyes can slowly die off.  That is what happened to Gary.  For two years he was in total darkness.  On a Good Friday he woke up and could see.  Clearly see.  He said he had never seen his dog.  It scared him and he screamed.  Scared the dog into the other room.  His vision is now 20-15.  The doctors consider it a miracle.  He regenerated new optical nerves.  He said they can still see the dead nerves.  Now people can get some of their optical nerves back.  The miracle is he got all of his back.  The doctors said normally when it happens people still wear coke bottle glasses.  Not Gary.  He has a very mile prescription.
He got to keep his dog.  Her name is Hoosier.  They still walk 4 miles a day.  Gary said each night he makes a plan of something he wants to do the next day.  Today the plan was to come to my shop.  He said he likes to make people smile, tell his story.  He was able to start driving again.  No restrictions.  He can do his own grocery shopping.  Gary still has MS.  He is not sitting around wondering how it is going to hit him next.  He is out there enjoying life.  Today he walked into Coco's and told me his story.  He made me laugh, smile, and have goose bumps.  Glad he stopped by.