The Magic Glasses

Once upon a time there was a boy named Miguel who could not see. Although he had been blind his entire life, he loved books. He could not read, though he loved the scent of the pages, as well as the feeling of the books.

Miguel would spend his spare time in the NYPL (New York Public Library), sitting quietly and in deep concentration. He wouldn’t read, because he could not. Instead, Miguel would spend his time straightening the pages of old books.

One by one, he would take books off their shelves and would carefully straighten out each page with as much devotion as humanly possible. Nobody cared more for the books than Miguel. He often pretended that he could read the books himself, and made up many different stories he imagined the books would contain.

One day, Miguel stumbled across a shelf in the library which he had never come across before. Curious, he removed a book from the shelf, dusted it off, and began to what he liked to do best: straighten the pages with as much devotion as humanly possible. He opened the book, and to much of his surprise, he felt a strange object inside the book. reading glasses!

Miguel wondered who could have forgotten glasses in the old book?! He decided he would put them on, and surprisingly they fit him perfectly. All of a sudden, Miguel started feeling a tingling sensation in his eyes. The sensation grew stronger to the point where he had to take the glasses off. Miguel put the glasses in his bag and ran home.

Once home, he decided to give the glasses another try. Shortly after putting them on, he was astonished to realize that he could SEE! He could not contain his joy. The first thing he did was open a book.
All of a sudden, Miguel’s excitement came to a stop. He did not know how to read the book. The letters appeared very different than he had imagined. There were no pictures, no colors. Just condensed symbols that meant absolutely nothing to him.

Miguel entered the library the next day with a sad expression on his face. The librarian asked him, “What’s wrong Miguel? You always are so happy to come here. I’ve never seen you looking so miserable!” Miguel could not hold in his disappointment any longer, and burst into tears.

The librarian listened to Miguel’s story attentively, bewildered by his words. She decided that she would teach him how to read. Each day, the librarian sat with Miguel and taught him how to read until he was able to read all by himself.

As the years went by, Miguel grew from an illiterate boy into a well known author. Throughout his lifetime, he wrote over one hundred novels. His books were a huge success and he had many admirers around the world.

One day, when Miguel was old a gray, he decided to give his mind a rest. He had just completed writing his final novel, “The Magic Glasses”. Tired and content, he slowly removed his glasses and gently placed them between the pages of the novel. Miguel then closed the book, and drifted off into a deep sleep.