As she always did on New Year’s Eve, Elly de Lange (61) went outside two years ago to watch the fireworks. Until suddenly something shot into her right eye.

“It was a wonderful evening. After the pandemic, finally a New Year’s Eve just like the old days, with my husband Wim, our sons, my mother, and my youngest sister and her husband. We chatted, watched TV out of the corner of our eyes, and at midnight we toasted the New Year. I was the only one without champagne, because I’m taking diclofenac for my severe back pain, and you’re not supposed to drink alcohol while taking it. Besides, I wanted to be fresh for the MRI scan of my back next week—the one I’ve been waiting for so long. After midnight, we went outside, where fireworks were already going off in full swing. My mother and I sat down on the bench in front of the house, and with my head tilted back, I watched the graceful showers of red, green, blue, and gold stars in the black sky. Until suddenly: bang. Something shot into my right eye. I immediately lost vision in that eye. Shouting that something had gotten into my eye, I ran inside to put a wet cloth on it. My oldest son followed me in and started Googling in the meantime. “You shouldn’t put anything on it,” he said, “because you don’t want to put any pressure on it.” Meanwhile, my eye felt really strange, as if it were draining. I had to go to the hospital, and fast—but everyone had been drinking. We called my older sister, who fortunately was able to drive; she picked us up.”

This article is from: Libelle 54-2024