“IGNORE HIM!”One time, at my Peoria office at the Illinois Eye Center, I was examining an 8-year-old boy who had infantile esotropia that had been operated on years previously. He was in for a six-month check-up, and I had been seeing him for several years at this point so he was familiar with my routine. He was usually accompanied by one of his parents to my clinic, but this time his grandmother was with him. As is the case for all adults with pediatric patients, grandma was sitting next to me in the exam room while I started examining the boy’s eyes. With his head in the slit lamp, I started to focus on his right eye, and, as the boy knew I would, I started my joke. “Oh no!” I exclaimed. “We’ve got a problem!”At this, his grandmother became unglued. “What? What’s wrong?” she exclaimed. She stood up and started bouncing from one foot to the next, a nervous look on her face. At this, the boy turned his head away from the slit lamp and looked right at her. “Grandma, ignore him!” he shouted. At that, I couldn’t help but break out laughing.
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