Every day, we, as humans, take things in our lives for granted. Whether it be the clean water we drink, the roof over our heads, or the presence of family and loved ones— few people take the time to appreciate the little blessings in our world. And color? Color is definitely one of them.
Last year, Xavier McCoury, a 10-year-old from North Carolina, got the surprise of a lifetime when he was able to see color for the very first time.
Xavier is completely color blind, meaning he has spent his entire life seeing the world in shades of black, white and grey.
The condition is a genetic trait which he inherited from his grandfather, and from the time his mother Melissa conceived, she had always known it could be a possibility that he could have it. It wasn’t until Xavier turned 3, however, that she began having real suspicions.
“It was at age three, I remember we were talking and he wasn’t sure what color a bunny was.”
According to Enchroma, color blindness is much more likely to affect males than females, with 1 in 12 men having issues perceiving color to some degree. However, Xavier’s condition, where the person can’t see any color at all, is particularly rare. While a life without color can seem dismal, it also “makes it really hard to accomplish many everyday tasks, because colors are such a central part of our life,” ColorBlindess.com explains.
Xavier was a baseball enthusiast and he longed to see the rich green of the field and vast, blue sky. Finally, on the boy’s tenth birthday, his wish was about to come true.
Xavier’s aunt Selena had heard about Enchroma glasses. Developed by Don MacPherson, a doctor in glass science, Enchroma glasses are supposed to help people with colorblindness see color.
“We’ve been praying for this for a long time,” Melissa said.
“Looking for answers and doing research in the past but nothing was out there that really seemed to be working.”
After going over the compatibility test on the Enchroma website, Xavier’s family wasn’t sure if the boy would be a good fit. But, despite the numbers, they decided to give it a go. Xavier’s aunt purchased the glasses as a surprise for his 10th birthday and video-chatted with the family from Ohio for the big reveal.
In the video, you see an enthusiastic Xavier shredding the paper and opening the box.
At this point, his aunt has already told him that the gift is “magic glasses” that are supposed to help him see color— but she isn’t sure if they’re going to work.
When he finally gets to the glasses, he can barely contain his glee.
But when finally puts them on, he’s so overwhelmed that he completely breaks down.
In an interview with WCNC, Melissa said, “Waiting for him to put them on and seeing his reaction and the huge smile that came across his face and then he started crying, it was just amazing because you could tell they worked.”
“There wasn’t a dry eye in the place.”
For the rest of the video, you see a mesmerized Xavier examining the green of the golf course and the colors of his favorite baseball gear.
Since being uploaded, Xavier’s surprise has been viewed over 1.4 million times.
“So touching, But SO HAPPY THAT THE KID CAN SEE COLOR ALSO”
“Omg who else cried when watching this?”
“A big THANK YOU to the people who made this possible! Blessings!”
See it for yourself below!
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