Page 30 - Miracle in the Eye

M MIRACLE IN THE EYE

mental role. Covering the two surfaces where teardrops function—the inner
surface of the eyelid and the outmost layer of the eyeball—and activating
tiny mucus glands embedded within it, conjunctiva supplies tears with the
lubrication necessary for smooth, slippery rotation and blinking.
Whether it's a hinge or a car engine, no mechanical device with mov-
able parts can run efficiently without regular lubrication. Forget the grease
and oil and soon the engine will burn out. But with the eyeball making ap-
proximately hundred thousand movements per day, you don't need to do a
thing. Lubrication is provided automatically by the system just described.
If that system were absent or even interrupted temporarily, each move-
ment of the eye would cause unbearable pain. Yet thanks to God's flawless
creation, a healthy person will never have such difficulties.

Cornea: The Window of the Eye
The eye is a round sphere, except for the small raised bump at the front,
where it receives light. Surrounding this sphere is the sclerotic layer—white
as milk, hard and tough, protecting the eyeball's internal tissues. The white
area of the eye surrounding the colored iris in the center is only the visible
part of this layer.
Suppose that the white of the eye was not hard and tough, but much
softer, like jelly. Were this the case, the eye's internal layers would not be pro-
tected. Also, any external substances that entered the eye would adhere to
the eyeball, becoming difficult to remove and causing potential damage.
However, tear drops easily clear the eye of any foreign particles thanks to the
fact that the white of the eye is fairly hard.
The structure of this hard white tissue changes suddenly at the center,
when it approaches the bulging spot at the front of the eye. This structure,
the cornea, is made up of a transparent layer permeable to light. Despite
being a continuation of the sclera or white of the eye, it is distinctly separate
and possesses a completely different structure (Figure 1.9). If the eyeball
were compared to a building, the white of the eye would be the marble exte-
rior; and the cornea would be its single round window.
The reason for the cornea's small size is quite simple: If the eye were

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