Life Lessons Learned
April 24, 2004
There are so many times when
life just throws you a zinger. You either want to rewind and erase the
event or you want to fast forward your life and just get past the
difficult moment. Who ever gave us the false impression that life was
going to be easy anyway? We learn and grow the most through those
difficult times so why do we hasten to wish them away when we are in
the thick of it? Can we enjoy the difficult moments and relish in a
good lesson learned or are we destined for a life full of pity parties
that only have the guest of honor present?
All since the beginning of
November, our family has dealt with medical issue after medical issue.
Timmy had to have an unexpected MRI. Sarah has had 2 MRIs, an
ultrasound of her abdomen, 2 sets of X-rays, CAT scan of her kidneys, 2
sets of blood work, upper GI, endoscopic surgery, and bifocals. They
found that she is severely constipated, has acid reflux to the point of
vomiting most days, spina bifida occulta at S1 that can cause bowel and
bladder problems, renal pelvis distention that causes her bladder to
fill too quickly, etc. Oh - just for fun, she had a bout with
tonsillitis too on the one week she wasn't having diagnositic tests
run. Timmy had another mild case of toxic synovitis which caused us to
run more blood work and X-rays on him to check on his bone lesion that
resides in his right femur. I just am starting to feel like myself
again after being severely anemic for over a year. I also had a spider
bite that turned into cellulitis. Sarah is supposed to be getting
braces, but I think she's had enough to deal with for one 12 year old
right now that is knee deep in a science project and doing quite well
keeping up with the 29 days of school that she has missed. We are still
waiting on biopsy reports from her endoscopy and trying to maintain a
sense of normal. Today, Juliana is home sick with fever since Friday.
Where is the end of our tunnel? I can't see the light. Anyone have a
lantern? Ours is out of gas!
As we stumble through the
darkness, there are days where I just want to slap people when I hear
them complaining about the most mundane things. Most often, if they put
forth a little effort, they wouldn't even have half the problems they
are complaining about. Then there are those problems that hit us that
we have absolutely no control over. We realize that our little world
that we thought we had so much control over was really just existing in
our minds. We really have little or no control over much that comes our
way. What we do have control of, however, is our reaction to what
happens. How we respond to adversities is our very own choice. We can
wallow in our self pity or we can learn from our trials.
Could it be that all we have
gone through has been a blessing? Surely, nothing good can come out of
troubles. But God can do all things and He has taught us an invaluable
lesson. The little things are what mean the most in life. I used to
think that I had to do something big to make it worthwhile and
heartfelt. I have had some grandiose plans in my day, but none that I
had the time to take to fruition. They were all just great ideas. The
little things...a note to a friend saying you care, a hot meal
preprared with love, a hug, a shoulder to cry on, anything that
expresses the sentiment that you are a worthy person in my
life....these are the things in life that really matter. I know without
a doubt that I will be a better servant because of going through these
months of trial. I will be more sensitive. I will be more considerate.
I will listen more and talk less. I will prepare more meals. I will
send more cards. I will hug more. I will serve more. Yes, for this
mother, the zingers that have come our way have taught me a lesson in
humility. I don't need to do things on a grandiose scale. I just simply
need to serve in those areas I see a need. Sometimes it takes being on
the receiving end of things to realize how important those little
things really are.
