Sr. Wantabee was at the hospital this morning. “Please visit…., she had a terrible post stress incident last night, locked within herself for half an hour! It was pretty scary.” The patient, an athlete, had suffered a terrible sports accident 11 years previously, leaving her lying on the ground, trying to rise. Her father had told her that if she stayed down, it better be good or she better get up but as she tried to rise she could see the faces, as if it were yesterday, yelling at her to be still. When they rolled her over, the pain was so intense she vomitted all over infront of everyone. In the ambulance as she was in shock she could hear them radioing about a possible amputation and then about their doubts as to whether she would make it at all. She did make it and there was no amputation but now, 70 operations later, it was still questionable whether the injured area would ever stabilize and be usable. Unthinking friends try to encourage her by wishing they got to live off their mothers and have leisure time. Sourly she shared, what woman wants to be living off her mother as an adult and sitting around in hospitals? What eternal lesson had she not learned to deserve this? Of what value was she?
She did share that as she gradually recovered some women came to her and asked her to coach them in her sport. She had derived great pleasure from this while trying to hide how much she wished she could participate. Her team had even moved up a division. Her new friends flew with her to doctor appointments and drove her places. There was a slight hope that she would recover enough to return to work eventually.
Sr. Wantabee shared her insight from the Sunday reading when she had felt convicted for not doing enough good deeds. Christ had said to Judas who criticized Mary for spreading perfume on his feet, “Leave her alone.” Life is unfair and somehow we never do enough good but Christ says, “leave her alone” oh doubter, she is the person I died for and have a future eternity for. Life is unfair but she has faith, friends and family. Her daily battles with discouragment, dispair and pain may never be noticed by others but God knows. She is an unsung sheroe in my book and His.
On the Way to Wonder 