About a year and a half ago I had rotator cuff surgery. Recovery and physical therapy for my shoulder was one of the most difficult and painful things that I've ever had to endure and it was a very humbling experience. Recently, my daughter was in a bicycle accident. She broke her collar bone in several places and had to undergo surgery and the placement of a steel plate and 7 screws to keep her bone together. Because of a stroke she suffered her life has only been with the use of one arm, and then to have extremely limited use of that arm due to an injury...well, lets again talk about a humbling experience.
I hear about countless injuries, accidents and surgeries constantly and sometimes I wonder "why"? Why this person or why that person? I've gone through my day today with severe back pain, been on the verge of tears all day long and again wondered "why"? I finally came to the conclusion...that this is simply my trial to bear and I'd rather bear my trial than anyone else's. Getting old sucks, but the truth is there are much younger people than myself who bear tremendous physical trials all the time. I can't imagine what other people go through, the pain, the suffering.
After I had my rotator cuff surgery I ended up in the hospital with pneumonia and then to top it off an allergic reaction to drugs. It was awful. There was a time during those experiences when I felt like I lost hope. I cannot even adequately express the despair and discouragement that I felt. It was as if nothing mattered and nothing would ever be better. But, eventually with prayer and faith it did get better...eventually my hope returned and life became important again.
I believe that we're all faced with challenges unique to us, unique to our circumstances, our personalities. I believe that we're all blessed with the opportunity to find hope. We live in a world that would have us keep our hope to ourselves. A world that says, "Think about yourself first and what you want, nobody else matters" I couldn't agree less. We have the wonderful opportunity in our lives to help others. To bear one another's burdens, to lift one another up, to be an example of charity and love.
When is the last time that any of us went out of our way to help someone? Not because we were asked to but because we saw a need and took action? I was at the grocery store today and I had some heavy items in my cart, and as I said before my back pain has had me close to tears all day, the woman who was checking me out...maybe seeing a little of my pain...said so many kind things to me and helped me with the items...that I almost cried right there.
Life is about helping others. I sit here typing and I'm so consumed with gratefulness for kind people that tears fill my eyes. I hope, truly, that I can see other's needs and help without being asked. I hope that I can give back just a little of what others do for me, because when all is said and done...it's all about everyone else.
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