“Young people - set an example for others by what you say
and do, as well as by your love, faith, and purity." ~ 1
Timothy 4:12
As the inky black of night paled
to grey dawn, Daren sat up in bed breathing hard and drenched in sweat. He coaxed himself to lie back down, but was far
too restless to sleep. He needed to get
up and do something useful. So he loaded the
dishwasher, took out the trash and pulled out the fixin’s for pancakes.
He awoke today like he had for the last six straight - with
rage still burning, and panic churning. Patti,
his beautiful wife of 23 years, his soul mate, his best friend learned a week
ago that she has breast cancer. Right
now, wallowing in self pity is more comforting that those sugary words of
encouragement offered by friends imploring him to keep smiling and promising
that everything will be alright.
She’ll undergo two 4-course chemo rounds and then radiation. Daren’s less worried about Patti than he is
for himself. She’s a courageous, loving,
cheerful person. She’ll make it through
this just fine. His wife was sick, but
he’s the one falling apart!
[Bills barely get paid
now – so what happens when our savings run out?
What happens when I run out of vacation days and can’t take Patti to her
chemo appointments? Lord, why don’t I
have cancer instead? I don’t exercise,
my blood pressure’s too high, and right now, I really don’t care! Today I have to tell three children that their
Mommy might die.]
“I have a disease called cancer. The doctors are doing everything they can to
make me well,” Patti said hopefully. “Daddy’s
going to take you to school until I get better, OK?”
The room grew deathly quiet.
Fourteen year old Quincy spoke first.
“I’ve got an idea,” he said.
“We’re going to need some extra money for Mom’s medicine and stuff. If I could borrow our battery operated hair
clippers, I could go door-to-door in the neighborhood and let people shave a
part of my head for a small donation. Dad,
do you think a $100 goal would be too much?
“It’s a great idea son, but don’t get your hopes up.”
So when he came back home two hours later with a completely
bald head and $725, Daren got down on his knees for the first time in a long
while, and thanked God. He knew now that
he had the strength to get through this too. A lesson learned from his teenage son.
Dear Jesus, You gave us children to humble
and teach us. They’re genuine; seldom
truly mean or arrogant. They know about
love and showing their feelings. They
take joy from their triumphs. In
grownups – we call that wisdom. Thank
You!
