Monday, 16 January 2017

STARING AT THE WALL

Very late on the night of Friday December 9th last, a friend, a close and dear friend of mine who was for a short time, years ago, my housekeeper, had a very severe stroke. Since then she has been a patient in the Stroke Unit of Blackpool Victoria hospital. Although I am a long-time family friend I don't want to say anything about her condition other than that she is very seriously disabled, permanently.

Her son, an absolute hero in my book, though he will probably tell me off for saying that, has been with her every day. I have been there most days and some of her legion of friends have visited when they could. She is shortly to be discharged into the care of a Home, as the hospital can do nothing more for her. I am left here gaping at the awfulness of it all. 

I've been a priest for over fifty years, mostly in parishes, and have of course came across this kind of thing before. My sincerely held "take" on what God is up to at these times involves seeing him as in some way part of the event, and the event itself part of his creative act for us all. I've never believed in a God who can be persuaded to leap down from the rafters and put it all back together again. This is life and life's not like that. 

As you can imagine, I spend many hours in front of this computer screen, but mostly these days I've been looking past the monitor at the cream coloured wall behind it and in particular at a plaque one of my sisters gave me some time back. It says simply, " Be still and know that I am".  Funnily enough those words seem to match my "take" on the situation as I described to you above.

About 100 people visit this site each day; to my great sorrow, only four or five ever say anything. The wall and I (the one behind the computer that is) have become well acquainted during all that writing. Perhaps that's life too, and part of the Almighty's great creative act of love. Hard to see it that way though, at least just now.

WORDS FROM THE DUDDON
(Name and  email address address supplied



Surely most of us have been in this situation at some time or other in our lives.
Watching and waiting with someone we love. 
It is indeed hard, sitting next to a hospital bed, to find God in the event at all.
And yes we have put away childish prayers of, " Just make him/her well. Let his/her suffering be over" - except perhaps for the whispered pleading in our hearts.
" In thee oh Lord I put my trust" is all I can manage.

Maybe it is in the weeks and months and years that follow that we can see God at work with and in us if we have but the courage and strength to stay the course. 
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