On The Journey Towards Caring for Others

After being diagnosed with a brain tumor, my mother's health deteriorated gradually and for about seven long years my father was her primary care giver. The tasks grew tiring and tedious. She begged to be relegated to her bed and would use every conniving trick to lie down even though everyone knew she need more physical activity. And, the ordeal to get her to eat to nourish her body became a daily struggle. My father would anguish over trying to do all the doctors recommended and often felt a failure. However, he would get up each day with renewed effort and a firm resolve to try to prolong her life. I parallel that to how God must feel watching us destroy creation and one another in a world of war and poverty. Our gifts are so abundant and as intimate as our very breath. Any loved one always wants the best for the beloved and we are graced time and time again with all that we need to grow spiritually with one hand outstretched and the other behind our back. Each person in our world deserves a dedicated caregiver as faithful as God himself. Perhaps we are the reluctant hands that hold the power.

- Barbara Fuhrwerk