A wonderful blogger over at Things I can’t say has penned Wednesdays as pour your heart out Wednesdays. (Click the link above to read more about it.) When I got up this morning, I had no idea what I was going to blog about. It is amazing how God will push you to the next level. So here is my heart poured out:
On Saturday, I had the opportunity to speak to the local support group for Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) about medications. (You know in my real life, I am a legal drug dealer {pharmacist}. LOL) EDS is a group of inherited disorders that affect your connective tissues — primarily your skin, joints and blood vessel walls. While the severity of symptoms can vary widely, the most common ones are stretchy, fragile skin, extra-flexible joints and pain. For my presentation, people in the group submitted names of medications for me to review and explain.
I was sent over 25 medications in various drug classes. I spent all day Saturday getting my power point ready and I was VERY nervous. As I was giving the presentation, one lady just smiled back at me and nodded with everything I said. It is always nice when you have to speak in front of people to have someone who is pleasant to look at and seems at least remotely interested in what you have to say. So, after the first five slides or so, I gave the presentation to her. She and I were having a conversation.
At the end of the presentation, the group members were catching up on each other and the nice lady cleared her throat and made an announcement. She clapsed her hands and looked around the room and said “I know you have all been worrying about me, but thank you Jesus, I am fine. I would be lying to all of you if I did not say that when the doctor said, “Breast Cancer”, I didn’t go to pieces, but through it all I am blessed”. My mouth dropped and I squeezed my butt cheeks together to stop the tears from flowing. (Squeezing da cheeks to stop tears may sound strange but one of my girlfriends swears by it. I think you end up laughing instead of crying!)
She went on: “I had my lumpectomy about 4 weeks ago and will be meeting with the oncologist about radiation this week. I will not complain. They caught it early”. Could I have sat through a presentation and smiled if I was battling what she is? Or would I have talked loudly about it at the beginning of the presentation to gather sympathy and well wishes?
I’m not sure how I would have been. However, I did realize that I take a lot of stuff for granted. I realized I needed to say THANK YOU. Thank you God for health, life, family, a place to lay my head at night, friends, and so many more things, EVEN my struggles. There is an old song that the choir at my Grandmother’s church used to sing called: “I Won’t Complain”. When I was younger, I didn’t understand it, but as my years roll on, I am beginning to grasp it. Here is a verse:
I’ve had some good days.
I’ve had some hills to climb.
I’ve had some weary days and some sleepless nights.
But when I look around and think things over,
All of my good days, outweigh my bad days
So I’ll say Thank You Lord, I won’t complain!
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
Wow, she sets an amazing example! I get whiney when I am not going through anything near as difficult as what she is!
Thanks for linking up and sharing this!
Wow! I am constantly being reminded that you just never know what someone else is going through….
That was a beautiful post and I love the spiritual insights you brought out in it! I really do! I posted something similar yesterday here: http://www.bethszimmerman.com/?p=1040 so I get what you're saying!
But girl … you nearly ruined my powers of concentration and ability to appreciate your depth with “I squeezed my butt cheeks together to stop the tears from flowing.” (I never realized that's where tears came from but I'll take your word for it.) Is it okay if I laughed … just a little!
What an amazing lady. I don't think I'd be nearly that gracious or positive in her shoes. It's always so nice to get a reminder about being grateful for the good things and positive about the bad things. I bet that kind of attitude leads to a positive outcome more often than the opposite.
Also I laughed at the idea of squeezing your butt cheeks together! I'm going to have to try that sometime…and see if I can stop myself from laughing out loud.