Just a reflection

I am always amazed by what people can endure and by their seeming ability to cope with extraordinary adversity. There is a family at my church in which the father suffers from Muscular Dystrophy (or at least that is what I think, because I have never asked). He has a wife and a small boy who is three and a half years old. The father struggles to walk, to speak to convey any emotions whatsoever. He cannot speak, although he can hum and convey some sounds. I have no doubt that his mind struggles to speak, but his body just won't work with him. 

I sat next to the family today and I was just amazed by how wonderful his wife is. There she was, sitting there with her little boy (who, by the way was SO WELL behaved, I was amazed), putting a cardboard pirate's eye patch on him, handing him little plastic gold coins, and at the same time continuously pointing at the program, showing her husband where they were in the service. Each time the congregation rose to say a prayer, she helped to lift her husband, while holding her son's hand. Her husband is at least six inches taller than her, but there she was, bracing his back to help him stand, and holding onto her son at the same time. She is raising a son and taking care of her husband, which I'm sure requires great patience and strength. I'm sure that's also why she goes to church. Sometimes when we have no one else to lean on, church can be a refuge. 

As I watched her, I was in awe; so much so, that it brought tears to my eyes when I thought about what she was doing. To watch her do this gracefully and with a smile made me wonder, how does she do it? I would like to think that I could be as patient, kind and good-spirited as she is, but then again, I would think even she hits her limits at times. Still, if that's the case, she really keeps it all together. I don't know what her husband would do without her, for she is not only taking care of her son, but also her husband. I don't know why we are given what we are, but it's amazing to see what some people can do in the face of adversity. I think she must be used to her role in the family; as she sat there she and I talked a little about her son, and she smiled and laughed, and my awe of her only increased. 

People tend to complain about the lives they lead. We complain about our husbands because they don't do this or that. We complain because we want to feel appreciated. But as I could see with this woman, sometimes we do have to accept what's been given to us, and do the best we can with what we have. I can complain about B teasing me, and my friends can complain about the work their husbands don't do, but at least my husband can speak. At least he is able to walk without my support. If something happened where he could not do these things, I only hope for humility, grace, patience and compassion.