Thanks for posting that info Jennifer
Well I've been up since 5am, enjoying the quiet house while the family sleeps. Been reading the papers of the deaths of several people. The two cancer victims (Clare Oliver and Ellice Hammond) and the 91 year old lady who was beaten up by burgulars. It has given me lots of food for thought (not usually possible when the kids are filling the house with their presence!). These women all faced incredible challenges. Clare (died of a melanoma from a solarium) knew that she wasn't going to live and made the best "use" of her time advocating for change. Ellice (diagnosed with cancer in her 22nd week of pregnancy and chose to stop treatment so that her daughter Mia could live). How strong were these women!!!? I just can't quite wrap my head around it...quite. There is a little voice whispering inside me that is assuring me that all is good for these women. The challenges they had to face allowed their spirits to 'fly' ie reach their full potential. I can't help think that mine is kinda languishing in comparison. I'm thinking aloud here but whilst these stories are sad I am not defining them as "tradgic". I think that if you can look past the suffering something truely special and wonderful has happened. I am so inspired. Not that i would wish what these women went through on anyone but isn't their inspiration a real insight and (dare I say it "proof" of the existance of God?) Where does this kind of strength come from? The families of these women will be in my prayers this weekend.
ETA: still mullin'I guess some people would also say "How can there be a God? If he existed then HOW could allow this kind of this to happen? How can he allow suffering?" Well I find this hard to answer but I have some vague notion that physical suffering is sometimes necessary for spiritual growth... just like the mother has to suffer in labour to birth her baby maybe the body sometimes has to suffer for the spirit to emerge? Sometimes this is the only way? C.S Lewis gives the analogy of the spirit as a muscle: challenges are the exercise that the spirit muscle needs to grow... sometimes it just needs to hurt. I know that my future is going to involve many different sorts of physical and emotional pain... I just hope I can find the strength... or accept the strength, when the time comes. I guess this is all straightforward to some of you
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