Encouragement

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Everyone tells me that I must be the happiest person they know. I am happy. I like to take the bad things and try to make them good, I prefer to see the sunny side instead of the clouds. My friends here at FW know that I have been enduring various trials of late, and I'll be honest, without their prayers and support, I'm not sure I would have gotten the joy I feel so deep in my soul back as quickly as I did.

I want to share with you a few things that have happened in the past two days that have proven that if you just leave the door open, God can step in and restore you. Things haven't really improved with Kevin, my son, but tonight we had a chance to spend a little uninterrupted time together, just the two of us, and we had FUN! We talked and laughed, shared things, and while I still don't understand exactly what Kevin is thinking at this point, I am so thankful when we are able to communicate without arguing. The love is still firmly in place, in spite of all the tough stuff. Thank you, Jesus. Also, my husband and I have been very busy working on the house, organizing, throwing out stuff. That's always fun to me. I realize how strange that sounds, but hard work really can soothe your soul. Physical activity always seems to put things back into perspective. Sitting still and daydreaming can have the same effect too. It's fun to imagine what could be, to dream of the future, to listen to the dreams of another. Isn't it said that helping someone else is the surest cure for what ails you? Does helping a dog count? It did for me.

My mom's dog has cancer, and his tumor erupted last night so I rushed over this morning to take them to the vet. Now, I have always dreamed of being in some sort of medical field. My husband says it's never too late, but that is a consideration for later. I wanted to be a nurse, wanted to be a vet, even though I am very leery of dogs I don't know due to an incident with a Doberman when I was young. I just feel like I am supposed to be doing 'something' to help. Anyway, life stepped in on that and I'm not as young as I used to be.

The vet decided to do the 'freezing' surgery this morning, without anesthetic so Poochie wouldn't have to spend the rest of the weekend there. He asked us to go wait while he did it. I just popped up and asked if I could go with him and watch. Now, bear in mind that I had simply rolled out of bed, tossed on some clothes, and haphazardly run a brush through my hair. I didn't even wash my face, had on no makeup at all, and didn't even stop to brush my teeth. To my surprise, the vet agreed, although he wouldn't allow Mama to go back (she gets very emotional over Poochie). Plus, she kept removing the muzzle before the vet told her to. I think he may have thought she would get so upset she would slap his hands away or something.

It was fascinating. My part of the operation was to simply hold the dog's tail up and away from the freezing stuff, but I got all sorts of information in the process. Since I call myself this animal's 'sister', I was also happy to be able to be there with him. He only let out a few small whimpers, which I tried not to hear. Still, I got to 'help' with an actual medical procedure! It was exciting--a tiny piece of the original dream. Another interesting thing? While we were between freezings, the vet opened a door and out came a Doberman! The vet brings his pooches to work with him. As usual, my heart skipped a beat but the dog wasn't at all interested in me--just came over to sympathize with Poochie, I guess.

So now that I've shared my little tale with you, I'd just like to remind you that even in the midst of the worst circumstances, you can find little pieces of joy. Just look around you. They're everywhere, and I think these are the things God uses to speak to us. Things may be terrible, but He is still there.

I hope you're all getting pieces of joy of your own. If it weren't for these tiny things, I'm not sure how we would go on. Encouragements--that's what they are. "Yes, children. I know that things are bad. I am still in control, however. Though you cannot change things, here is something I think you'll enjoy--it will take your mind off things for a bit".

I can hear Him--can't you?

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