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That next heartbeat, that??™s what we
pray for. We are the medically challenged. We are the ones
who keep our medical appointments because we must. To miss
that appointment is just unthinkable. We are the ones who
stand, or wheel, or linger between each heartbeat, hoping
for new medications or praying for a cure. Most of us pray
every day. We cling to a merciful God whom we are certain
will give us that next heartbeat.
Please do not feel pity, for we have
learned to rejoice in each moment that we are alive. We
memorize sunsets and sunrises, and we celebrate the smiles
and nuances of the ones we love. We are captivated by
life. We revel at each new bird that stops by to visit our
feeders, even the starlings, the pigeons, the sparrows and
the doves. In the mountains we feel blessed to see the
bluebird, the indigo bunting, the woodpecker, and the
thrush. In the south near the ocean, we rejoice over the
plumage of the flamingoes, with their hot pink wings, and we
have committed to memory the piercing cries of the pelican
and the gull.
Flowers thrill us, no matter their
scent, shade or hue. Nothing delights us more than the
sight of spring??™s promise bursting forth from it??™s long
winter??™s rest, petals lifting their heads and reaching for
the rain and sun. We sometimes need assistance, and some of
us are blessed to have family and friends who are willing to
haul the potting soil, build raised beds, and make a
wonderland of colorful blooms, just so that we can watch
from our window and marvel at their beauty.
We survivors of life look back
occasionally at our healthy days, and often we regret the
times that we wasted on worry, depression, anger, and fear.
So, many of us have gone beyond fear, to a brave new world
of hope. We are thankful for every new medication that has
not only extended our lives, but has improved its quality.
We would not be here, celebrating, without the miraculous
drugs available today.
We would not want to miss a single
moment of our lives. We have discovered that we can still
grow and change. We have learned to love more and laugh
more, and, frankly, life is worth it. How could it not
be?!
Just this year, in spite of record
breaking winter lows that left me shivering, and now, into a
cold and windy spring all the tiny twigs that I planted six
years ago have thrived, and they are bursting into bloom.
Through sunshine and shadow, they have triumphed over the
clay and rock strewn ground that I, laughingly, call soil.
I have many reasons to be thankful, and
each day I like to number a few. Some-times the list
becomes so long that I just have to sit and marvel at a God
who provides so many reasons for me to celebrate life. I
have dreamed of writing stories, all my life, and reaching
the hearts and minds of others throughout the world. This
dream would not have been possible until a few years ago,
when the internet exploded into a place of instant
communication and friendship.
Not too long ago, I received a response
from a young woman who was terribly isolated in a large
European city. She poured her heart out to me, and her
words were filled with hopelessness. I was able to connect
her, in a most miraculous way, to a fellowship of faith and
love, and all it took were a couple of emails to others who
cared. I am thankful for the stories of my life, that have
been guided by a loving God who holds the outcome of every
possibility in His hand. These connections through his
grace have given feet to my thoughts and wings to my dreams.
?© Jaye Lewis, 2004
Jaye Lewis is an award winning writer
and born again Christian who looks at life from a unique
perspective, celebrating the miraculous in the every day.
Jaye is a contributing author for the Chicken Soup for the
Soul series. She lives in the mountains of Virginia with
her husband, two daughters and a menagerie of pets. Visit
Jaye??™s website at
www.entertainingangels.org Email Jaye at
jayelewis@comcast.net
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