From the Heart
Sometimes in life you are just walking along whistling and singing “merrily merrily merrily merrily, life is but a dream,” and then you turn left at the end of the block and BAM you are hit with a nightmare on Elm Street.
You never saw what was coming.
You drop to your knees and try to pray. Your words are garbled. You struggle with your conversation with God.
How could this happen when you have tried to live a good life, obeying all 10 of the Commandments and the Golden Rule?
You are robbed of your security. You struggle to sleep and even when you do, you wake up exhausted.
You try to function and do what needs to be done. You are in robot mode.
I sat beside a friend this week who had just turned left, again, and found themselves on Elm Street.
A few weeks ago, I sat with another friend and her daughter, in a courthouse hallway, waiting for a decision which would, hopefully, end a nightmare.
On Saturday, a text message from a dear friend broke my heart as she, again, was waiting for more medical test results. The waiting was painful. She has waited several times before fighting health battles. She is tired.
Here’s the thing. Life happens. The good, the bad and the oh, so painful.
As much as Facebook and Instagram and all other social media try to portray life as sunshine and lollipops, the truth is, life is a force to be reckoned with.
I’ve wrestled with God. I’ve struggled to put the pieces together when life has shattered my heart.
The older I get the more questions I have for God. The big one is, why does life have to be so hard? I think the truth is … it just is.
What do we do with “the hard” is the question we must answer.
God said He would never leave us nor forsake us.
This week, as I was praying, I pictured God just sitting down beside me. I know it’s a strange thought. I was comforted. I just told Him my thoughts and my feelings.
Then I pictured in my mind all of those who have come alongside me, fighting similar battles. I realized that God had brought just the right people at just the right time to strengthen and encourage me.
They knew what the battle looked like. They were familiar with the nightmare. They had been on Elm Street.
And so it is, as I watch people make their way through their own nightmare on Elm Street, I can comfort them and reassure them that I understand their pain. I know how they feel. I have felt their fears.
I just wish I weren’t so familiar with knowing my way around Elm Street.