I have spent the last year sad that I had lost the friendship of one of the neatest, dearest women to me. E came along at a time when I needed help identifying myself as a strong, independent career woman after the death of my first child, and has assisted me through some tremendously difficult times. She has brought me meals, cared for my children, and welcomed me in to her family. All of that stopped about a year ago. All communication, for the most part, ceased. Where once was a beautiful flourishing friendship was simply a black hole. I missed her tremendously. I worried about her health, her family, her marriage... had I done something to offend? What was keeping her away?
Today I learned that she has been caring for her own sick children, sick friends, sick friends' children. Doing the cooking, laundry and childcare for a friend fighting breast cancer, and another whose son has Cystic Fibrosis. As she told me about her past year, tears came to my eyes. How self-centered have I been? E looses herself in the service of others. She's done it for me... of course she's doing it for others. And she's doing it all sleep-deprived due to an 8-month old who refuses to sleep through the night.
Hearing about the battles these women are facing forced me to look at my own extreme fortune. Health, comfort, family. Things we take for granted until suddenly challenged. I was also reminded of my own trials - those that shake you to the core and leave you grasping to make sense of it all. I am grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the eternal perspective it places on life.
Today was a day where it was better to listen than to talk. To enjoy sitting at the same table with my dear friend, whose heart is larger than most and whose capacity to serve is unrivaled. I know that the women she is helping cherish her friendship, love and service.
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