I have a confession to make. When I was a kid, I slept with a grand menagerie of animals. Even my pillow case was a raccoon, and I cuddled the tail. I've always relied on the love and support of friends filled with cotton, and (some) holding a plastic banana. Here's the big confession...I still do.
I know, I know. I'm 44 years old, married with kids and grandkids. I went for years without a "stuffed up animal" (as the kids call them) to sleep with. When I had my cardiac arrest, one of the floral arrangements came with a fluffy little white bear in it. My daughters named her "Faith", and she spent time in the hospital with me. She reminded me of my kids, and how much we love each other. She also reminds me that I always have "a little Faith".
Faith got to go to Wyoming with me. I felt like I would need all the Faith I could get to be supportive, and to deal with death, my old nemesis. It really was good to be able to hold my Faith dear to my heart every night in this strange new place. In fact, Faith is very well-travelled. She's been to Nun Camp, Oklahoma, Alabama, and on pretty much every overnight trip I've gone on since we've met. Faith was helpful on the airplane, even though she was in my carry-on bag. You should never fly without Faith! I'm pretty sure Faith racks up a lot of frequent flyer miles, if you know what I mean!
The best part about having a friend named Faith, is that so many things you would normally say take on a new meaning, and depth. For example, I have heard Sylvia say, "I was looking all over for Faith while you were gone, but I just couldn't find her." Hmmm. (Sylvia shares Faith with me, and spends a lot of time looking for her.) "Faith got pushed down to the foot of my bed." Hmmm. "Mom, can I have Faith tonight?" (Yes, you can. And every night!) "I don't know where Faith is, did you look under the covers?" (Okay, that's just weird, but you get the picture.)
So it's cool that someone sent me flowers with a very cute little bear in it. But even cooler is that my whole cardiac experience has brought MY faith to life. It's almost like my faith is taking on wings of it's own. I took a leap of faith and sent in some of my writing and got PUBLISHED!!!(Insert two thumbs up and grin!) I had the faith to tell my story in public, in front of a lot of people, and make them do a "Go Red" cheer. They made contributions of several thousand dollars to fight heart disease! Even this blog is a direct result of God's gift of faith. It's a really good gift, I think. (The Faith, not the blog, unless you are being blessed, then maybe the blog, too.)
Think about your Faith. Hold it dear to your heart. Keep it close, and care for it. Nurture it and share it with your kids, your friends, or whoever you know that could use a little Faith. Take it with you everywhere you go. Let it out of the carry-on bag. Let it stretch it's wings and fly.
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