Monday, November 2, 2009

Dance in the Rain



It was a busy morning, about 8:30, when an elderly gentleman in his 80's arrived at the hospital to have stitches removed from his thumb. He said he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 am.
 
The nurse took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him looking at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound. On exam, it was well healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, got the needed supplies to remove his sutures and redress his wound.

While taking care of his wound, I asked him if he had another doctor's appointment this morning, as he was in such a hurry.
The gentleman told me no, that he needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife. I inquired as to her health.

He told me that she had been there for a while and that she was a victim of Alzheimer's disease. As we talked, I asked if she would be upset if he was a bit late.
 

He replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him in five years now. I was surprised, and asked him, 'And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?'

He smiled As he patted my hand and said, 
'She doesn't know me,  
But  I still know who she is.' 

I had to hold back tears as he left, I had goose bumps on my arm, and thought, True love is neither Physical, nor romantic. 
True love is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be, and will not be.
The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything;
they just make the best of everything they have.  'Life isn't about how to survive the storm, But
 "How to dance in the rain."  
  
This is the kind of love Jesus has for each of us. It doesn't matter what we've done, where we've been, what we have, and what we have not. This is the kind of love Jesus wants us to show to others. Is there someone near you who you can show this kind of love to today, This Day? Reach out to someone with the love of Jesus and watch the miracle.



Peace and Joy,
Susan


1 Peter 2:9 (NIV) But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.


10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Someone once told me that gratitude is an attitude of the heart not of circumstances. Thank you for the beautiful post today Susan. May God richly bless you this week.

gigi said...

I've always loved that story and it shows the pure love of Christ. Blessings on an awesome week :)

Debbie Petras said...

Susan, this was so powerful! "The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the best of everything they have." That's a quote worth writing down. And then "Life isn't about how to survive the storm but how to dance in the rain."

Now that's some profound wisdom!

That is the kind of love Jesus has for each one of us and how grateful I am.

My husband and I will be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary tomorrow. I'm working on my post with photos to publish. May I use the quote to add to my post with credit to you?

Very timely post.

Hugs to you,
Debbie

RCUBEs said...

What a heart warming story. How many of us do not recognize or even remember Jesus at times? We forget but He is always there, loving us and waiting for us patiently. Blessings.

Heart2Heart said...

Susan,

What a great story of unconditional love! My hubby and I were having this very same conversation over the weekend. Love never fails!

Love and Hugs ~ Kat

H-Mama said...

Can you pass the tissue please? Such a wonderful definition of true love.

Edie said...

I can't even imagine being loved like that by anyone except Christ.

I found you from Kat's blog. I enjoyed reading what you did on halloween. :)

crittyjoy said...

This is beautiful. My sweet Grandma has dementia and that is how we feel about her. She may not remember me but I so remember her.

Thank you for putting a beautiful face to this and for the reminder that that is how He loves us.

Jarrett said...

Hi,

If one wants to get into or stay in shape, dancing can provide cardio benefits, as well as improve your balance and increase your stamina.

Terra said...

Thanks for yet another sweet story from you. What a dear old gent taking such care of his wife, just like Jesus does for us.