Since my accident, I have been amazed at the life lesson God has taught me through this experience. As many of you know, my favorite Bible verse is "Every good and perfect gift is from above." No, I don't think God intended that I almost cut my finger off and that I would have to have surgery just to teach me a lesson, but I do think He intended to impart a gift to me through the experience. That gift has been hard to take for me, Miss I-Can-Do-It-All-By-MYSELF-And-It-Will-Be-Done-Right! Yes, I'll admit, I am type A to the max and the more anxious I am about it, the more type A I get. So becoming incapacitated, so to speak, and having to rely on others to HELP ME has been a tough little pill for me to swallow. But I'm a good girl, and I did take my medicine with a spoon full of humility and I have learned a HUGE lesson! My life has been simplified, only the necessary things have taken place. All superfluous activities and things I THOUGHT I NEEDED to be doing have been eliminated. That's not to say that I haven't figured out how to keep a clean house, make beds, fold laundry, etc., but it is to say that I have slowed the activity down. And through that I have been given the gift of simpleness, the gift of more time to really BE with my family in presence of mind instead of thinking of the million other things I "SHOULD" be doing while I am with them, the gift of allowing family and friends to really HELP me and to know they really do care about me, the gift of prayer and reflection that give me perspective. It's quite amazing really how awesome and humbling God's gifts are to us and how truly perfect they are for where we are in our life's journey. Through all of this, the same part of the song "Simple Gifts" has kept replaying in my head, "'tis a gift to be simple, 'tis a gift to be free, 'tis a gift to come down where we ought to be . . ." Thank you God for giving me this gift!
"Simple Gifts" was written by Elder Joseph while he was at the Shaker community in Alfred, Maine in 1848. These are the lyrics to his one-verse song:
'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free,
'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.
When true simplicity is gain'd,
To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,
To turn, turn will be our delight,
Till by turning, turning we come round right.
2 comments:
Amy - I am so happy that out of such a horrifying experience, you have had such a wonderful, revealing and positive experience. It truly is a gift to be simple and to enjoy God's simple gifts. The older I get the more I realize this. As you know that is one of my favorite songs, and I love to play it on my dulcimer.
Thank you for writing this beautiful narrative of your experience. I think anybody that reads it will come back down to where we all belong. Love you ... Mom
Amy what a beautiful narrative. Yes the simple things are to be cherished..., I learned this from my activities and adventures as a Cub Scout Den mother, many years ago now. I relish those simple times by the campfires or in caves, or where we had pitched our tents deep in the woods..., sharing simple stories and relishing the abilities of individuls who shared their unique experiences while on these ventures. I think before that I didn't want to get dirty or sweat or be out of my comfort zone. It was an amazing and awsome experience breaking away from what I thought to be comfort zone and has helped me adapt in many ways to face some unique situations without fear. Of course I was terrified at your almost cutting your little finger off, that was the most heart-wrenching experience I have had..., I think because of the blood you lost that night. It was like seeing an innocent bird with a broken wing but worse because of the cut and trauma from blood lost. Well, bad things do turn into good things sometimes or at least we can learn from it and definitly slow down and then access our blessings. You are a fine young lady and always will be no matter what life brings. I commend you for always striving to bring forth the best you can in any situation.
Love you always,
Aunt Brenda - Memphis, TN
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