I need chocolate. I admit it. I may be an addict. So, in an attempt to justify my obsession with dark chocolate, I did some reading on medical websites.
Gratefully, I discovered that the over 300 chemicals that compose chocolate have numerous and varied effects on our bodies through the nervous system.
So, here’s my attempt at summarizing what I learned:
If you walked up to the temple in first century Palestine and saw a circle of men forming around a partially clothed woman, what would you do?
Would you seek to cover her shame?
Would you watch the ugly event unfold?
Would you repeat to your fellow onlooker the latest gossip you heard about that woman?
Would you pull out your phone and snap pictures to post to Facebook?
Would you go find a rock yourself?
Would you run back home, grateful it wasn’t you in that circle?
My friend Bill was helping me with some computer training when that nagging “update” message showed up. So, while we waited, we chatted. He mentioned how dealing with computers requires patience and being blind and dealing with computers require even more!
Because he’d done computer training for lots of blind people for many years, he told me how he’d observed that each one deals with lots of frustration and it isn’t just because of computers; it’s because of the maddening trappings of blindness.
I asked Bill if he could summarize their frustration. His response was quick and I must say, accurate.
Since March 2011 our family has been through some pretty significant changes and events. From our niece’s heart transplant to moving back to Alabama as my husband joined the staff of a church here, our life has been filled with ups and downs for the past 18 months.
In March of this year, we found out my husband’s brother and sister-in-law were divorcing and the aftermath of that broken marriage continues to affect all of us in ways we could never have imagined.
My husband and I married right out of high school and have been married 34 years! We give God all the glory!
God blessed us with 2 daughters, as different as night and day in looks and personalities! Both of our girls had given their hearts to the Lord during their teen years and we were all living our lives as unto the Lord to the best of our ability and with what we knew at that time in our lives.
Our oldest daughter was married a few months before her 21st birthday and was married for 3 years when she called and told us she was leaving her husband. My husband and I were more than surprised and it rocked our world.
Over the years, lots of stories about my journey into blindness have been written. After a particular magazine interview, I dialed the phone. “Mom, I just finished an interview and I really think the writer is going to do a good job. I think you will like the article.”
I continued. “And, Mom, she asked if she could interview you. She only has a few questions and I wondered if you could?”
My mom hesitated. Her response taught me so much about God’s grace.
