Hello to everyone out there in the blogosphere! It’s been quite a while since my last post. These last few weeks have been extremely busy.
Would you like to know what I’ve been doing? Basically, I’ve been training as a home health aide. Well, I haven’t undergone any official training, but if rigorous, real-life experience counts for anything, then I’m well-qualified by now.
Seriously, I’ve been pitching in to help take care of my youngest sister, who has been laid up and in excruciating pain for the past month and a half. I won’t go into detail about her medical situation, but it’s been pretty bad. But regardless of the situation, we know it’s in God’s hands and He has blessed her with good doctors and health insurance (smile).
Because of her current condition, the fact that she’s already on dialysis, and her constant need to manage pain, my sister has a veritable drugstore of meds—all of which must be taken at different intervals throughout the day. Some are to be taken three times a day with food; others, three times a day without food. There are once daily pills, those to be taken every 12 hours, and even a weekly injection that I administer. On top of all that, there are meals, wound care, assistance with personal care and hygiene, late-night cries for help, other household chores, a busy six-year-old niece to supervise, and a never-ending stream of laundry.
Needless to say, taking care of my sister requires a lot of work—detailed, around-the-clock attention. And, if you spend that much time with anyone, you’re bound to run into some personality clashes. (And the tension around the house has been as thick as dried mud throughout this whole ordeal.)
All in all, my mom, other sister, and I have been getting some serious hands-on learning in what it really means to be a caregiver…what it really means to love someone.
The Bible tells us in 1 Cor. 13:4-8a: “4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8Love never fails.”
Sometimes we feel like everything is closing in on us and we just can’t handle it anymore. But love is patient.
Sometimes we want to scream at the top of our lungs and lash out at each other because we’re there. But love is kind and it’s not easily angered.
Sometimes we feel like we just can’t take it anymore and want to call it quits. But love always perseveres. It never fails.
Through this whole process, my family has really been learning a lot about what real love really is. We pray that the Lord will be glorified, as we learn and grow, and that we will come to love Him and each other even better.
Wish I could say more, but duty calls! I love my family.
May you richly grow in His grace!
Firmly In His Grip,
Genikwa
I know that question is loaded, but I had to ask it that way to get your attention. This morning, I read an Associated Press article about a senior at a Christian high school in Ohio who has been told he will be suspended from school if he attends he takes his girlfriend to her public high school prom.