On Mikes blog someone mentioned the Popes visit being a mission. At first that sounded a little strange to me, to come to America for a mission. On the whole we seem to have so much here. Then I thought about it and with the Priest Sex Abuse scandal etc, it seems an appropriate mission, for at the very least, healing wounds.
On that note I called my mom this morning. My mom's job is taking care of my dad and no one could do it any better, my dad has outlived all the projections. In March of 2007 he was diagnosed with Pancreatic cancer that has spread to his liver, spine, behind one eye, and who knows where else. The paperwork we were given said dad would live 3 months without treatment, 6 months with treatment. Twice we were told by hospice that he wouldn't make it more than a couple of weeks, for 4 1/2 months (until February) he's was completely bedridden. He's not in remission but now he is walking (not far) from one room to the other with his walker. He is awake now up to maybe 6 hours a day. But anyway the point is my mom's world for over a year now, is my dad, she can't get out, she doesn't socialize, my dad is it. She doesn't get out of the house, she is definitely isolated. She's been wanting to get her house washed and called a few places for estimates. She said a few days ago she heard this racket outside the house and looked out and there were people washing the house 2 doors down. She walked down and asked them for an estimate to wash her house and one man said he would come down after they were finished and give her an estimate. Later she said she was cleaning and she heard some noise outside. They had already started washing her house. She said the man then gave her an estimate and since it was lower than she had already received over the phone from others so she said okay, especially since they already started it. She said she walked outside later when they were just finishing to give the man a check and he wouldn't take it. He said his church asks each of there members to do some extra actof kindness for someone once a month and this was it. He wouldn't even tell my mom his name. Now I have to tell you my mom and dad live in a pretty nice neighborhood. The last place you would think of doing a mission of any kind or even the last place you would think anyone needed a financial break was with anyone who lived in that neighborhood. But my mom was so emotionally touched by that. Outside the family and doctors and nurses she has no real contact with people. The contact she's had with the outside world has sadly been limited to a church whose been wanting and kind of pressuring them to donate money and from financial people who have heard about dads condition and want my mom to let them take over their finances. Just sort of the kind of people I think of as preditors. But this one man, doing an act of kindness for my mom, meant so much to her. She sounded so humbled, grateful, filled. He asked her to please just do the same for someone else.
I guess the point is my mom could afford to pay but the mission went further than the cost of washing their house. The mission really showed a very very lonely isolated women, human kindness which is what she ultimately needs. My mom's patiance and even her own temperment has seemed near the edge lately. That act of kindness seemed to restore her. She sounded like her old self. It also means alot to me, while we live so far apart I'm gratefl to someone who would pick her to be kind to. If i try and think what God is trying to teach me here is I guess we can never judge who deserves or needs our "mission" the most. Sometimes those that seem like they have everything, might just have the biggest hole in their lives. It's like my parents are America and that man was the Pope. It may seem an unlikely place for a mission but the healing for those who've suffered abuse may be a larger hole than the rest of us can imagine. Okay another story going no where. I just wanted to share.
On that note I called my mom this morning. My mom's job is taking care of my dad and no one could do it any better, my dad has outlived all the projections. In March of 2007 he was diagnosed with Pancreatic cancer that has spread to his liver, spine, behind one eye, and who knows where else. The paperwork we were given said dad would live 3 months without treatment, 6 months with treatment. Twice we were told by hospice that he wouldn't make it more than a couple of weeks, for 4 1/2 months (until February) he's was completely bedridden. He's not in remission but now he is walking (not far) from one room to the other with his walker. He is awake now up to maybe 6 hours a day. But anyway the point is my mom's world for over a year now, is my dad, she can't get out, she doesn't socialize, my dad is it. She doesn't get out of the house, she is definitely isolated. She's been wanting to get her house washed and called a few places for estimates. She said a few days ago she heard this racket outside the house and looked out and there were people washing the house 2 doors down. She walked down and asked them for an estimate to wash her house and one man said he would come down after they were finished and give her an estimate. Later she said she was cleaning and she heard some noise outside. They had already started washing her house. She said the man then gave her an estimate and since it was lower than she had already received over the phone from others so she said okay, especially since they already started it. She said she walked outside later when they were just finishing to give the man a check and he wouldn't take it. He said his church asks each of there members to do some extra actof kindness for someone once a month and this was it. He wouldn't even tell my mom his name. Now I have to tell you my mom and dad live in a pretty nice neighborhood. The last place you would think of doing a mission of any kind or even the last place you would think anyone needed a financial break was with anyone who lived in that neighborhood. But my mom was so emotionally touched by that. Outside the family and doctors and nurses she has no real contact with people. The contact she's had with the outside world has sadly been limited to a church whose been wanting and kind of pressuring them to donate money and from financial people who have heard about dads condition and want my mom to let them take over their finances. Just sort of the kind of people I think of as preditors. But this one man, doing an act of kindness for my mom, meant so much to her. She sounded so humbled, grateful, filled. He asked her to please just do the same for someone else.
I guess the point is my mom could afford to pay but the mission went further than the cost of washing their house. The mission really showed a very very lonely isolated women, human kindness which is what she ultimately needs. My mom's patiance and even her own temperment has seemed near the edge lately. That act of kindness seemed to restore her. She sounded like her old self. It also means alot to me, while we live so far apart I'm gratefl to someone who would pick her to be kind to. If i try and think what God is trying to teach me here is I guess we can never judge who deserves or needs our "mission" the most. Sometimes those that seem like they have everything, might just have the biggest hole in their lives. It's like my parents are America and that man was the Pope. It may seem an unlikely place for a mission but the healing for those who've suffered abuse may be a larger hole than the rest of us can imagine. Okay another story going no where. I just wanted to share.
