How a fall and diagnosis deepened my faith, reminding me to give thanks | Opinion

Somebody once said, “Aging is not for the weak.”

As I face the daily challenges of growing older, I can truly say that I agree wholeheartedly.

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Growing older and facing new challenges every day takes strength. But I have also learned just how strong my faith is. This is a good thing, because I always want to know where I stand in my faith.

When I was much younger, I used to pray that if I lived to grow old, I wanted to do so gracefully; I wouldn’t try to hang onto the last thread of my youth as the years passed. Rather, I wanted to take each day of getting older as a gift.

So, I have marveled at the changes I see in the mirror that time has brought about, and at the way my hair seemed to have turned white almost overnight. It has been a blessing to me to witness my own aging.

With each passing year, I have learned to pray more fervently, to laugh more, to be kinder and more compassionate and appreciate the beauty around me.

My mother died when she was 83, from complications of a stroke. She was bedridden for the last seven years of her life, and I took loving care of her at home while I worked full time. One day, I guess I was trying to look into the future and I thought, “I am taking care of my mother, but I don’t have any daughters to care for me when I am old.”

And just like that, the Lord spoke to my heart. I was not to think about who was to take care of me because He had me covered. It was all I needed to know. God will not forsake me in my old age. What a comforting thought.

Looking back, God has had me covered all my life. I was a new Christian believer when I started work as a file clerk in The Miami Herald library, the first Monday of January 1966. I had no idea of the prejudice I would face as the only Black, from some of my fellow co-workers. It was a scary place to be at times.

For a while, I ate alone at lunchtime, sitting on a bench overlooking the bay behind the building. It was a time of meditation and reflection for me. I prayed that I would be able to endure the hatefulness awaiting me when I got back to the library after my lunch hour.

Then, one day the late Herald columnist Charles Whited came into the library. He walked up to me with his hand outstretched and said:

“Hi. I’m Charlie Whited. Welcome aboard.” It was a gratifying moment. Charlie and I were friends until he died.

Charlie’s friendliness made up for some of the meanness I felt from some of the others. It was one of the ways the Lord was letting me know I was not alone, that He had me covered.

Gradually, the climate in the library changed. My co-workers became more friendly and accepting. I believe that holding to my faith helped to bring about the change.

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There have been times when friends, and sometimes strangers, have asked me to pray for or with them about a certain matter. I always do, and I tell them to trust the Lord and to learn to give thanks for all that happens in their life. I have learned that is easier said than done.

Still, when I am obedient and give thanks while I am going through a tedious journey, the “going through’’ doesn’t seem as tough. There is just something about giving thanks when you are in a challenging situation.

There will come a time in everyone’s life when our faith or non-faith will be tested. While the Bible tells us, “In all things give thanks,” I have started questioning myself, asking myself if I really am all that thankful when things go south in my life.

Recently, after a serious fall down a flight of stairs (10 steps), and later learning that I have a serious eye disorder, I have had a chance to practice what I preach. Do I really thank the Lord for these challenges in my life? I mean, really, deep down inside, am I as thankful for these turns in my already old age as I should be? I am learning to be.

When I fell down those stairs, that could have been the end of my story. I could have been left paralyzed, or I could have died. But somehow when I steadied myself, while still on the floor, all I could think was: “Thank you, Lord.”

A short while ago when I learned of my eye challenge, I said the same prayer, “Thank you, Lord.” But then, I realized I didn’t feel the same comfort I felt when I said the same prayer after I fell.

And so, I went back before the Lord. I reminded God how much I love seeing the beauty of the world He has given us. I reminded Him of how much happiness I get from just seeing a butterfly.

And how much it means to me to see a bird sitting in a tree in my yard, singing his/her song to me. And how much I appreciate the colorful coats He dresses the tiny ladybug in. And the wildflowers…

Then I thanked Him for my eyes and my eyesight. And I felt better. I felt the comfort that I was looking for. The comfort of knowing that I am in God’s hands and whatever I am going through, He is walking through it with me, holding my hand.

It’s like the meaning of the words, “In all things give thanks,” have opened to me in a new way.

The more I thank the Lord for the blessings I already have, the better I feel. This life lesson has taught me that faith isn’t something that comes and goes. It is something that grows and grows.

And it is something that will be tested as we live out the “new mercies” each of us is given with every new day.

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