As I type this, Annie is laying in bed in a hospital. She's weak, drowsy and groggy, because the doctors have had to put her on a lot of steroids and pain killers. Her surgery involved removing a growth that developed under her skull just near her eyes. The growth is pushing against some of her nerves, and as a result, she is partially blind now - temporarily we hope. This is her her 4th major surgery involving her sinus for as long as I've known her, and I've known her only a few years. She's asthmatic, allergic to half a dozen items, and has been in and out of hospital since she was 12 I think.
The thing about Annie is - she's one of the most dedicated & selfless person I've ever met. She genuinely cares about other people, to the point of neglecting herself. She makes the effort to meet up, ask how you are, and most importantly - listen. You can tell she isn't there trying to win your heart, she's just there to care. She gets herself actively involved in church - sings, plays the piano, leads cell groups, organize mission trips, and in her spare time, organize the church library.
In many ways, Annie is one of those very few people in this world that I know has a heart of gold - pure and selfless. It is kind of ironic (and cruel) that she a person so strong in spirit, would be so weak in body. If you talk about deserving, she certainly is the last person that deserves to suffer. And yet she suffers the most. The question of why all this is happening, I will leave for another post (it's been left half written for weeks now), but I have come to embrace the fact that if there is any good that can come from pain, suffering and hardship, it is first the discovery of one's self, then ultimately the discovery of God.
That's not to say we should WANT Annie to suffer. It is in the nature of all of us to try and reduce suffering where possible. And when not, we pray for the strength to persevere and a hope to cling on to. God bless you Annie...
Suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. -Romans 5:3-5
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