I’ve done a lot of contemplating the last several days. I’ve been in several moments (hours) of quiet as I rest, ice, massage, and gently try to stretch something that is tight and bruised in my left leg. Laying feels good, standing is tolerated, but sitting is almost impossible without pain. I am a wimp at pain, pure and simple. It dampens my spirit, takes away my enthusiasm for daily life, and leaves me with a heavy heart. I have said many prayers for family and friends who are in chronic pain the last hours as the days slip by. For those who live with pain as a constant, you have my utmost empathy.
Dreariness in my soul seems contagious. I have been focusing on a downcast spirit, dampened enthusiasm, and a heavy heart as I mull over how long this is going to take before I am well again. I am spoiled. I know it. I have been pretty healthy all of my life.
As I opened my Bible this afternoon, it fell to the pages of Deuteronomy 28. I began to read from the beginning, and at verse twelve it said, “ The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of His bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands…” In this season of pain, I wondered what bounty would come to lift my slumped spirit and heart? The answer softly came to me as I stared out the bedroom window at the frost covered trees. Reassurance. As I came to a moment of quiet and sought the presence of God, I felt reassurance that I am not in this alone. Only He can bring order to my confusion.
He keeps encouraging me to try “new” ideas of how to SIT without unbearable pain. (It is pretty funny what pops into your head when you are desperate to find a “normal” for the day!) I am finding encouragement from pushing forward trying to do daily tasks, and taking time to read several things that have piled up when I didn’t think I had “time”.
So God this moment…and several that are coming behind it..are for you. This day and all that lay before me I put in your hands. The dreariness. The fatigue. Responsibilities that I can’t attend to. The part of me that feels stretched beyond my limits. This day I give to you, knowing your limits are infinite and your love is inexhaustible.
One of the magazines I found to read was Country Woman. I have been receiving it almost fifty years, since its inception. As I read the recipe pages, the following salad popped out at me. I thought of my mom, and how much she loved Jello! So with happy thoughts of her, I share it. It is a pretty red color for a Valentine treat, and includes one of my favorite fruits, rhubarb!
(My mom taught me a great way to freeze rhubarb for such a time as this. Clean the stalks, freeze them whole in a clean, unscented garbage bag. Take out only the amount needed, thaw for only 5 minutes, and chop easily into the needed pieces. Put any leftover stalks back into the freezer as they aren’t completely thawed.)
Best Rosy Rhubarb Salad
2 cups sliced fresh or frozen rhubarb ( about 1 inch pieces)
1 Tlbs. sugar
1 pkg. ( 3 oz.) raspberry gelatin
1 cup unsweetened pineapple juice
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 cup diced apples ( peeled if you want)
1 cup diced celery
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1. In a medium saucepan, cook and stir rhubarb and sugar over medium-low heat until rhubarb is soft and tender, about 5-7 minutes.
Remove from heat; add gelatin and stir until dissolved. Stir in pineapple and lemon juices. Chill until partially set.
2. Stir in apples, celery and pecans. Pour into a 4 1/2 cup mold or glass bowl. (coated with cooking spray) Chill several hours or overnight.
May God bless you with a happy and healthy Valentines Day!
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