On a recent snowy morning, I was outside with Millie, my companion dog.  I didn’t want to be outside in the cold, and Millie was in a hurry.  Ninety pounds of energy is hard to control when there is ice under foot.  Suddenly I was on the ground.  One leg in front of me and the other buckled underneath my too large body.  Both pain and humiliation were immediate.

As I lay on the sidewalk, I wondered ‘why God?  Isn’t rheumatoid arthritis, prostrate issues and memory loss, enough.’  I pressed this point further, saying ‘by the way God, didn’t the doctors say the best thing for a person with memory loss was to remain active and keep moving?  Isn’t that why the Bride and our adult children insisted we get Millie, to keep dad moving?’

As I dragged myself to a snow bank to help pull myself up, I thought, I won’t be able to do much walking on broken knee or with a torn ligament. God, you have to get with the plan. 

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A few hours later the emergency room doctor told me I had dodged a bullet.  While the x-rays indicated arthritis in my knee, it was only bruised, with no sign of a break.  It would take  four or five days for my 66-old body to recover, but I should be no worse for the spill.   I was skeptical and thought to myself, we will see.

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When the Bride and I told Frank and Marion Doyle, our dear friends; Frank laughingly said, “Harry, you are just like Job”.  For my part, I was thinking of Jesus’ words to Peter in chapter 21 of the gospel of John. “Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.”  He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God. Jesus concludes by telling Peter, “Follow me.”

I am grateful God gave me the gift of stringing words together. Writing has allowed the Bride and me to ‘follow Jesus’, while being those “privileged witnesses” that Pope Francis speaks of.  In the last couple years, we have written about living with memory loss.  We are told that our book has brought comfort to others who are suffering, and even encouragement to those navigating many years of marriage, when the trials of life keep tearing at the strong foundation.  I am also blessed to have been a contributor to both The Catholic Register and Living with Christ missalette.  Recently, Jennifer and I were blessed to have written the 2024 Advent reflections for Living with Christ.   

Each of us must make time and space in our busy lives to intentionally follow Jesus.  We must ask in prayer where God wishes to lead us, and we must persist in listening to how God is calling us to use our gifts and life experiences to bless others.  I am always amazed at how God has chosen to use this academic survivor, who struggles to remember yesterday; to organize words, ideas, thoughts and prayers; putting them in print to encourage others as they sometimes struggle to continue walking with the Lord.

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Soon I will have a follow up visit with a doctor about the ultrasound results for my knee.  While there hasn’t been a lot of pain, nor has the knee returned to normal movement.  Early on I did my best to walk with crutches, knowing there would be Hell to pay if the Bride caught me walking without them.  

After Frank teased me about being like Job, he reminded me to stay positive.  We agreed that those who believe must keep their eyes on Jesus, seek the inspiration and guidance of the Holy Spirit, and consider ourselves blessed when we have others who walk with us in faith, pulling in the same direction.