“I THINK I HAD A STROKE”

Tuesday night, April 22, my wife went to bed with feelings that professionals would view as a precursor of a stroke. Who doesn't have a funny feeling sometimes? Several years ago I awoke with a pain in my jaw like I had been struck in the face by a big fist. My dreams are wild but never have I been awakened with such pain after a dream. I have awoke from a deep sleep to find my forefingers in either hand drawn back in a “cocked” position demanding I straighten it; and upon trying to do so I experienced a real discomfort but unless I forced the finger to straighten I felt something worse might occur. Feelings, real or otherwise, are nearly endless in the life of those who have torn off pages of the calendar representing more than 70 or 80 years. Going back to my painful jaw it was later discovered my jawbone had somehow become dislocated during the night and I was quite slow in seeking out the solution to that problem.

The next morning, after my wife retired for that night, April 22, I heard some ominous sounds that created sufficient alarm in me to hurry to the bathroom only to find my wife barely sitting on a stool next to the toilet and as I enabled her to sit on the commode she looked up at me and said, “I think I had a stroke.” Those were six alarming words I was not prepared for, but since that experience my wife has recounted strokes as being common experiences in her mother's family. Jean, my wife, was not surprised. This past February 29 she had also received news that our last blood studies revealed she is now a Type Two Diabetic.

At the time of this writing, twelve days later, much is becoming better and we are hopeful the scheduled physical therapy will restore normal use to Jean's left arm (hand) and leg (foot). We are grateful her voice or face was not affected and the physical therapist has told us only about six weeks of therapy will be needed. In my wife's recent daily reading, she also read that diabetics are twice as likely to either have a stroke or heart attack as “normal” healthy people. “Thanks a lot!”

Other words create alarm in many lives: cancer, malignant and terminal are just three for starters. There ought to be sufficient alarms before us every day but most of us obviously cling to a residue of the invincibility from our youth that seldom do we face up to the reality of the brevity of life. You would think a look into the mirror as we take care of our daily needs would be sufficient evidence that we are changing. My wife and I graduated in a high school class of 239 but during the last 58 years 96 names are identified as “Deceased” in that original list. A surprise? No, not really, but the brevity of life and the certainty of death should foster a healthy (there's a unique word) respect for whatever days might be left for us to enjoy this place in which we are merely “pilgrims”. Through the faith we have in our Lord we find assurance and comfort for whatever happens to us here and buoys up our faith for that trip beyond the grave – if such is not the case in your life perhaps you ought to work out a check-list for your spiritual values.

THE WORDWRIGHT