Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Lenten Challenge, Day 43: Help

Help!

Those of you who know me well probably guessed that today's word would conjure the Beatles classic of the same name:
Help me if you can, I'm feeling down
And I do appreciate you being 'round.
Help me get my feet back on the ground,
Won't you please, please help me?
When I think about the times in my life I needed help the most, they're the times I didn't speak up and let anybody know. But those times...they're also the times when those closest to me didn't need me to say "Help!" to get them moving. People just stepped up and provided the strength and aid I needed. They're the times I learned who's really going to be there for me when things get tough.

When Ryan was in that life-threatening wave runner accident more than ten years ago, friends and family just started showing up at the hospital to sit with me. They brought food, books, and changes of clothes, but also prayers, support and conversation.

When Ryan had a related hernia surgery years later and all of my parents were out of town, friends took off work to come sit with me because they knew I needed them, even when I said I didn't.

When I had my first baby, and I didn't know what the hell I was doing, and I was struggling with post-partum OCD, my mom and mother-in-law cooked and cleaned and sat and talked and cried and laughed, and made me feel like I could handle this mom thing.

There are so many more examples. So many more. And the thing that sticks out about all of them? They showed me what selflessness really looks like.

So thank you, friends and family, and friends who are more like family. Thank you for stepping up even when I didn't give a Beatles-like shout for help.
You can buy this poster at this Web site.

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