Saturday, April 14, 2012

A Lesson From A Young Girl

I'm not sure why this memory popped into my mind but it's a great one to share.  Years ago, Natalie was hospitalized with an illness.  We are so blessed to have Primary Children's Medical Center right here in Salt Lake City, Utah.  It is a premiere hospital in the United States, with 'cutting edge'  medical knowledge, specifically for children.
I left Natalie's room and went to the cafeteria to get something to eat.  As I walked down the hallway, I noticed the many children, in the different rooms, with their own various health struggles.  I walked by one particular room and as I passed by, the young child occupying that room looked right at me.  Her eyes were gentle and a large smile enveloped her face and I knew at that moment that my heart had been touched to the very core.  I was impressed that even during the difficult time, for this child, there was still room for happiness that she shared with me.  It made 'our situation' seem very small.
There are angels around us who watch out for us and help in times of need.  I believe that those angels are members of our family, friends that care for our well-being, and neighbors that just want to do something thoughtful and nice.  They are busy doing good because it's the right thing to do, nothing more and nothing less.  I believe that acts of kindness are happening all the time.  
When you think that you are the only one with struggles and challenges, remember that there are others who are burdened with things much greater than your own.  They are like the young child in the hospital, that through the pains and struggles of mortality, was able and willing to give me, a total stranger, a smile of encouragement that everything was going to be alright.
No matter the challenge, there is the surety that everything will work out.  That has been true in every situation in my life.  It will continue to be true because that's the way it was designed to be.