[author’s note: From our deployment to Iraq 2010-2011.]

October 17, 2010

Thank you to all who have been praying for my twin sister Carol. She was in a tragic accident a few weeks ago involving a deer and another car. The driver of the other car was killed. Carol is in the hospital in Hastings recovering slowly with a head injury and many broken bones. Your prayers for her and the young man who died and his family are appreciated.
On a lighter note, I was thinking of Carol this past week. Not long ago she had sent me a picture of herself and the class she helps with during the summer. She is a speech pathologist and works with young children. In the picture there are ten young children and three adult women. My twin sister, the one whom I’ve known all of my life, the one I grew up with, the one I share a birthday with HAD CIRCLED HERSELF in the picture. Did she think I wouldn’t recognize her? Is it that I have Alzheimer’s disease and no one has told me? Maybe she thought I broke my glasses and if I could see the circle, I would find her? Who knows, but it was funny.
She also thought to send me another valuable item, a Virgin Mary press. What, you may ask, is this? It’s an ingenious little device in the shape of a slice of bread. You put in on the bread, press down firmly, and then toast. What comes out is an outline of the Virgin Mary in white on the toasted bread. It has made for some good conversations in our dining facility.
Continuing the funny things, I saw three Airmen running last week. Now I’m not making fun of Airmen and their easy life, I see Air Force personnel running and exercising all the time here. In this instance however as I watched the three jog along they passed a light pole. Well, not all of them passed the light pole; the third one ran straight into it. He looked surprised, shook his head and continued on. As some of my old Polish friends would say, “I laughed so hard!”
Some think that funny things happen only on occasion, but I believe the opposite. Funny things happen continually, we just don’t notice them, and we don’t keep our eyes open for humorous events. It’s like prayer; some look at prayer at something you do occasionally. The Scripture tells us that prayer is something that we need to do constantly, not necessarily with set words, but that continual inner conversation with God. This is when life becomes prayer and the arms of our souls are held high above our heads in thanksgiving and wonder.