The Mom: Permission Granted to Take a Nap

     In less than twenty-four hours, I will undergo surgery to replace my right hip. I am actually looking forward to the procedure (talk to me again in about a week for a revised statement) because over the last year my mobility has become seriously limited. While I still consider myself a relatively young middle-aged woman (!), I apparently have the joint condition of someone much much older. I also have the lovely affliction of having a body that too readily processes calcium into bone. All of this means that my right hip bone has decorated itself with all of these lovely little protuberances called bone spurs. Spurs are what cowboys traditionally use to dig into their horses' flanks to make them go. I guess my cowboy hip has been digging into me with great gusto, but the end result is not that I move faster, rather it is that I can hardly move at all! So it is definitely time to rein in this wild buckaroo and get a handy-dandy finely crafted and honed steel and titanium replacement. It is the latest model available and is guaranteed (that's a stretch) to last between 20 to 30 years. Wow. It sounds a little like the industrial revolution has finally made it to the final frontier -- the human body.
   My suitcase is packed and sitting by the front door. I have assembled all of the equipment that will transform my house into a pseudo hospital/rehab facility, and I have read the 200 page notebook provided by my surgeon. My friends are coming over to pray for me at 3:30 and then I will eat my evening meal and drink my last glass of water at 11:59 p.m. tonight. I will faithfully brush my teeth in the morning without swallowing one tiny bit of Crest, and take the teeniest sip of water when I take my pre-op meds. I will then hop into the car with my honey and head to the hospital where all the fun begins.
   I have been pondering how I will handle the fact that I cannot drive for six weeks and the serious cramp in my style that the recovery process is sure to produce. The Daughter has set up something called a Care Calendar where friends and family have signed up to bring me meals and drive me to and from my physical therapy appointments. It is very humbling to recognize that simple tasks that you take for granted become impossible or difficult at times. But the bright lining in all of this, is that I have been continually challenged by those around me as well as by the Holy Spirit to embrace this time of rest. I had been corresponding with a cousin-by-marriage with whom I recently connected on a much deeper level when we were all together for our beloved Lou Lou's funeral. She is facing some health challenges of her own, but her faith is strong and sure. She sent me these words which have already ministered to me deeply. I am honored to share Mary's wisdom and insight with you:  
          When you are a doer it is so hard to wait on the Lord.  But 
          the Holy Spirit wants you to know that there is a lesson in
          the waiting and that your healing will be more than 
          physical.  
          It is interesting that when things happen to us personally it 
          changes how we pray for others. [It is] as if He is giving us a 
         window into what others may be dealing with. I just love to 
         watch God at work in and through my life and in the people 
         around me! Take this time to remove yourself from the 
         ugliness of this world and [allow the healing to come.] 
         When you have small kids you are always trying to get
         them to take a nap but they just don't want to stop 
         moving long enough to do that - well, some days I wish 
         someone would say, "Mary, go and take your nap and 
         I don't want to hear or see you for one hour!" Take a Nap 
        and know we are praying for rejuvenation for you so
        you can continue to be the strength of the Lord to
        those around you.
I have spent a great deal of time thinking about the nuggets of wisdom contained within these words. I always feel guilty if I take a nap in the middle of the day. My naps are usually driven by sheer exhaustion,emotional upheaval, or physical illness. So I am giving myself permission to take a physical nap each and every day. Maybe even more than one nap each day. I am also going to take that metaphorical nap as well. I am going to try to be as still as I can allow myself to be, and ask the Lord to come in and do the rest. I want the physical healing for my hip, that's for sure, but I also want to become more sensitive in prayer, to hear the sound of His voice as He calls to me, and to receive all that He is willing to give me from His precious hand. I am taking Mary's advice to heart, for this Mary, just like Mary of old, knows how to choose the better portion. And hopefully, so will I.