Beyond Crisis
A misty morning does not signify a cloudy day.
Anonymous
Ireceived an amazing call the other night. It was from Cory.
You'll remember I began this book with the story of Cory, the one whose family had pushed her out of the home onto emotional "black ice." For over eleven years I'd heard nothing from her. I'd assumed she had died of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the terminal disease she had the last time I saw her, blind and deaf, in a hospital.
As I wrote the chapter, however, I thought of another pastor who knew her. I called him to talk over what he remembered of Cory, and he surprised me with an address where he thought she might be living. I wrote, and Cory called a few days later.
Cory is doing great!
She eventually left that Burbank hospital in which I last saw her. Her eyesight and hearing had returned, and she had regained some use of her limbs. She set up life in a studio apartment with a visiting nurse to help her. But although she was determined to make it, she didn't. Her disease, which turned out to be multiple sclerosis, a debilitating disorder but not nearly as life threatening as ALS, struck again with a vengeance. She was placed in a nursing home.
For over a year she lived as the only young person among worn-out and senile residents. She felt terribly alone. "There is scarcely a way to describe the despair of gathering darkness in a convalescent home," she says, "hearing the moans of the gloomy and the forgotten, listening to the weeping in neighboring rooms, and having one's lifeless arms and legs being bathed by girls my age who had Thanksgiving or Christmas plans at the end of the evening. I loathed self-pity, but during those endless nights I often wondered, Is this how it's going to be forever?"
She lost ...
Like the preview? To read this complete article
and 20,359 more in the archive—JOIN NOW!
Easily find high-quality, well-researched materials that provide a Christian perspective on topics ranging from headlines to history.
Start using this invaluable tool TODAY for preparing your Bible studies, presentations, class lectures, sermons, meetings, and more.
|
It's easy and quick to join:
Brought to You by Christianity Today Int'l |  |
|
| 
Find similar articles
E-mail this page
