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| PC: Steve Shogren |
I know a woman who is in her 90s. Since her husband passed on, she has been unhappy with everything around her. Holidays only remind her of times they shared, and she's sad they're gone. The changing of seasons brings grief for various husband-related reasons. She doesn't enjoy meals or celebrations of any sort because she can't share them with him. We have spoken numerous times about this, as she talks about him a lot. Every time she relates her grief, I remind her of her happiness. I don't think she knows it's all right to be happy. She feels she would dishonor him by having fun without him. I see it as the opposite: the dishonor is in the turning from joy to sadness in the name of love. Today I will examine the thoughts I have which hurt. Is it possible to change the pain to quiet joy by a slight shift in thought about the situation? I look forward to finding out!
“Human affection is not poured forth vainly, even though it meet no return. Love enriches the nature, enlarging, purifying, and elevating it. The wintry blasts of earth may uproot the flowers of affection, and scatter them to the winds; but this severance of fleshly ties serves to unite thought more closely to God, for Love supports the struggling heart until it ceases to sigh over the world and begins to unfold its wings for heaven.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 346: 13-16
