If
volunteers were awarded medals, my friend and neighbor Joe would have trouble
standing up under the weight of them all. He’s a retiree who volunteers for
long-term duties with organized charities, while still reaching out to friends
and strangers who need help with one thing or another.
For years
Joe has been driving me to my favorite barber shop several miles from where we
live. He steers us to restaurants afterward, each one memorable, dozens of them
in two counties. As soon as he walks in Joe knows the restaurant staff, and as
soon as he sits down he knows diners at the next table. Joe smiles a lot, the
way generous people do.
So, when
Joe phoned on Tuesday to offer me a haircut outing I didn’t like turning him
down, but another constant companion, dizziness with internal fog, kept me
home. After Joe repeated the invitation a couple of times I had to admit that
the barbering expeditions are over, and for the same reason that I have a new
power chair to accomplish indoors what my power scooter does for me outdoors.
The ailment
neurologists call olivopontocerebellar atrophy, aka multiple system atrophy, is
said to be a progressive disease because its mischief enlarges over time. When
it began I could still drive a car or go to a movie. With a walker I could
still manage a church aisle. After I turned in my car keys on my 81st birthday,
I still had a couple of years to shop at the supermarket and watch my
grandchildren win trophies with their teams and perform on school stages.
So far I
have not figured out what causes this disease, but neither have the medical
specialists. Philosophers and theologians work at it, but so far their results
have been sort of Congressional. God makes people, not automatons or puppets.
God permits every kind of condition, personality and thought. Prayer brings
healing, especially healing of isolation and self consciousness.
Healing of
OPCA/MSA will be sensational, but meanwhile any spiritual triage would suggest
that prayer and dedication are also needed elsewhere. Consider that last month
alone Chicago recorded 55 homicides, and sanctioned killing on a large scale
was reported in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, here and there around Africa.
Cancer, AIDS, accidents and disasters brought death in wholesale lots. There’s
plenty to pray about. There’s plenty to do.
