The Greatest of These...

On any given day what my spirit needs and longs for is subject to change. With a backward glance, each moment and season of my life is perfectly fitted into a glorious rainbow. The many colors of the spectrum can be separated into distinct characteristics. My needs weaved together in a patterned tapestry of magnificent beauty.

I call to mind my need for love in the many shades of RED.  

The freshness of ORANGE has me bathed in goodness.  

Peace and acceptance blend together in the hues of YELLOW and GREEN.  

The effervescent tints of BLUE appear to quench my thirst to trust.   

And the greatest of these colors, VIOLET breaks through to become a Beacon of Hope.

How vividly I recall the day I removed Violet from my Grandmother's Rainbow.

She was sick with a heart condition that would eventually take her life.  Each doctor indicating, “it was only a matter of time”.  But still Nan continued to live with the hope of getting better.  “What do you think the doctors will try next?”  “When will I begin to feel better?”  So many questions asked waiting only for a hopeful response.

I did not know the magnitude of her yearning or understand the spirits need for hope.  I saw only the physical illness and breaking down of her body.  “Nanny, you should prepare yourself.” “Rest and find comfort in your faith.”  But still she pressed me for words of hope.  Words I could have simply spoken, words which would have lifted her weary soul.  Instead in a declaration I dare say still haunts me, I replied, “There is nothing.”  Sending the message to my Nan, “There is no Hope.”  Her eyes grew heavy and what little color remained in her cheeks seemed to fade.  Sadness I will never forget.

I have learned from this and many of my mistakes.  That is the beauty of every tomorrow.  But for today, like so many years ago for my Nan, my greatest need is Hope.  Hope for a cure, hope for remission, hope for new medicine, hope for independence, hope in hope itself.  And I know my Nan is with me when I ask, “What do you think the doctors will try next?”  “When will I begin to feel better?”  So many questions asked waiting only for a hopeful response. 

AND THE GREATEST OF THESE IS HOPE