I’ve been reading a very sad book this week as I work on writing my children’s schooling curriculum for the coming year (more on that in another post – it’s in process). It’s called Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr, and it’s about a young Japanese girl during World War II who suffered the aftereffects of America’s dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. Long story short, ten years after the bomb dropped, she was diagnosed with leukemia and passed away. It is a novelization of true events, much like the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder.
While Sadako’s story is very sad, I think it can also be a reminder to us to remember when things are going well. We should never be so hung up on the bad things that we can’t find something good – Sadako, while in the hospital literally dying of leukemia, always managed to find something good in her circumstances.
She could fold cranes. (Legend told her that if she folded 1,000, the “gods” would bless and heal her.)
She made a new friend in the hospital – another leukemia patient, a little boy even younger than she was.
She got to go home for a visit before she died.
If someone like Sadako could find the good in her situation, surely we can too.
Don’t have a car? You can still walk. Heating or cooling bill too high? At least you have a home. Kids driving you crazy today? You were blessed with those kids while so many other people struggle with infertility. Struggling to decide on dinner plans? Thank God you have food in the cupboard. Too sick to work? We have good doctors in this country; you’ll likely be better in no time.
You see, it’s easy to find the problems in our lives. It’s much harder – but more important, rewarding, and healthy – to find the blessings. And also to remember who our blessings come from. I don’t talk about my faith much on this blog, but, in the words of the Apostle’s Creed:
- I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth
- And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord
- Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary
- Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, buried, and dead. He descended into Hell
- And on the third day, He rose again.
- He ascended into Heaven where He sits at God’s mighty right hand.
- One day, He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
- I believe in the Holy Spirit
- I believe in the Holy Church, the communion of saints,
- The forgiveness of sins
- The resurrection
- And in life everlasting. Amen.
(For the record, I’m not Catholic. That statement of faith just sums up my beliefs perfectly.) See, I believe in the One True God. I believe in his Son, Jesus, who died for our sins. I believe He has the power to bless us or punish us or test us. And that’s where my statement of faith applies to this post. We need to remember to count our blessings because we owe thanks to God for giving them to us in the first place.
To wrap up, I want to share one of mine and Will’s favorite singers, and his song based on the Apostle’s Creed. It’s called, simply enough, Creed, and if you don’t know the artist, it’s Rich Mullins. He was tragically killed in a car accident in 1997, but his music lives on and is some of the best ever written. I hope you’ll take five minutes to listen to this song.
Blessings,
Wendy
Beautiful post, Wendy! Thanks for sharing. I’ve never heard of that artist. It’s a lovely song.