A Running To-Do list…
The streets were
packed with traffic that day and her mind was occupied with thoughts of a
running to-do list. Her daughter would be waiting to be picked up from school
and there were groceries to buy at the market on the way home… She didn’t see
the other Vespa driving through the intersection. In an instant she was on the
ground… It took a moment for pain to set in. The ambulance did not take long to
get there. Before she knew it she was at the hospital… the medicine dripped
through the IV and in a few moments the pain was gone. She would be just fine
in a few weeks. Upon returning to the hospital a few weeks after the accident
for some tests, she was occupied once again with that running to do list. As
the doctor came in she was in the middle of trying to work out the dinner menu
in her mind… “I’m sorry to have to tell you this…” he paused as though he had
lost his breath, ” When you came the day
of the accident we had to give you a blood transfusion.” She nodded, confused
as to the relevance of that detail. “The donor who gave that blood had HIV. We
were hoping it would not have infected you, but when we tested for it today…”
the doctor sighed. There was no need for him to continue anyways… She froze…
the to-do list dissipated quickly and only her daughter occupied her now racing
thoughts…
saw that although she was answering my friend’s questions her mind was
elsewhere. Her eyes full of a whirling grey with hints of color that would fly
by every so often. I wondered what those
flashes of color were… I could only guess that it was hope, yet I could not be
sure if it was for her or someone else. My friend then suddenly asked, “Do you
have any children?” The flash of color came racing to the front of her grey
world. “Yes. She is 7”. The color lingered there for a moment and then was
swept up in a blur of fear and longing. My mind tried to match the pace of her
thoughts… My friend caught my eye and prompted me to pray for her. Placing my
hand upon her arm I began. I heard in my heart, “She needs someone to dare to
hope for her.” So I prayed… I prayed that her blood would be clean once again.
I declared that she would live to watch her daughter grow and to see her daughter
get married, and she would see her grandchildren. That she and her husband
would live a long happy life together and have no cause to fear the disease,
for it was already being removed. It was wild… I had never dared to hope like
that before, but when I heard that, I felt the gift rising to the surface of my
heart. Once again I looked in her eyes into the world of grey and smiled
deeply…. The gift was taking hold and color danced brightly once more….
