Thursday, September 07, 2006

Unanswered Prayers




Victoria lived her life with quiet dignity and faith. She'd kept a Christian home and raised her four children to trust and love God. Victoria always kept a running dialogue with God in her mind, never forgetting to thank him when one of her prayers was answered.

Just after her seventy-fifth birthday Victoria started to feel a little run down and made an appointment with her doctor. The prognosis was bad. She had inoperable cancer and was not expected to survive. The treatments left her weak and sick but she never gave up her faith. Her constant prayer consisted of four words.

"Please let me live."

Finally, Victoria's health declined and the children were called to her bedside. With her family praying around her, Victoria passed.

********

The spirit stretched and yawned.

"Where am I?"

It felt as if it had slept for ages.

"You are home." A friendly Presence replied.

"Finally home!" The spirit began to look around. It tried to absorb all that it saw when it noticed three boxes of various sizes.

Reaching for the first and largest box, the spirit asked, "What is this?"

Those are your prayers." Replied the Presence.

The spirit tried to lift the box but it was far too heavy for its size. The beautiful box would have to be admired where it stood.

Looking at a smaller box the spirit asked, "And what is this?"

"These are the prayers of everyone you have ever taught to pray." This box was also too hard to lift. Its beauty far outshone the first box. The spirit admired it for a while. It remembered "life" and the people it had touched. The spirit was pleased.

"What is in the smallest box?" asked the spirit.

"These are your unanswered prayers." replied the Presence. "Open it."

The spirit opened the smallest box. Inside was a single satin ribbon. On the ribbon were the words "Please let me live".

No word was spoken between the spirit and the Presence. No guidance was needed.

The spirit lifted the satin ribbon and knowingly tied it around the box containing the prayers of her family.

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Roberta this is beautiful! Sad, haunting yet leaving you with a feeling of peace and hope. Well written!

Roberta said...

Thank you my dear...can I say Jas on this thing?

I have found a home for all of my favorite pieces.

Anonymous said...

This and the last are two of my favorites...
... they're still in my archives, remember?

anna said...

Roberta this piece is so uplifting.
God willing it will be so for all of us. Tremendous!

Anonymous said...

Roberta, your writing is so beautiful. This piece is profoundly optimistic and sensitive.