Article July 10, 2006 Issue

SPIRITUAL SUPPORT—AT EVERY TURN

BY GINNY LUEDEMAN

Just recently, my husband and I were helping my cherished 93-year-old friend Margaret move into an assisted living facility. She was unable to sort her personal belongings, so I was given the charge of going through her things and picking out what she should keep and what we'd deliver to her family.

Photos of Margaret as a little girl filled old boxes, nestled in with a porcelain doll, a baby spoon, or other priceless relics. I could barely recognize Margaret in those young pictures. Sometimes a look in her eye was familiar—or might it just have been my imagination confirmed by the penciled name on the back of the photo? At any rate, I was struck by all of the changes Margaret has seen over the course of her long life. And this started me thinking about my own experiences.

At times, womanly changes have been especially challenging for me. Monthly periods, pregnancy, menopause, and aging have all required deep prayer in order for me to maintain buoyancy and go about my normal day, meeting the demands of a busy life.