In 1973 my husband and I adopted our first child, from Korea. We used the time during which the paperwork was being processed to pray for our new infant daughter. Our prayers began with these words from Malachi: "Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us?" (2:10). And we found inspiration in this verse from the Christian Science Hymnal (No. 278):

Later, after much urging by this daughter to adopt a sister for her, we applied for and received Jennifer. She, too, was a precious example of divine Love's unfoldment. Today, these two daughters are young women in their twenties. As I look back on their years at home, I recognize the presence of God's healing power. One morning when our younger daughter was two, she woke feeling feverish and completely listless. She wasn't interested in food or play, but just wanted to be held. As I rocked her in my arms, I sang the words from one of Mary Baker Eddy's poems put to music: "O gentle presence, peace and joy and power" (No. 207). I stopped to ponder the order of those three words, "peace and joy and power." At first I thought they should be reversed: if I could feel God's healing power, I could then be joyful, and when I was freed from illness, peace would follow. But then I reasoned that one aspect of peace is quiet thought filled with the assurance of God's healing presence. Joy is the gratitude to glimpse even a small portion of spiritual perfection. And power is the embodiment of Truth. My daughter sat up, then slid off my lap. She was healed completely. There was not even a period of recuperation. As she walked away, I asked where she was going. "I'm hungry," she said. "I want my dinner."

One day, I discovered an unsightly skin condition on our older daughter's leg. I became alarmed after a few days when I realized how quickly the irritation was spreading over her body. The word came home from her kindergarten teacher that impetigo was "galloping" through her class, and that the health authorities had been notified. Because the condition was said to be highly contagious, the teacher warned parents against sharing drinking glasses, and so forth, so my first thought was to correct the false belief about contagion. I do not recall today what specific truths I held to, but our younger daughter was never touched by the disease. In a few days our older daughter was also fine.

Another time I discovered that our younger daughter had what appeared to be measles. While dressing her I assured her that God loved her, and the two girls and I said the children's prayer that Mary Baker Eddy wrote as "Mother's New Year Gift to the Little Children" (see Poems, p. 69). Well, I thought, this is my opportunity to prove God's healing presence. I prayed and also studied the Bible and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mrs. Eddy for a good while. Then, as I recall, I stood looking out an open window for a few minutes and becoming aware of God's universality. A small plane was winging overhead, and I thought of the ever-present Principle that governed every motion, including the idea of flight. The birds were chirping sweetly, and I realized that God as Love had a holy purpose for all His ideas. And I knew that the harmony of the universe was present in the life of our daughter, right where she was happily playing. That night when I put her to bed, all the spots were gone except for a couple on her foot. By morning they, too, were gone. Because it was a weekend and the healing occurred so quickly, by the time the county health offices were open again, it was not necessary to notify them of the presence of a "contagious disease." The measles were gone!

For these and many other proofs of the power of God to heal, I am truly grateful. But, far more important to me and my family has been the light of spiritual understanding and progress Christian Science has shed upon our path.

Suzanne Widgery
Grand Blanc, Michigan