Keeping Vigil

Perhaps not everyone will be able to identify with today's offering, but it will be near to many of our hearts. Even as I write this a friend's father is undergoing open heart surgery, for the second time in a week. Having been through heart surgery, and other illnesses, with my own father I am no stranger to the unwelcome host of emotions their family is going through right now. It's a helpless feeling because there is little we can do, except to simply be there for our family or friends. We pray to God for strength and mercy. We look to the doctors for their skill and wisdom. Then there is nothing left but to keep vigil together and support one another. All the while our jobs and other responsibilities clamor for attention. Our children need us to be at home. We're tired, perhaps even very lonely. There are a hundred reasons to leave the hospital, all of them good ones. Yet, we know in our hearts that all we really have to give is our time. When we invest our precious time in those most difficult situations the results are intangible, yet they are also irreplaceable. Few have come through such dark hours, regardless of the results, wishing they had spent less time at the hospital. Whether we sit all night in the actual hospital room or support those who are out in the waiting room, the time is always well spent. And then there are no regrets. Perhaps you aren't going through any such things at this time, but we all know that the time will come when our own friends and loved ones will be in the hospital. Whether it's now or later, when the time does come take all of that time you need and do the right thing. Those hours and days can be a great strain on your life, but such opportunities, once squandered, can never be replaced. It will mean the world to those you care for and, at least someday, it may mean a great deal to you. Once again, I must remind us all that real love is spelled T.I.M.E. Use it wisely, and stop to care.

Keeping Vigil
I called all the friends and family
Prayed ‘till my knees were sore
Did all that was in my power to do
Until there was nothing more
But to just sit by your bedside
And to keep you company
With hopes it might help a little
Though I suspect it helps only me
Nothing left but watching and waiting
Nothing more that mortals can do
So we place you into His loving arms
With hopes God will pull you through
I have so many obligations
Which tug at my heart and mind
So many reasons to get back to work
They beckon, and yet, I find
That all those pressing obligations
Matter but little, suddenly
The din of their distant voices
Seems to loose its hold on me
As I resolve to keep my vigil
To watch, to wait and pray
There is nothing more pressing anymore
Than simply sitting with you today
By Frank Carpenter ©