Ambling to the ambulatorio

I have to confess that I'm getting rather tired of hanging around the ambulatorio (our local health centre.) After being there every single day for the past week, I feel that I've spent more than enough hours in waiting rooms and doctors' surgeries this month. Anyway, this morning was my last appointment of this year - to get the results of all the x-rays, etc. Turns out that the "verdict" is pretty simple: the doctor says it's just severe degenerative arthritis, and that it can actually be seen on both feet - not just the foot that's been causing me so much discomfort.

To be honest, I was hoping that it was going to be something "treatable" rather than something that you just have to put up with, but the doctor says there's not really much that can be done. I have another appointment when I get back to Spain in January and, if we're not making much progress with managing the pain, they might need to look into fitting me out with special shoes - or implants - so that my feet can bear my weight without hurting all the time.

It's sometimes hard to plan activities when you're not sure if you'll be physically able to walk around much (for example, I have an Africa trip planned for the end of January - to investigate some outreach possibilities) so I'm just hanging on to a promise that's found in the Old Testament. Somewhat cryptically, Deuteronomy 33: 25 says, "Your shoes will be iron and brass, and as your days are, so shall your strength be." Well, I'm not sure about that iron and brass footwear, but I'm trusting in God's promise that there will always be enough strength for the things I need to do.