Finding harmony...

People who know me well are aware that I've been known for much of my life as a "dog person." I'm one of those people who instinctively stops to speak to dogs in the street and enjoys interacting with them.  But when it comes to my usual reading material, I haven't particularly made a point of reading any "dog stories," and so it was kind of interesting over this past Christmas to acquire three dog books that have been fun and inspiring to read. One was the story of someone who rescued an abandoned border collie (my favourite breed) and trained him to be a wonderful sheepdog on the farm. Another was the touching story of a young woman whose personal despair at her gradual descent into a world of darkness (congenital blindness) was turned around when a wonderful guide dog came into her life.

I haven't always been able to have a dog of my own, due to the circumstances of being an overseas missionary, but when I have had a dog, I've always enjoyed training it and seeing its canine intelligence in action. So perhaps it's hardly surprising that this was one of the possible solutions that jumped to mind when I found myself confronted with some ambiguous health news.

In a recent blog post (see 21st January) I was bemoaning the frustration I sometimes feel when arthritis and fibromyalgia cause me to have nagging neck pain, uncomfortable feet or weakness in my thumbs. I can clearly remember, some fourteen years ago, when the blood tests came back and I was given the diagnosis that I had osteoarthritis with fibromyalgia: one of my doctors there in South Africa sat me down and gave me a rather sobering little talk about not feeling overwhelmed if a time came when I had to make decisions about the kind of wheelchair that was the best choice for me, or if I had to put special attachments on the taps of my kitchen sink.

I remember going home that day, getting onto the internet and researching "assistant dogs"and "service dogs" to find out what sort of options were available. While the doctor was not telling me that I would definitely reach a point in life where restricted mobility made a chair or scooter a necessity, he wanted me to be aware of that possibility, so that I wasn't derailed by it if my condition progressed in that way. I remember thinking, "Well, if there's any chance that I might end up with severely limited mobility, I want to make sure I at least get a dog out of it."  I knew that border collies, with their sharp intelligence, are often trained to carry out dozens of tasks for owners who are unable to do certain things for themselves. Fourteen years later, I'm very thankful to the Lord that I still have good mobility (despite the pain) even if I don't yet have my dreamed-of border collie :-)

And so I'm looking forward to beginning reading the third of my three "doggy books" this weekend. It's the story of a young woman who had been very physically active - even climbing Mount Everest - before being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at the age of 28. To make life even more challenging, one of her three children was diagnosed with autism shortly after that. "Finding Harmony" is the story of a remarkable dog that helped this family through one of the darkest times in their lives. I'm looking forward to it because it's the story of a dog trained to be an assistant, and I've long thought that it would be stimulating to know more about that, or even to have some involvement in helping train that kind of dog.

The title of the book, although referring to the dog's name, is also very meaningful to me in another way: finding harmony. I realise that so many of life's difficult circumstances - whether loss and bereavement, illness and disability, childlessness, unemployment, or some other challenging personal or family situation - could so easily upset the fragile balance of our lives and send us spiralling into discouragement and despair. It is so important that we learn how to find peace and harmony, even amidst circumstances where we see no way out and realise that perhaps there will never be a nice, tidy, miracle solution. Our challenge as believers is to know how to stay close to the Prince of Peace and draw on His stability amidst our difficulties and limitations. As I referred to in that previous blog post, we will truly discover that, "His grace is enough" and His strength is made perfect amidst our weaknesses.