In the midst of a puzzle

This coming week, my church is having a service for prayer and worship and fellowship for one of its young daughters with Neimann Picks disease and at the end of the week, The Kennedy center of Fairfield County is having a fundraiser to bring awareness to the autism epidemic facing clients at the Kennedy Center.

It is rough to see two disorders being promoted the sqme week-at which I will be a supporter. I find it very tough to spend time talking on the issues of handicaps since I have been fortunate enough to pass through the challenges gradually and in a way that has allowed me to comprehend the issues which are faced by those with such challenges. I have been blessed to be a part of a supportive family with my parents that took no to the repsonse of a doctor to put your child in an institution. But instead to place him in a supportive educational environment with some supportive learning help if needed and knowing there were times that challenges would be faced.

I at times want to distance myself from handicapped people but yet i am also drawn to and connected to them. On my sunday mornings, my friend, Gary Davis, is a member of my church. Not always easy to be a concerned friend but it acts as a good way for me to practice being Christ in the world. It is the grace and gentleness that he exhibits which shows the connection that he has to God. Just in the way he tackles the words of scripture-breathing them out- and showing a participation in the class through an astute comment or just a ready willingness to open our time in prayer. writing down the numbers of new friends that he meets so he can minister to their needs is an encouragement as well.

I find that the time invested in my friend Gary keeps me grounded in God knowing that I have to stay alert and focused. Even when a gentle nudge is required to rouse him from a brief nap during a message. Not easy to stay awake at times during the quieter non-interactive moments of time at church. There is something there to be learned to just be aware that I don't always focus on God. I tend to "doze off" in my own way of not being interactive in the Holy Scriptures as I should.

As I mentioned in some of my earlier pieces, our lives are like that of a puzzle where we do not always have our pieces that are clearly marked. Some have the imprint worn off of them, and sometimes we can not see how one piece is connected to another. It is good that the new website, www.autismspeaks.org has as its emblem a puzzle piece. In a puzzle, the picture is on the cover of the box and inside are many little pieces that have been carved from a piece of wood. How easily it is to connect those pieces depends on how well one can determine patterns, how well one works within groups and how well we stick it at. Always a good feeling to connect that last piece together.