Submitted by Lalita Wells-Awumey (Raleigh, NC)
Unexpected Joy
On Thursday, February 24, 2012, I was picking up my daughters from daycare after 5pm and Mrs. Griffin, the mother of another child was there picking up her infant daughter. We normally exchange pleasantries when we see each other and that day was no different except she said to me “wait a minute, I have something for you.” I said “ok” and she walked my 22 month old out to my car while I took the 6 month old. To my surprise, she handed me a card that said “I Like Spreading The Love of Jesus” and a $20 bill. I was shocked and amazed. I thanked her and she just nodded in acknowledgment.
I was so moved that I started to cry sitting in my car. How did she know that I needed that gift of kindness in my spirit right at that moment? What she didn’t know is that the very next day I was sending my children home with my parents to another state so I could begin my radiation treatments for cancer. All that week, I had been going to the doctor to get prepared for the treatments. Because of the type of treatments I was going to receive, my children and my husband could not be exposed to the radiation and I was facing the treatments and the recuperation by myself.
Mrs. Griffin’s kindness and loving spirit made me feel so special and blessed. It was at this time that I was facing uncertainty – not knowing if the cancer had spread to my lungs or my bones. Here I am, a 43-year-old wife and mother of 2 infants under the age of 2 and wondering what our future would hold. I had been dealing with this uncertainty since September 2011 when I was put on a waiting list for one of the drugs needed for my treatment because of a shortage. Just knowing that somebody else took the time to make my day special and to remind me that Jesus loves me, gave me the courage to keep going in my time of strife.
I am happy to say that my body scans showed no spread of the cancer to my bones and lungs! GOD is so good to me! I am already looking for someone to pass the blessing on to spread the kindness to someone else in need.
