By Jeff Orvis
Merry Christmas! Yes, here is one
proud liberal who is not ashamed to say those words this time of
year. While I know there are millions of people around the world who
follow a different faith or no faith at all, by saying “Merry
Christmas,” I am doing my small part to profess my faith without
jamming it down the throat of anybody else.
End of political statement.
This time of year, many people expect
a “Christmas miracle.” Sometimes you wonder if God is saving up
all his miracles for this season. In truth, I believe God performs
miracles every day, whether we realize it or not.
As I was wondering what to write for
this holiday message, I thought about reviewing what has happened in
my life this past year. But then I decided that might seem a bit
selfish. But a couple of events did occur that had some impact on me,
though only in a passing way.
There are two families who are
undoubtedly thanking God for miracles that happened to their loved
ones prior to the height of the holiday season. But as they gather
together at their respective homes, they undoubtedly will look across
the room and be thankful that their loved ones are still with them.
A few weeks before I moved back to
Belle Plaine, I learned of a strange illness that hit Charles
Johnson. For those of you who may not be from the Belle Plaine area,
it's hard to describe Charles in a paragraph or two. A big, strapping
man with an ever-present smile, Charles has always been quick with a
hearty “Hello.” It usually takes only about 10 seconds to realize
that this guy is your friend.
He came to Belle Plaine and married a
woman who has four of the most beautiful, intelligent and gifted
daughters I've ever met. That he would join a family of five females
tells you something about his patience. Together he and Karen raised
these young women, saw them through school, college, career starts
and relationships that have led to marriages and some grandchildren.
Charles seems most comfortable
outside. Maybe that's why he has been such a find for the city of
Belle Plaine, where he has been the parks superintendent for several
years. But he is also a spiritual man and several years ago, he made
the decision to study for the ministry. Upon completion of his
studies, he became the pastor at the Chelsea Methodist Church.
One morning this year, Charles said he
woke up and experienced some ever-increasing symptoms of what was
first thought to be a stroke. It turned out to be a virus that
rendered him frustratingly inactive for several days. Fast forward a
few months and after a hospital and rehabilitation unit stay, he is
physically back to his old self.
That was one of two miracles I
experienced. A week or two after I had moved back here, I happened to
pass Franklin Park, where I saw Charles' pick-up truck. I stopped and
he met me with a big bear-hug and that hearty hello. He explained
what he had been through and also informed me that he was not only
back in the parks, but back in the pulpit at his church. Talk about a
“Praise God moment!”
The other miracle involves a man whom
I met just once. But we have corresponded via e-mail a few times and
to say he has been a professional inspiration to me would be an
understatement.
For more than 65 years, Bill Wundram
has been on the staff of what is now the Quad-City Times. For those
of us who hope we can retire after 30 years, when we read about
someone who has worked in the same profession for more than 65 years
when he is well into his eighties, that's a true inspiration.
After doing just about everything on
the editorial side of the paper over the years, Bill has settled into
a spot on Page Two, where he writes a column most days of the week.
For those of you who were familiar with my Ramblings columns over the
years or who enjoy Jim Magdefrau's column in the Star Press Union
each week, Bill does the same sort of thing. But his audience is just
a little bigger – probably more than 300,000 loyal readers. But he
often writes about the small stuff that makes life worth living.
So it was with a bit more than a
little concern when readers read a notice in the paper that Bill was
“taking some time off.” Finally, he returned and told us what
happened.
He and his wife were out eating brunch
one morning in celebration of their 61st wedding
anniversary when he was struck by a migraine headache. He wasn't too
alarmed, until it kept getting worse and his wife took him to the
local hospital. It was there that he was diagnosed with a stroke. By
the time the diagnosis was made and the neurologist had arrived, the
time frame for administering that drug that is supposed to stop the
symptoms had passed. It was only through the insistence of Bill and
Helen's son that he was given the injection anyway.
As he later wrote, by this time, he
had lost most ability to speak and begged his wife and son not to let
him go on living if this would be the result. For some reason,
despite the delay in administering the drug, it began to work. By the
next morning, when his wife returned to his bedside, he was again
speaking clearly and was well on the road to recovery. In fact a few
days after his release from the hospital, he was already attending a
benefit gathering at Davenport's Outing Club and claims that he is
well on the way to dancing the jig again!
So that's my second “Praise God”
moment. I'm happy to share it with his family and the thousands of
readers who think of Bill as a friend.
Sometimes at this time of year, we get
caught up in a lot of preparations. Then we may feel guilty for the
bounty we have when we hear about those less fortunate. Maybe one way
to deal with this is to try to recognize one or two miracles that
have occurred in your life and give thanks to the One responsible.
Have a Blessed Christmas and Wonderful
New Year!
