Psalm 30

AM: Psalm 28, 30 • 2 Chronicles 24:17-22 • Acts 6:1-7
PM: Psalm 118 • Wisdom 4:7-15 • Acts 7:59-8:8

One day when I was in the grocery store in Guilford, Connecticut, the cashier said, after greeting me, “I am praying for you and your husband because I realize that you are the ones who need the prayers.”  I was taken aback, but in that small town everyone knew everyone’s business.  Our daughter had been struck by a car and was in a coma.

Every morning for nearly four months, the two of us went to Yale New Haven Hospital to see Gloria both in the morning and after supper. It became rote. One of our friends, a priest, discovered he could offer her communion by holding a cup to her mouth. And we had come to know a wonderful group of nurses.

Our doctor’s name was Joe Jacobs. He was a 6th generation Iroquois, of the Mohawk tribe. The Iroquois are Northeastern Indians and the greatest iron workers in the world. They have no fear of heights. In New York City, they worked on the Empire State Building, the George Washington Bridge, and the Brooklyn Bridge.

Dr. Jacobs had been so kind we didn’t realize a decision would have to be made. One day before Christmas he asked to see us. We went into a quiet alcove and there he told us the nurses were concerned about Gloria because she seemed to be in pain when they bathed her. “She is uncomfortable,” he said. “She is not at peace.”

We had gotten into a routine and were not prepared for a change, but we decided a few days later we would have to let her go after Christmas, so that we and our two younger children could start the new year free from that unimaginable routine.

The psalm I have chosen for today is Psalm 30.

Weeping my tarry for the night
But joy cometh in the morning.

We chose “joy cometh in the morning” for Gloria’s head stone as well.

Written by Rebecca Newth

Rebecca is a long time member of St. Paul’s and a writer.