Susan, the Therapist
Susan (not her real name) is a therapist who came into our lives in June when Mother came to stay with us after her stroke. The first time she came for a home health visit, I was a little disappointed because she is so young, somewhere in her mid- to late-twenties. I thought it would be better if Mother could have a therapist who had more experience. Week after week I have come to respect Susan more and more, not only as a therapist, but as a person. She has done wonders with Mother, and we’re going to be disappointed when we don’t get to visit with Susan twice a week.
Susan is devoted to her patients, but it is obvious that her first priorities are her husband and her little baby girl, who is just one day older than our youngest grandchild, making her almost six months old now. Susan speaks highly of her husband who owns a small business and serves as the mayor of a nearby town. One day she came in talking about her daughter’s baby book that she and her husband had been working on the night before. I have no idea what her husband looks like, but I enjoyed imagining the two of them poring over the baby book.
I have to admit that when Susan first told me she had such a small baby, I judged her for not being at home with her. Now I know that her mother, her husband, and her mother-in-law care for the little one when her mommy is at work. The baby receives no milk other than her mommy’s because Susan breastfeeds and leaves her own milk when she is away from home.
Susan once told me that she and her husband are considering homeschooling. She has often been around our daughter Mary Evelyn and our granddaughter Clara during her visits with Mother. She has told me that being around Clara makes her want to be at home with her daughter. She is working toward the time when she can work as a therapist only one day per week.
Susan respects her parents, and she told me the other day how much she loves her only brother. She is also devoted to her husband’s family and mentions going to their home. Before a holiday, she told me about their plans to participate in the huge annual family gathering that her husband’s parents host. Sometimes when they go on vacation, Susan and her husband rent a cottage and invite both their families to join them.
I am impressed with the values of this young couple. Susan has talked about how hard it is to find wholesome clothes for her little girl and about how careful they are about what is on television when her little girl is around. She has talked about their concerns about the negative influences of a child they are around sometimes.
Do I think it would be best if Susan were home now with her baby? Absolutely. Would I be sad if one of my grandbabies were away from his or her mother this much? Yes, I would. Still, Susan is trying hard and I’ve gotten to know her heart. She is doing many things right. Am I doing everything exactly as I should? Not a chance. God can work mightily through imperfect circumstances. That’s the only kind of circumstances He has to work with when we humans are involved. There He goes again, teaching me to look past first impressions and get to know one more of those precious people He made in His image. You never know who can teach you and whom you will find to share the values that are most precious to you.
Who are you to judge the servant of another?
To his own master he stands or falls;
and he will stand,
for the Lord is able to make him stand.
Romans 14:4