Is there a doctor in the house?

Lynn PittsUncategorized

Honor physicians for their services, for the Lord created them; for their gift of healing comes from the Most High, and they are rewarded by the king. (Sirach 38: 1-2 NRSV)

Funniest thing about getting older: one appreciates doctors more and more, not only for their healing gifts but for their patience with their patients!

We depend on our doctors to listen to our complaints, to listen as we explain (to the best of our ability) our aches and pains, to know what to do to heal or at least relieve our suffering.

Most of us know at least something of what doctors deal with because we have been their patients. We also have some idea of their lives, their skills, their work, their frustration because we have watched television. (I had a serious crush on Dr. Kildare some decades ago, along with a great many other teenage girls!)

There is another brand of doctors though, doctors who also deserve honor and appreciation, and those are the veterinarians. Their patients can’t tell the doctor what hurts, if they have been mistreated, or why they are in this strange place in the first place. All animals can do is trust their owner in bringing them to the vet, and trust the wisdom and the thoroughness of the vet.

There are other healers who, though not physicians, are wise in the ways of caring for the sick and afflicted. At different times in my life, I have witnessed (and sometimes been the recipient of) the kindness and generosity of neighbors and friends and parishioners who came to help when needed. Some did the cooking and house cleaning, others were care-givers, while others were the listeners, who simply sat with the patient, being a comforting friend!

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