{"id":1944,"date":"2016-01-18T21:40:06","date_gmt":"2016-01-18T21:40:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/?p=1944"},"modified":"2016-01-16T21:52:24","modified_gmt":"2016-01-16T21:52:24","slug":"chronic-pain-and-illness-aftermath-of-a-storm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2016\/01\/chronic-pain-and-illness-aftermath-of-a-storm.html","title":{"rendered":"Chronic Pain and Illness: Aftermath of a Storm"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Image<\/a>
Image Courtesy of dan at FreeDigitalPhotos.net<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I wish I’d had my camera!<\/p>\n

Our area was pummelled by significant rain and wind last week, and in some places, there was flooding and even a suspected tornado! But in the aftermath, when the sun poked out from the receding clouds, oh, my, what a glory of light and clean air! It was wonderful, and very nice to be outside in the aftermath. But as I drove to the corner of my block and looked to the left, I saw a scary scene: A huge tree had toppled, its multiple branches and broad trunk spanned the street, blocking any traffic.<\/p>\n

And, beneath the thickest part of the trunk was a car, its top utterly smashed.<\/p>\n

This is the second such tree-fall after a storm in our neighborhood. And it is, I’m sure, scientifically indicative of the effects of a drought and then torrential rains – trees starved for water and then the ground in which they grow suddenly becomes mush and roots can no longer provide an anchor for the dry, weak growth above.<\/p>\n

But it also is a metaphor for something that often happens when we’ve just endured a very rough time with our illness or pain. When a catastrophic period occurs, we cling to God, hope, prayer, and other supports to get us through. But in the calm afterwards, sometimes we let go of those supports, perhaps thinking we only needed them in the middle of the storm. And we learn, as we begin to stumble again, that those are the very things on which we must rely at all times, in all “seasons,” rain or shine.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, no one was hurt by the tumble of the tree. Oh, yes, it snarled traffic and certainly provided a challenge for clean-up of car and street. But now, life continues and traffic flows.<\/p>\n

But the reminder of what can happen in the aftermath of a storm is a good one: Keep our roots planted in faith always, and even if the ground becomes movable, we will stand firm!<\/p>\n

Peace,<\/p>\n

Maureen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I wish I’d had my camera! Our area was pummelled by significant rain and wind last week, and in some places, there was flooding and even a suspected tornado! But in the aftermath, when the sun poked out from the receding clouds, oh, my, what a glory of light and clean air! It was wonderful,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":548,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,360,43,1242,4,1047,578,1420,1247,1246],"tags":[2010,2011,2012,29,44,750,2013,2008,2009,1067,30,127,2007],"class_list":["post-1944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chronic-pain-and-illness","category-determination","category-encouragement-in-life","category-food-for-thought","category-words-of-encouragemnent-and-info-for-all","category-good","category-goodness","category-pain-2","category-rising-above-tragedy","category-uplifting","tag-aftermath-of-a-crisis","tag-aftermath-of-a-storm","tag-choping-with-chronic-pain","tag-chronic-illness","tag-chronic-pain","tag-coping-with-chronic-illness","tag-emotional-pain","tag-firm-faith","tag-god-in-the-storm","tag-keeping-faith","tag-pain","tag-storms","tag-storms-in-life"],"yoast_head":"\nChronic Pain and Illness: Aftermath of a Storm - 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She expected to be writing scripts. God had other plans. A few years after her graduation, Maureen was diagnosed with a life-threatening case of organ-involved lupus. Her life turned upside down as she grappled with the effects of the illness and other health conditions that ensued. She was no stranger to serious health challenges; even as a child, Maureen had survived numerous bouts of pneumonia, flu, and other infections. But lupus made her take a fresh look at her life goals - and took herlifelong, strong Catholic Christian faith and writing in a direction she'd never imagined. Today, Maureen writes and speaks about walking with the Lord while living with chronic pain and illness. Her most recent book is \"Don't Panic!: How to Keep Going When the Going Gets Tough (Franciscan Media). She is also the author of, \"Peace in the Storm: Meditations on Chronic Pain & Illness\" (Image Books\/Randomhouse), \"Beyond Pain: Job, Jesus, and Joy\" (Twenty-Third Publications), \"The First Year: Hypothyroidism, Second Edition\" (Perseus) and \"Taking Charge of Lupus: How to Manage the Disease and Make the Most of Your LIfe.\" She writes the syndicated column, \"Living Well,\" for Catholic News Service, and has also written for Saint Anthony Messenger Magazine, Journey for Women Magazine, The Upper Room Magazine, LupusNow, and Arthritis Today. Maureen's health continues to be a challenge, however she feels honored to be able to bring her perspective, from experience and knowledge, to others. \"Good Days...Bad Days with Maureen Pratt\" is a new way for Maureen to reach people who carry the burden of illness and pain in their lives, or who care for someone who does. Through the blog, she hopes to bring issues of health, wellness, and spirit into focus and, especially, inspire others that, no matter what health challenges, illness, or hardships they endure, each person can find a good way to realize the wonderful potential God has placed within each heart and soul.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.maureenpratt.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/author\/mpratt"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1944","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/548"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1944"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1944\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1946,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1944\/revisions\/1946"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}