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Friday, August 25, 2006
Decoding life's lessons
By Rene Lizada
Papa's Table
ONE of the greatest tragedies that can befall a person is when he or she is handed a lesson to be learned and he or she misses it, or cannot see it. Usually, a lesson is hidden in a painful experience because it is only through pain that we can stop and think about what has happened. Pain can come in many forms.
Physical pain is the most obvious. Sometimes we get sick or we met an accident or we are given a terrifying result. It does not matter what it is, the important thing is it makes us stop. And that is the crucial point. What happens when we stop? What happens to us when we are confronted with the reality of our existence? We all react differently to certain situations.
A few years ago, I coughed blood. When I stared at the sink, I was numb to the bone. A lot of things were jamming into my head and I had vicious desperate thoughts. For the first time in my life, I knew what a silent scream was. I wasted no time. I rushed to the doctor and I had myself examined. I had to wait for a week to get the results and I must say that was the longest week of my life. When the results came, the doctor told me that it was fine. But he said that I should stop smoking altogether. I did. Through prayer, I was able to stop smoking. There are times when I think about smoking. But then I remember what I felt when I had to wait for a week and that is enough. I learned my lesson and that is why I have been smoke-free for the past seven years. I hope to stay that way for the rest of my life. I do not want to feel that way again, waiting in agony.
I know of someone who fared worse. She was diagnosed to have stage one cancer. Fortunately for her, the doctors were able to operate on her and the cancer was taken out. There was a lesson hidden somewhere there but unfortunately she missed it. Too bad, but also quite dangerous.
God will always find a way to get to us. He starts by silently knocking in our hearts, giving us small warnings and moments to reflect upon. He gives us the opportunities to see for ourselves what we have done and if we can take the hint. Most of us do not.
A few years ago, I missed it entirely but still God would not give up and my arrogant self was also too absorbed. So one day, God finally drops a bomb on my lap and it explodes in my face. And only there, and only there did my eyes open.
Someone once said that God continually breaks our hearts until our hearts remain open. Pain and shame and whatever you may want to call it does make you stop. As for that someone, I am scared for her because I know God will keep on knocking.
A stage one may not have done it but perhaps something else will. But we need not wait for the sorrow to come. CS Lewis once said that pain is a megaphone. And that is true but aside from the noise we need to listen to what is being said about the pain. We need to see the lesson.
Like Spinoza, we need to understand. We need to understand the lessons being taught but how can we if we cannot even see through the pain. There are no accidents. If something happens to us there is a reason for it. Accidents are not accidents but are warnings. And we should not take them lightly or give them lip service because sooner or later a bigger much more painful "accident" will happen that will force us to really stare and stop and weep. And then, and there can we only understand the lesson.
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (August 25, 2006 issue)
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