Fear for the Future, Faith for the Present

I feel as though I'm walking on a tightrope with me on one end, and all of my possible dreams for the future on the other.  As I carefully force my aching and trembling body to take one careful step at a time, there's this constant fear that nags at the back of my neck that someone, at any given moment, is going to walk up behind me and push me just enough to send me plummeting to the deepest depths of despair.  Thankfully that hasn't happen yet.  I'm still carefully placing one foot of my broken body in front of the other, and with that I slowly get one step closer to fulfilling my dreams, even if they are miles and miles away.

My entire life all I've wanted to be is a wife and mother.  Ever since I was old enough to know what marriage was, I knew that was where I wanted to be "when I grew up."  I envisioned my future husband, my future children, and my future home centered on God, love for Him, and love for each other.  As I grew up I would make lists of things I would and wouldn't do as a mother, and lists of what my husband would be like.  I would look at picture of homes and decide what I wanted mine to be like.  I watched my mother raise all of my siblings, and me, and I took careful note of the loving and beautiful way she treated us, and her husband.  I took careful watch of my dad, and how he treated my mother, and I took mental note of how I wanted my future husband to be "just like that."  My vision was clear, and every decision I've ever made in my life has been conducive to that dream.  That's all I've ever wanted.  I believe that the amount of money you make does not determine success.  My belief has always been that success is discovered through family, and the love and fulfillment that comes from having one.

The day I got diagnosed with Lyme Disease, was the day that all of dreams went flying out the window and off into a distant existence where I could no longer reach them.  It was the day where I began my endless basket of questions for the future, and since then it's only gotten bigger and bigger.  I don't know if my dreams are reachable at this point.  And it scares me to think that I'll never be able to be the woman that an amazing man gets to come home to everyday.  It scares me to think that I'll never have those babies that I'd get to raise and love.  It scares me to think that my home centered on God, will never be.

I have other dreams too.  I've always wanted to open a vocal studio. and give to children the incredible miracle of music that my first voice teacher gave to me.  I've always wanted to write a novel.  One that inspires and uplifts the human soul.  I've always wanted to take my voice, and perform with the objective to uplift and inspire peoples lives.  I've always wanted to learn how to cook.  I've always wanted to become a teacher.  I've always wanted to be the perfect homemaker and continuously develop skills that would make it so I could do that.  I've always wanted to be someone.  I've always wanted to help people.

But how will I ever reach such a far away destination when I'm stuck at home in bed, suffering so bad that I don't even know if I'll make it out alive? 

I don't know the complete answer to that, but I'd like to try and answer it anyway.

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.Chronic illness is something that you take one minute at a time.  Not one day, one week, one month, or even one hour, but one minute.  In fact, there are some days that I feel as though I'm taking it one second at a time.  And with each precious pain, anxiety, and stress free second, I count that second as a blessing given to me from my loving Heavenly Father.  Every piece of strength I manage to muster at any moment I consider a gift from God.  I can not do this alone, and I'm grateful that God is always with me.

In every battle, there is always a secret weapon.  My secret weapon in this battle is faith.  Faith keeps me fighting, and faith keeps my hope for the future.  I keep telling myself every moment of the day that I have to keep my faith.  Faith that I'm going to get better.  Faith that I can fight this and come out stronger.  Faith that God is always with me.  Faith that God can heal me.  Or even faith that I won't be healed, but that I'll find a way to live happily, despite my broken down body, mind, heart, and soul.  Without my faith, I am nothing, and my hope that I am so desperately trying to obtain slowly vanishes into thin air.

Some days I have faith that I'll get better, and other days I feel hopeless and despairingly distraught.  I look at it this way.  Every day I try to do at least one thing that brings me joy.  Even if it's microscopically small.  If I successfully accomplish one small thing, then I'm not finished yet.  Lyme hasn't won yet, and I don't intend on letting it.  This trial in my life is incredibly hard, but I want to stay strong.  I want to fight this battle, and I want to win.  I'm exhausted in every sense of the word, but I can't give up.  I just can't.

I'm so grateful to my Savior for giving me the strength I need to continuously fight this.  I'm so grateful for the support that comes from my family and others that I hold close to my heart.  This is a lonely battle, but knowing that I'm never completely alone is extremely comforting.  I'm not giving up yet, and even though the tears streaming down my face scream fear, anxiety, and hopelessness for my future, my faith says otherwise.  I intend on keeping my faith in the present in order to dispel my fear for the future.  I'll still have my home, my husband, and my children.  It just my be a little different vision that I had before.  The important thing is that the vision I had of endless amounts of love that takes place in my future will not change, Lyme or no Lyme.  In times of fear, my faith will always come out conqueror.