wounded healer

A poem written for Esther G ______

It’s dark, calm and quiet outside, but Esther’s up before sunrise She greets her sis in the neighboring crib with jumbled words and phrases ad lib. . Her eagerness to take on the day began at birth and never went away Her mood matched her vibrant eyes and her energy was twice her size . That little girl had her favorite things peanut butter, avocado, mac n cheese and lots of fries from Chick-fil-a her mom made sure it would be that way. . This girl could dance like no one I’ve seen and sing her heart out like Celine There wasn’t a puzzle she couldn’t complete no matter the challenge she’d always compete. . But her life went deeper than puzzles and play at seven months old she was diagnosed with Dravet A syndrome that made the simple things hard and seizures were also dealt in those cards. . When I saw Esther’s hand I thought the deck had been stacked the system was wrong, surely it had been hacked. How could this angel be given this plight? This struggle surely would dim her light. . We all know people whose pain runs deep as the depths of oceans, lakes and seas I argued, “this isn’t fair for her to have, give me her seizures because I’m her dad” . I felt so hopeless as her protector I couldn’t prevent how the seizures affected her I couldn’t stop the hurting and pain It seemed my prayers were prayed in vain . But God showed me a different view He gave me a front row seat into her life, and love, and sweetest smile that continued to grow in spite of her trials . And even though I saw what He saw I questioned the cards that she had drawn Until I learned that God is the Dealer who formed Esther into a wounded healer . Her light wasn’t dimmed as I had expected, but radiantly beamed as if unaffected by the toll this diagnosis had on her the affliction only made her more pure . This round was over – she played it her best and to know her we each count ourselves blessed. God showed me a picture of his Only Son and brought heaven to earth in my little one. . and when I looked again at her pile of cards in one hand she held the Queen of Hearts and the other hand was held by the King of Kings as He gently kissed her and gave her new wings.