The Story of a Life
*Although this was written for the Lenten Season, it is a wonderful message any time of year
Early Monday morning, Feb. 23, National Public Radio (NPR) presented a story about a man named Wil Smith (not the actor). It was the first thing that I heard that morning and it immediately captured my attention.
| Mr. Smith was born in Florida, the youngest of 10 siblings. His mother died of cancer when he was 15. After a stint in the Navy, Mr. Smith, then age 27, enrolled in Bowdoin College in Maine. He was one of three African-Americans in his class and he had another distinction: his roommate was his 1-year-old daughter.To pay his way through college, he worked at Staples at night. Because he could not afford a babysitter, he brought his daughter to the store and let her sleep in a closet.
“I think I lost something like 27 pounds just from stress and not eating, because I didn’t have enough for both of us,” he said to his daughter, now an adult, during the NPR segment that was recorded in 2013. “There were times the only way I could get through was to come in and look at you and to see you sleeping and then go back to my studies.” Mr. Smith went on to earn a law degree and became an associate dean at Bowdoin. Most recently he served as dean of community and multicultural affairs at the Berkshire School in Sheffield, Mass. Mr. Smith knew that in order to survive, he needed strength and perseverance. That is what he prayed for and that is what he received. We have just begun the season of Lent. What do we need? Do we need more faith? Do we need more of an ability to trust the Lord? Do we need a push from the saints to be more generous with our resources? Whatever we need to grow in the spiritual life is what we should ask for in prayer during Lent. “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”(Matthew 7:7). As I was listening to the story of how Mr. Smith overcame adversity and in the process inspired many others, my mind raced ahead. I thought the NPR announcer would say that Mr. Smith had been named president of Bowdoin or some other prestigious school. Sadly, he said: “Mr. Smith died on Sunday of cancer. He was 46.” Our time is short; human life is but a breath. Wil Smith asked for what he needed and left a mark for good on many lives. We can do the same. Let us seize the opportunity during Lent to turn from sin and believe the Good News and along the way, touch someone’s life for good. |
Originally published on 2/27/2015
The original blog can be found here.
