TRAGEDY AND DEVOTION | JENNIFER WORTH
“Their devotion showed me there were no versions of love there was only... Love. That it had no equal and that it was worth searching for, even if that search took a lifetime.”
So much about The Midwife relates to the essence of love. Despite poverty, cruelty, and the scars of war, there is hope and compassion if people are willing to give and accept it.
The care the midwives showed their patients, as well as their concern for their welfare, was inspiring to read about, and reminded me that even when things are at their blackest, one can still find hope if one has the capacity to love.
“Life turns on little things. The momentous events in history can leave us untouched, while small events may shape our destinies.”
I loved this line because it really shows that it's the small things that shape our lives. I happened to meet up with some new friends in Chicago one night over fifteen years ago and was suddenly introduced to my future husband. No fanfare or rom-com meet-cute. Just people ordering pizza.
There are monumental changes from big events, too. Ferguson, the pandemic, and the birth of each of my children have all changed me and altered my path in a way that nothing else would.
“Women are the cohesive force in society.”
“We who live comfortable, affluent lives in the twenty-first century cannot begin to imagine what it must have been like to be a pauper in a workhouse. We cannot picture relentless cold with little heating, no adequate clothing or warm bedding, and insufficient food. We cannot imagine our children being taken away from us because we are too poor to feed them, nor our liberty being curtailed for the simple crime of being poor.”
“But life is made of happiness and tragedy in equal proportions, and we will never change that.”
I am listening to a series about the positivity of pain and the inevitability of struggle in life. The topic is difficult, and I feel worn out when the discussion runs out of steam, but I truly believe that struggle is necessary for a happier life.
If I had not suffered loss in my family, I would not appreciate life as much as I do. If I had not broken off certain friendships, I would not have reached a higher potential, nor would I have had the time or energy to find new, more supportive life-giving friends. If I did not go through childbirth TWICE, I would not understand fully what my body is capable of or how large my heart could grow. Each of these moments brought on pain and hurt that took years to recover from, but the joy that comes after lives eternally and abundantly.
“Poverty is such a relative thing; but no man is really poor till life becomes a desert island that gives him neither food nor shelter nor hope.”