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REFLECTIONS
My great aunt

Randall Schmidt

1 Peter 1:6-7

My great aunt passed away in the summer of 1997. She was a “great” aunt in both the figurative and the literal senses.

Aunt Katie’s was a life of incredible suffering, which included the loss of her father when she was very young during the Russian Revolution, the later loss of her husband, and the loss of her two sons while she was fleeing Russia in World War II. In many ways, my great aunt paid a heavy personal price for some of the major events of the 20th century. She became a helpless victim of the troubled times she happened to have been born in. Then, in her closing years, came another blow – she had a stroke and remained virtually bed-ridden for her last four years. It was very difficult for me to understand all that she endured.

And yet she was able to continue. She was able to say “Yes” to life when many of us would have wanted to end it all. I don’t recall ever seeing Katie Quiring in a state of depression, or having the slightest doubt about her faith in God. She was ever able to present herself as the joyful person that she somehow genuinely was. She embraced fully what little joy she had been given.

This is how I will remember my great aunt. She will become an example to me in my own suffering, which pales in comparison to hers. I will try to enjoy each day as it is given by God. I will try to accept those situations I cannot change, and to defeat them by not allowing them to have power over my happiness.

It is comforting to know that Katie is now being granted peace and joy in God’s arms. While Satan seems to have won many battles in her life, Katie’s faith won the war.

Reflections is a column of brief reflections on Scripture passages. This one is by Randall Schmidt of St. Catharines, ON. Freelance submissions for Reflections (200-250 words in length) are welcome.

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Last modified June 17, 2000.

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