My heart is so filled with joy and gratitude for the wonderful blessings that have been mine in the past that I want to share it with the readers of the Journal.
In the year 1886 my mother, who had been a semi-invalid the greater part of her life, went to a Christian Science practitioner for treatment, but not receiving any physical benefit, she decided that Christian Science was too deep for her. My parents were both members of the Congregational church and I was a member of the Sunday school. My mother was both sick and unhappy, as her religion did not satisfy her and she longed for something that would. It did not occur to her until years later that she had taken the first step toward this goal when she visited a practitioner. We soon moved South, and after drifting mentally for several years she found the truth. A woman who was traveling stopped in our village for a month. It developed that she had been healed a few months before by Christian Science. She came to see my mother and left with her a copy of Science and Health. Mother and father began to study it with the Bible, both being much helped at once; and out of gratitude for this I began to read with them, though not until Christmas, 1895, did I have a copy of my own. For thirty-eight years I have relied on Christian Science in every emergency and have reared a family of four children without drugs or material means for healing, and with no other religion.
I was healed of many physical troubles by reading our textbook, and in 1899 received class instruction from a loyal student of Mrs. Eddy. My gratitude increases for this instruction as the years go by, as I see more and more that the right foundation which was laid at that time has enabled . me to stand in times of stress, and has taught me to depend on God at all times. Many were the trials and problems that came to me in the years that followed, but God in His infinite goodness delivered me out of them all. Later, the way was opened for us to move to a city where we could attend church and send our children to Sunday school. We have never failed to avail ourselves of this opportunity and have been blessed thereby.
