I wish to express the gratitude I feel for Mrs. Eddy's incorporation into our movement of the Monitor, which I have taken since 1908, and of the other periodicals. Mrs. Eddy's revelation of Christian Science has enabled me for more than half a century to meet the many problems of a busy life with courage, fortitude, joy, and success. I have been a member of The Mother Church for fifty years. I have testified to the healing power of God at Wednesday evening meetings in branch churches, but I have not previously availed myself of the privilege of contributing a testimony to the periodicals, which Mrs. Eddy established to give us the opportunity to universally share and express our gratitude for the healing Christ.
I was a teen-ager when my family moved from Texas to Oklahoma, and it was in our new home that I first heard of Christian Science. I can recall that my mother and I were sitting in the parlor, receiving a woman caller, and we were astonished to hear her mention Christian Science. She noticed our surprise and remarked that she had not known of Science very long herself but that she had witnessed her husband's cure of drunkenness by this new religion, which healed through prayer.
Despite the difference in our ages, this woman and I became fast friends; and I spent many hours in her home, during which time I helped her with some sewing. One afternoon she handed me five dollars and remarked that she wanted me to have earned the money with which I could purchase a copy of Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy. I had not thought of buying this textbook of Christian Science, nor had I thought about her paying me for helping her; but I have always been grateful that I earned the money with which this purchase was made. I am also happy to have always remembered the first sentence I read in this treasured book: "Truth demonstrated is eternal life" (p. 289).
