When our daughter was a few weeks old, I noticed that one of her eyes kept watering. When the condition did not yield to the prayerful work which my husband and I did, we called a Christian Science practitioner for help. This was our first baby, and I was feeling quite burdened and busy with her care. I had begun to neglect the daily reading of the Bible Lessons, provided in the Quarterly, and seldom had time to read our periodicals. Often, I let the baby's schedule, or my own weariness, keep me from the Wednesday evening testimony meetings and Sunday services, although I was a member of a branch church.
I spoke to the practitioner every day or so, and she frequently asked me if I had enjoyed the lesson that morning or if I had been to a church service. She never rebuked me; but gradually, in my desire to understand the spiritual truths that I knew would heal our daughter, I felt drawn more and more to the Bible, to Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy, and to the church services. I began to enjoy reading The Christian Science Journal and the Christian Science Sentinel again.
Still the healing did not come, and I grew impatient. The practitioner quoted to me on several occasions Jacob's words to the angel at Peniel, "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me" (Gen. 32:26). Gradually, I began to look less for the physical healing and more for the spiritual blessing which I knew would come from the experience.
