When I was still a young adult, a small bump on my scalp began to enlarge, and I became somewhat concerned. Actually, it wasn't so much the growth itself that concerned me. It was more what other people would think if they found out about it. But because I wasn't in pain and could still do my hair fairly normally, I admit that my focus was more on concealing what was happening than on dealing with it.
But when I discussed the situation with my parents, they asked me to make a decision about how I wanted to handle it. I chose Christian Science treatment—it was what I knew and trusted. Growing up in a Christian Science household, I'd learned that I didn't have to wait to go to God when I had a problem, but that God was always with me, and that I could communicate with Him directly. This close relationship was the foundation for my prayer with a Christian Science practitioner now. As was the proof I'd seen over and over again during my childhood: Prayer heals.
I met with the practitioner almost every day, and together we explored concepts from the Bible and from Mary Baker Eddy's book Science and Health. At an age when most people are asking questions like, Who am I? and, What's my purpose? I was gaining a profound concept of my identity as completely spiritual, made up of good, pure qualities from God. The practitioner encouraged me to see myself as innocent and to know that it was this innocence—being made in the image of God and not out of matter—that was keeping me safe from any so-called material condition.
