WHEN I BEGAN TO STUDY Christian Science I noticed a lot of positive changes in my life. Many unpleasant character traits dropped away, my job situation turned around for the better, and my home life became more harmonious. However, for several years I continued to suffer from seasonal allergies—something I'd struggled with since childhood.
But then I realized that I could address this situation through prayer. So whenever these allergy symptoms appeared, I thought about the ideas I'd read in Science and Health that challenged what I was experiencing. For instance, Mary Baker Eddy wrote: "What an abuse of natural beauty to say that a rose, the smile of God, can produce suffering! The joy of its presence, its beauty and fragrance, should uplift the thought, and dissaude any sense of fear or fever. It is profane to fancy that the perfume of clover and the breath of new-mown hay can cause glandular inflammation, sneezing, and nasal pangs" (p. 175).
I also thought about her statement, "All of God's creatures, moving in the harmony of Science, are harmless, useful, indestructible" (p.514). I thought of pollen as a kind of creature that could not harm me, but moved in harmony with God's perfect creation. It was such a relief to realize that these symptoms didn't have to be attached to my identity. I was learning in my study of Christian Science that my identity was entirely spiritual and that I could expect freedom from anything that was the opposite of what God had created.
