In autumn of 2012, like many during the election season in my country, I felt overwhelmed by national unrest. Having been in the public practice of Christian Science only two years, I realized how much I still had to learn about maintaining spiritual poise and peace in turbulent times. I yearned to understand more of the harmony promised by divine Love.
Then, while visiting Boston before the Christmas holidays that year, I had a physical challenge that prompted me to deepen my spiritual understanding. One afternoon touring the city, I slipped and fell hard on a cobblestone walkway, landing on my shoulder. I heard a pop when I landed, and I wasn’t able to move my left arm. Several kind people who witnessed the fall came to my aid, looking concerned and urging me to go to the hospital. I graciously declined and simply asked to be helped over to a nearby bench.
After they left, I felt alone, afraid, and in pain—so I called a Christian Science practitioner for help through prayer, and I reached out in thought for divine Love’s guidance. The practitioner gently encouraged me to walk over to a Christian Science Reading Room that was nearby. She then read this from the Christian Science Hymnal: “Love one another,—word of revelation; / Love frees from error’s thrall,—Love is liberation” (Margaret Morrison, Hymn No. 179, © CSBD).
