The Red Car Syndrome

A few years ago I was looking for leadership training materials and stumbled upon a video called the Red Car Syndrome....actually I can't remember the name of it, but it had red cars.....The basic plot was that someone made a comment that they never saw red cars....then all of a sudden, there were red cars everywhere......

I knew there were people who were battling cancer.....there were many on my prayer list, I visited many as I did visits around the parish...... but I didn't stop to count, at least until the days after July 22, the day that my life became part of the lives that become a statistic........

I am not sure if it is the "red car" syndrome, where I just never noticed how many red cars there were.... or that it happened to me so I now am paying attention....What I do know is that those who have gone before have reached out in love and support.....I am thankful for all of them. 

What is comforting, shocking, and troubling all at the same time, is that there are so many. So so many. Too many. Which leads me to ask what is going on.

So this has been on my mind and I tend to process externally. Which means that everyone that I have run into has had to listen to my wonderings....and then they are wondering too. There is a road that follows the river near us where every house along that road has had at least one in the home that has had some form of cancer. 

I know that prayer helps.....so I posted the following on Facebook:

Dear Friends....
Thank you for your prayers, your love, your concern, and your friendship....I cherish it all and I can feel the power of the prayers. 

However, as I ponder about cancer I started thinking about all the others that are currently receiving treatments.It quickly became a long list....So I thought it might be a good thing to keep a prayer list for them. If you know someone who is battling cancer and you would like to add them to the list, I will pray for them and I invite you to as well. In order to respect peoples need for privacy you are welcome to leave the name in code.....Let us pray!

You are welcome to post names or code names (to respect the privacy of those who need it) Please pray for the names.....