The Story of "The Greatest Story Ever Told"...

I received a special gift this week. It came to me in the middle of my string of 13 hour work days when I was lacking in motivation and feeling bogged down by too much pharmacy talk and study. I got an email from a special friend wishing me well on my rotations - a simple gesture that in itself would have been gift enough - but to it he attached something I had given him over 5 years ago. I may be buried in the science of pharmacy school now, but before starting that journey, I had way more balance to my studies. So much so in fact that I had minors in English and theology to supplement my Biology major in undergraduate school. And I used to write poetry. I took poetry classes, and I loved writing.

I had notebooks filled with poems, but most of them were saved to a flashdrive that I carried faithfully in my bookbag. I honestly forgot they were even there until the day my car was robbed and my bookbag, and subsequently the flashdrive, were stolen. And so my poetry was lost seemingly forever. And since then - since starting pharmacy school actually - I haven't written even a line of poetry, minus of course cheesy birthday messages to my Dad who is the King of rhyming and my inspiration (though He's not nearly as eloquent as me...). :)

My sister and I with my handsome father. Our childhoods were filled with his silly and often somewhat ridiculous rhymes to us.

But attached to this email from my friend, was a poem I had written many years ago and attached in a letter I wrote to him for a retreat we worked together. He's saved it all of these years and kept it in his scriptures. He sent it to me with the subject of the message being, "Didn't forget."

How meaningful and poetic in itself was that subject heading! It's as if he was harboring this love of writing for me during the time warp of pharmacy school and now that the didactic portion is over, giving it back to me safely and urging me to write again. While I may have forgotten that love, he was there to remind me of it.

One of many photos of the amazing "TEC family" - the source of my friendship with my poetry-gifting friend, Terry.

I read my poem and thought of undergrad and my special group of friends there. Jordan, who's birthday ironically happened to be this week as well, always inspired me to write - to think deeply about things and appreciate the blessings of creation around me. He wanted to write after graduation and encouraged me to do the same and perhaps is beginning his own journey of fulfilling that dream now (I sure hope so!). I however was going to pharmacy school and didn't have time for such things...

Jordan, my most inspired writing friend!

Until last night that is. I got home late from a busy, busy week. I opened up a church manual to read over the lesson that I was to teach today and instead of planning that lesson, I summed it up in a poem. After not writing in at least four years, I hesitantly typed out a rhyme, feeling like I had fallen into a time warp. I fell asleep with my laptop open in the middle of the last stanza. And I woke up today and read what I had done. And this, my friends, is the story of the poem below entitled, "The Greatest Story Ever Told."