It was as if we were bringing to a close the end of a significant chapter of our shared experience. I quickly asked God for the strength to get through it.
In the second half of last year, God Moments II: Accepting and Recognizing the Fruits of the Holy Spirit was being edited one final time before heading off to print. My sister Belinda had graciously given permission to include several of her beautiful poems in the book. She had been diagnosed with late stage 3 breast cancer two years prior, just days before her 46th birthday.
Belinda's medical team determined that aggressive treatment was necessary to try and save her life. Immediately she began chemotherapy, and after her first treatment she almost died.
That story was shared in God Moments: Stories That Inspire, Moments to Remember:
Belinda with her beloved nephew Nick.
After she finished her regimen of chemo she had surgery, and then had radiation. She went back to work after completing the series of radiation treatments, but learned shortly after that the cancer had spread throughout her body. She began treatment again, but it was apparent that without a miracle, she did not have much time left before she would enter eternity. It was God's will was that she would be entering into eternity soon.
One evening, I called her on the phone to chat. Earlier that day, I had been working on the final revisions to God Moments II. During an earlier visit she mentioned that she had taken a book out of the library about writing poems, and had subsequently made changes to one of her poems. That poem was in the manuscript, and so during our phone conversation, I asked her to tell me the changes.
I put the phone down on the desk in my home office and picked up a pen.
"True love is not made of sand, that's why, it withstands the test of time," she began.
As she read the poem, I crossed out words and phrases, and noted her changes. It was one of the most moving and meaningful experiences I have ever had.
My sister was born a year and a half before me. When we were little, our mother used to make us cute outfits and dress us as twins. She was not only my sister, she was my friend, playmate, and companion. In adulthood she was a second mother to my three children and my confidant, a holy soul who understood the challenges of living in our modern era.
So many stories have yet to be told of our experiences, as she accompanied me and my children along our Way of the Cross during and after my divorce, and as we accompanied her along her Way of the Cross as she battled cancer.
The changes she made to her poem were numerous, and so she read her poem back to me a second time. As she spoke I cried silently, for so many different reasons.
Life is such a gift. Sacrificial love is a tremendous gift, too.
After all the changes were made, she asked me to do one of the most difficult things I have ever had to do. She asked me to read the poem back to her.
It was as if we were bringing to a close the end of a significant chapter of our shared experience.
And so I read her poem back to her, after quickly asking God to give me the strength to get through it.
"True love is not made of sand, that's why It withstands the test of time. It does not fade like a rainbow does, Or the sun that dims at dusk.
"For forgiveness is its daily bread, And to patience is love wed. It is lasting, and never gives up, And it loves, it loves, very much.
"Its heart does not break for pity's sake, Or leave memories at wakes. True love is not made of sand, that's why, It withstands the tests of time.
"Nor does it change like the seasons do, For it's genuine and true. It is golden and will never rust, And it loves, it loves, very much.
"It does not fade like a rainbow does, Or the sun that dims at dusk. True love is not made of sand, that's why, It withstands the tests of time."
God Moments II was published in October 2011. Belinda entered into eternal life on December 14, 2011, on the Feast of St. John of the Cross, at the age of 48.
Her beautiful book of poems was on display at her wake, and those she loved and who loved her in return were given copies of God Moments II as a memorial of her beautiful life and legacy.
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1. Michele Elena Bondi, God Moments II: Recognizing the Fruits of the Holy Spirit (Rochester, MI: Joseph Karl Publishing, 2011), "True Love" by Belinda Bondi, p. 10.