Several years ago, a doctor discovered some type of large cyst on our youngest son’s body, in an area he could not see. It was so large that it had to be surgically removed. Following his surgery, I was tasked with dressing the surgical wound twice a day. I had anticipated a two-inch slice into his skin that was neatly stitched. What I found instead was a huge gaping hole, at least six or seven inches long and a couple of inches wide. It appeared to me to be a couple of inches deep. My first thought was that a football could have neatly fit into the wound.
I had seen brains splattered against walls, hanging from door knobs, and spread across floors. I’ve seen intestines hanging out of bodies, eyeballs where they shouldn’t be, hands, fingers, feet, toes and other body parts that were unrecognizable to me. None had the effect on me that the gaping surgical wound on my son’s body had brought to my heart. The first time I saw it, I retreated to my own bedroom, staggered to my bed, and collapsed on the bed to allow blood to return to my head.
When I felt I could return to the task at hand without joining my son on his bed, I went back and gingerly cleaned the wound and dabbled gauze into it and made a flight from the battle scene. I repeated the process several times over the next few days, proud of myself for not having puked my guts out into his open wound. But after he retuned to the surgeon for a follow-up visit, I learned that I had not been properly dressing the wound. I needed to forcefully clean and pack it in order for the wound to heal.
Through it all, I learned that some wounds can easily be cared for with a bandage. Others require stitches, but serious wounds like his must heal from the inside out. The process was not easy for either one of us. The cleansing and packing process was equally painful for both of us. But after several weeks, the wound closed and healed from the inside out.
None of us escape life without some type of emotional or spiritual wound. We either do it to ourselves, others inflict it upon us, or they just happen in the course of life without much explanation. The hurt, pain, and anguish we feel are genuine. Some wounds are small and only require an apology. Others take a little time for the sting to disappear. Still, others require deep cleansing and care. At times the healing may seem more painful than the cause of the wound in the first place. Those wounds require healing from the inside out, and it’s a good thing. And while the healing may be complete, its memory lingers on. Thankfully, there is One who helps with the healing.
Did I mention that the healing process is necessary for both victim and offender?
