Choose life

Posted by Terry McNichols

My pastor yesterday used a story in his sermon that I had heard years ago and forgotten about. It is a story that can be applied to our fears of letting go, our fears of change, or the option to choose life. But Henri Nouwen, the author of the story, was talking about a new way to look at death -- a way that is most comforting to me. We do not know the whole story. But Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed! I hope your Easter was joyful in that knowledge! What follows is the story of a set of twins, conversing in the womb:

The sister said to the brother "I believe there is life after birth."

Her brother protested vehemently, "No, no. This is all there is. This is a dark and cosy place, and we have nothing else to do but to cling to the cord that feeds us."

The sister insisted, "there must be something more than this dark place. There must be something else, a place with light where there is freedom to move."

Still she could not convince her twin brother.

After some silence, the sister said hesitantly, "I have something else to say, and I’m afraid you won’t believe that, either, but I think there is a mother."

Her brother became furious. "A mother!" he shouted. "What are you talking about? I have never seen a mother, and neither have you. Who put that idea in your head? As I told you, this place is all we have. Why do you always want more? This is not such a bad place, after all. We have all we need, so let’s be content."

The sister was quite overwhelmed by her brother’s response and for a while didn’t say anything more. But she couldn’t let go of her thoughts, and since she had only her twin brother to speak to, she finally said, "Don’t you feel these squeezes once in awhile? They’re quite unpleasant and quite painful."

"Yes," he answered. "What’s special about that?"

"Well," the sister said, "I think that these squeezes are there to get us ready for another place, much more beautiful than this, where we will see our mother face-to-face. Don’t you think that’s exciting?"

Our Greatest Gift, Henri Nouwen, Harper, 1994, pages 19-20