Michele Gyselinck

 I was born in Québec as the eldest daughter of a Belgian immigrant and a Québécois mother in the 1950s, and when I started attending public school in French, most of my classmates and even the teachers had NEVER heard or seen a name like Gyselinck in their lives before.  In fact, I was only schooled in the French sector because my mother was a French Canadian of Roman Catholic confession.  Most children of immigrants went to schools of the  local Protestant school boards, and so since I was different and vulnerable the other kids started to pick on me and bully me.  I only found acceptance once my parents moved me to an English high school so I'd learn English since the teaching of English in Québécois schools was AND IS pathetic.  My experience as a first generation child of immigrant parents was that the nation to which I was born was and remains very ethnocentric.  Even now most francophones in Québec--especially those who trace their ancestry to French ancestors who immigrated in the 17th and 18th centuries--struggle to include and accept immigrants who look different and have different religions like Islam.

 This week I am celebrating the 40th anniversary of my profession of faith (May 15, 1977).  But for me to reach that point many things happened, the first was God drawing me to Him.  There have been times when I could not pray, either because I could not concentrate or was too upset with him to even want to pray, but others prayed, and eventually I started again.  These days I pray in writing.

 Guilt is a bad motivation to do things.  I know.  as someone in recovery from schizophrenia, depression was my main negative symptom and guilt the main one of that.  Before I was treated for this illness I felt guilty for breathing, let alone failing to do stuff.  It nearly drove me to suicide, and even after I'd decided not to throw myself into a river I still had suicidal thoughts.  GET HELP.   It's the only way.

 In French, we have this proverb or saying that goes,"L'enfer est pavé de bonnes intentions," that could probably be translated as, "Hell is paved [over] with good intentions."  People may mean well, but some comments still hurt when you're on the receiving end.

  No, I DON'T think we should wait and see.  That would be wasting precious time.  We KNOW Trump's character and his values, and he's NOT going to change.  Why would he?  All his life he's been led to believe he could get away with his behavior.  Even the fact that he was elected would confirm him in the belief that he was right to believe he could get away with his behavior.  So it would be foolish to wait and see at this time.  No new data are going to come in about the Trump Administration.  Americans with disabilities and their advocates need to put pressure on that government to respect the laws put in place by previous administrations to protect those who are vulnerable.  It's too bad he was elected, but since he's there until some people decide to impeach him, American citizens need to deal with him.

 Fine, but you should also seek the help of a psychiatrist.  There is no guarantee that prayers alone will make the mental illness go away.  To be sure, God CAN work miracles, but He doesn't cure all cases of mental illness.  He NEVER took mine away.  So don't put ALL your eggs in the same basket and seek treatment.  God may have other ideas about your illness.

 I have mixed feelings about having the CRC associated with a woman who didn't do her homework prior to her being interviewed by the Senate for her qualifications as Secretary of Education.  I can admit she would have preferences, but that does NOT excuse her ignorance of rhe public school system in her own country and its strengths and weaknesses. 

  Once again we need to make the distinction between healing and cure.  What this couple did NOT get in answer to their prayers was a cure.  That does not prevent them from experiencing healing emotionally and spiritually.  I did not find a cure to my schizophrenia despite people praying for me.  That turned out to be because I could help people more by having the illness and living with the side effects of the meds I have to take to control the symptoms than by being cured of it.  Having this illness moved me to want to learn what it is, what are its symptoms, and how we can best cope with this illness in addition to striving to sensitize those who are healthy, so that they don't add to the burden of those who live with schizophrenia or other psychiatric illnesses.  

Maybe the Lord is waiting for this couple to find a purpose for their lives going forward in the fact that the husband has the particular disease he has.  It might give a new meaning to their lives.  Accepting this illness and striving to help other people with psychiatric illnesses and their relatives has led me to participate in stimulating and challenging activities.  I hope for Mr. and Mrs. Roorda that they can find this purpose for their lives.

 Why do people blame that attack on Obama, even indirectly?  He has never done or said anything to encourage that kind of behavior.  Because he himself is "black"?  I don't get that sort of reasoning. 

 On Facebook this past week I have read about how civil servants working in American airports handcuffed a five-year-old boy because he was Muslim; separated a woman from her two children and detained her for about 48 hours without food or water ALSO because she was Muslim; and detained another woman for 20 hours ALSO without food or water and ALSO because she was a Muslim.  How do Americans who say they are Christians countenance such atrocities?  What does it do to your witness to your Mulsim neighbors, if you let your government get away with treating people who are seeking refuge like that just because they belong to a certain religion and come from certain countries that were not even the ones from which terrorists who attacked your country came from anyway?  Why didn't Republicans target Saudi Arabia, for example in their list of countries from which people are banned?  How do you think you will convince Muslims to even consider Christianity when people who claim to be Christians behave that way and enact such inhumane policies that go against our Lord's teachings and commandments?  Obviously, the people in power in Washington don't care about that, and if they say they do despite ample proof to the contrary, you can call them liars to their faces, but if you do care, what are you going to do about it?  As a Canadian I can sign petitions until the cows come home, but at the end of the day, it's your country and your government.  According to your political system, you are the ones who have to hold those politicians accountable for the laws they pass, especially when they're immoral.