Simply Living in the LIGHT

By Ria Smit and Cameron McPhee

Growing up and learning about faithfulness to Church did not help the author when, as an adult, she faced life's challenges.

After her life completely broke down she ended up in a psychiatric hospital. It was after this that she was introduced to Christians who believed in the reality of Jesus.

Associating with them and, over a perio

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ria Smit
• Release date: Feb 19, 2021
• ISBN: 9780648926818

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

It was the 18th February, 1975, the day my life changed forever. But let me start with some background before I amaze you as I was amazed.

I was born as the second child in my family. I had a brother who was just eighteen months old. So now there was a boy and a girl. I imagine that, even though it was in the middle of the war, the young couple who were my parents, would have been excited too.

Some five minutes after I was born the midwife gave the news that there was another baby, my identical twin. Because she was extremely tiny, and it was a home birth at that difficult time with all the shortages, it was assumed that my sister would not survive.

Her bed was a small cigar box. Her mattress, a wad of cotton wool. The next morning she was still alive and so began the long period of nursing such a tiny infant in a home situation. Now, having three children made home life more difficult than anticipated but we both survived. By war’s end, we were the big sisters of three brothers, and in the years following the war, three more children were born into our family, two sisters and a brother.

The large family and the difficulties of the recovery after the war convinced my parents to leave their friends and family in the Netherlands and move to Australia, where we did not know anyone. The problems were different, but just as difficult.

As I grew up I realised that our family was not like others. Not just because we had more children and were migrants, but because of my parents’ personal problems. Many years later these problems were to be classified as post traumatic stress disorder, but during my parents’ lifetimes they were just difficulties to be overcome. It definitely made our home life quite turbulent.

Growing up was challenged by the lack of peace. Having two parents who had not gone beyond primary school, meant no one valued education, especially for girls. We were taught that hard work is what advanced the quality of life. Consequently, with menial and low paying jobs, there was not much chance to advance very far. I did, however, spend my spare time going to night classes and doing correspondence lessons which eventually gained me my Matriculation (end of high school).

My dreams came true for a while when I learned of the Catholic Missions in Papua New Guinea accepting anyone who had finished intermediate, to come and teach in their primary schools. There I was given the opportunity to take a six months teacher training course. This course was run by the Australian Government to try and get education started in PNG. It was very valuable training that would benefit me long after I left PNG.

Some years later, back in Australia, I left the public service where I was working and set off for Europe. Was it to seek my roots, get to know relatives or for adventure? It might have been all three. In Europe I learned that no matter where you go, you have to take yourself with you, and that includes all the baggage that you have accumulated. That is how I learned that even half a world away from home, the influences of those days were with me. There was no escaping them. I did have good jobs in a banking environment, but I could not overcome the trauma.

Things came to a head while I was living in Germany, where I had neither family nor acquaintances as I had had in the Netherlands. It eventually came to the point where I was committed to a psychiatric hospital after trying to end my life. I could not sink any lower!

UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

Having been released from the psychiatric hospital on condition that I not live alone for a period of time, I ended up living with a Catholic priest and his family. He had been a Lutheran minister and had felt to change to the Catholic Church. They would not accept him in the USA as he was married, but he was invited to Germany to minister to the American Army and the other English speakers in the area.

As well as that I was given a counselor, a young priest from the USA who was studying in Germany. I saw him regularly for a time, and then he told me that he had finished his studies and would be returning to the USA. Knowing that I would need ongoing assistance he told me about a group of Christians that met weekly on a Thursday evening. His words were, It is nothing for me, but I think you might benefit from it. He suggested I contact them. I knew I wouldn’t and gave permission for my phone number to be passed on so they could call me.

I had now moved back to my little flat and was back at work. As I did not have a phone at home, I received a phone call at work not long after all this. It was Julie who was inviting me to attend the Thursday evening meeting later that week. When she mentioned the time I replied that I would not be able to get there because I would need to take the train home and eat and then come back