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This poem is copyright 2004
She lived from her Dad A thousand miles away Then the message urgent came And it did say His cancer's gaining hold He's slipping fast Any moment now may be his last She from the airport Straight went to the hospital And found her Dad unrecognisable Very old, hairless, pale and thin Didn't even know if she The correct room was in Some days later to his bed she came again Once more his condition Caused her mental pain She did not want To look him in the eye It was hard being with him Trying not to cry Then suddenly a thought came A quote of Mother Teresa's When asked how she could bear Ministering to lepers She said she saw them as Christ "in all his distressing disguises" And the daughter of the dying man Something realises Behind his distressing disguise He too's a child of God And if he was, then it was not hard To feel herself to share In that identity And from that hour her burden lifted - She was free! ------------------(Peter Elliott)-----------------------------(inspired by the story at the start of Chapter 2 of "How Can I Help?" by Ram Dass and Paul Gorman)