From Our Readers
Arthritis I have just finished reading the article “Learning to Live With Arthritis.” (June 8, 1992) I have suffered with chronic arthritis for about 20 years. But as there is no perfect cure for it, and I have been afraid of the side effects of medication, I have done nothing about it. At present, I experience pain year-round, and there are many nights when I cannot sleep. Even so, I was able to spend 60 hours each month in the Christian evangelizing work as an auxiliary pioneer. As my ailment gets progressively worse and my joints get stiffer, however, I will follow your suggestion to exercise to the fullest extent possible.
T. N., Japan
Prison Camp Survivor I have just read the article “A Long Way From Home, I Promised to Serve God.” (February 22, 1992) While I was glad to read of the happy outcome for Gerd Fechner, do we need to learn about man’s inhumanity to man in such depth?
C. T., United States
We can appreciate that some of the experiences related about Gerd Fechner’s life in Russian prison camps might be disturbing to some readers. An effort was therefore made to avoid making the material overly graphic. Nevertheless, it was felt that some amount of realism was necessary to establish what motivated Gerd Fechner to search for God. Fechner’s harsh experiences further served to underscore the fact that “man has dominated man to his injury.” (Ecclesiastes 8:9)—ED.
Zulu Proverbs I am a 15-year-old girl who reads Awake! regularly and thinks it is super! I must say that your artists certainly know how to draw. When I saw the sketch of the funny-looking “cow” in the article “Zulu Proverbs” (March 8, 1992), I could not stop laughing. I do not understand why so many people refuse to read Awake!
J. N., Germany
Hormones I cannot express in words the way I felt when I received the article “Hormones—The Body’s Marvelous Messengers.” (April 22, 1992) In December 1990, I was diagnosed as having a pituitary tumor. Knowing practically nothing about this gland, I did some research on my own. Your recent article has enlightened me further and allowed me to understand my problem better.
L. M., South Africa
Grandparents I am eight years old and want to thank you for the article “Young People Ask . . . Why Did Our Grandparents Move In?” (July 8, 1992) Since Granny moved in, every time I practice my keyboard harmonica, Granny tells me I’m making a noisy racket. But she has also praised me sometimes, such as when I poured her a cup of tea and she said, “Thank you.” When I read the article, I realized I do have to be kind to Granny after all.
S. T., Japan
Left-Handedness I read with great interest the article “Left-Handedness—Disadvantage or Advantage?” (June 8, 1992) I am left-handed, and while I didn’t have anyone in my childhood who tried to discourage me from using my left hand, it was difficult adapting at times. For example, it was hard to learn to use scissors. Now I have five children, and my youngest son is left-handed. About a year ago, I asked him which hand he used to throw a ball. “This one, Daddy,” he replied, raising his left hand. Then he asked: “Daddy, why does everyone else use the wrong hand?” I still laugh when I think about this special moment.
D. C., United States