Benevolence

I think of myself as a fair god, equally benevolent and vengeful; I giveth and taketh away in identical measure. Prayers for sobriety are granted, accompanied by a subsequent addiction to sugar, diabetes, amputation, etc. Your leukemia goes into remission, but your house goes up in flames. Marybeth Sanders of Sandusky, Ohio, recently prayed for her marriage to survive her husband’s infidelity; he found psychotherapy and became a truly faithful and loving husband. Yet the rest of their lives, she was (naturally) tortured by stomach-churning suspicion. It’s no catch-22; I’m trying to show people you get what you pay for.