April 11, 2019
Life Between Two Gardens:
Finding Purpose and Embracing Hope Amid Life’s Greatest Challenges
Steven R. Edgley, MD
Aviva Publishing (2019)
ISBN: 978-1947937925
Stroke Survivor Offers Insight into Surviving Life’s Greatest Challenges
In Life Between Two Gardens, Dr. Steven Edgley shares the inspiring story of how he has learned to live a fulfilling and purposeful life after experiencing a stroke at age twenty-eight. Edgley had just graduated from Loyola Medical School when his life was devastated by a stroke that left him unable to speak for days and required months of physical therapy. However, Edgley, as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, had a strong faith to sustain him, as well as family and friends who never gave up on him. In this book, he reveals the tender mercies he has been granted along with his stroke, including a rewarding career as a doctor who helps other stroke patients.
The two gardens referenced by the book’s title are the Garden of Eden and the Garden of Gethsemane. The Garden of Eden is where humanity first had its fall into sin, which led to our current state of existence, and the Garden of Gethsemane is where Jesus committed himself to dying for our sins. Edgley believes both gardens can be meaningful to us, both in our times of trial and in our everyday lives.
Edgley walks the reader through the various events of his life, from the stroke and its aftermath to moments when his faith was tested and when it was rewarded and to the many moments when he has experienced joy and seen God’s hand at work in his and others’ lives. He feels God called him to his work helping other stroke survivors. Strokes affect nearly 800,000 people per year in the United States alone, and they do not discriminate among the young or old, men or women, sinners or saints. By being an example of overcoming a stroke, Edgley can inspire others. He especially believes in the importance of sharing his story. He states, “Stories have tremendous power, and sometimes patients need my story more than my medical care to help alleviate their suffering. I feel a solemn responsibility to share my story, when possible.”
Edgley’s story, however, will benefit more than just stroke survivors. During the time he couldn’t speak or communicate with his loved ones, Edgley had a lot of time to ponder why bad things happen to good people. He also realized that only when what we truly love and care about is threatened do we fully realize what is important to us. The messages he provides in these pages will inspire anyone going through a difficult time in their lives, whether they face difficulties with their health, their relationships, their finances, or any other area of life that can be challenging.
Edgley’s own journey has been far from easy. The first words he was able to write on the computer after his stroke were, “Steve reads books about mountains,” which took him half an hour, compared to the fifty words per minute he had previously typed. That alone shows how much patience he needed to recover. Today, however, he lives an active life. He has run a Chicago Marathon, he frequently goes biking, he skis, and he uses voice-to-speech technology since he can’t type with his right hand.
Through it all, Edgley has chosen to be an optimist. He states, “God has given us the agency to make that choice in how we see ourselves and our life situations. He wants all of His children to have healthy self-esteem and then work to change their individual situations for the better.” He also realizes that surviving his stroke has been a gift. He clarifies this point by quoting author Robert Brault, who said, “Am I to concern myself with an allotment of days I never had and was never promised? Must I check off each day of my life as if I am subtracting from this imaginary hoard? No, on the contrary, I will add each day of my life to my treasure of days lived. And with each day, my treasure will grow, not diminish.”
Edgley enjoys every minute given to him in this life between two gardens. He embraces the journey, knowing our purpose is to grow and we can only do that through the challenges given to us. He states, “Our Master and Creator has used neurologic principles to create fertile soils in our mortal minds and assist our ascent. His Holy Spirit whispers to our minds, directing us in the path that leads back to Him.”
Sometimes the challenges we face seem insurmountable and often they seem unfair. However, Edgley agrees with C. S. Lewis, who stated, “That is what mortals misunderstand. They say of some temporal suffering, ‘No future bliss can make up for it,’ not knowing that Heaven, once attained, will work backwards and turn even that agony into a glory…. And that is why, at the end of all things, when the sun rises here…the blessed will say, ‘We have never lived anywhere except in Heaven.’”
While Edgley waits for that day when it feels like he has always lived in heaven, he embraces his purpose here on earth, between the two gardens. While he can daily help stroke survivors at the hospital where he works, he has come to realize he has a larger purpose—to spread a message of hope and purpose to people everywhere, and so he has written Life Between Two Gardens so that readers can learn to enjoy and benefit from the journey just like he has. His story is an inspiration to anyone who suffers, and his book is one that will be turned to time and again for comfort, motivation, and reassurance that in the end, everything is part of God’s plan.
For more information about Steven Edgley and Life Between Two Gardens, visit www.LifeBetweenTwoGardens.com.
— Tyler R. Tichelaar, PhD and award-winning author of When Teddy Came to Town and The Best Place.
