FMF Writers: Cold
At the Mall last night. we get to its first floor foodcourt and a middle aged man settles next to our son Yona. He’s looking friendly and keen to chat. “Oh no. ” I think, disappearing from the scene to get us some sandwiches. It is near 6 pm. From the corner of my eye I see him make friends with Yona.
Not anything to complain about, just that soon there will be questions about Eye care and have we really checked son’s retina. Then the sweet talk about blind people being compensated with other gifts.
By the time I get back with our sandwiches, Yona and newman are talking about favorite colors ! Says he hasn’t thought of his Fav color in years! I try not to get in the middle of this but new man says hello. I wait for a next sentence, a query about eye care, or what our son is going to “work towards”?!
This has been the trend at social conversation. Yona is recovering from too many things he shouldn’t have had to recover from. We learned to put on mental helmets and brave this at its worst. Now things are so much better, but my heart seems to have sunk in, in public esp. Here expectations are high.
But not today.
Today we are met by a true gentleman who decides to just hang out with our son, like they’re a couple of human beings. (Aren’t they?) ..not giving any advice, not checking us out for flaw, no hint of a challenge, or disadvantage,not even ‘encouraging’ words that can put one off for reasons who knows–
this is just plain simple human chat, as if there’s no blindness going on here. Yona isnt awkward about who he is, or what he represents.
Its just me that went cold a bit there. As I write this I’m thinking how we’re each a planet full of weather conditions. We learn coping skills, we try shield each other from the whatevers of social co- existence. But what a surprise it is, to spend a few moments with someone who can just be human. No confusion and worry, no trying to fix someone, not the slightest condescension, or uncalled for frost.
And I get the sense of Christ walking among us at that Mall full of empty large spaces, giant chandeliers, and enough food to fill our hungry pavements outside…
-get a sense of Christ warming my cold core inside recently, at how cruel some are not just in conversations, but also other areas ….rascim. Like it or not, we are taking sides: the weak and the strong. The well dressed and the Not. Polished toes and Not. The legal, the illegal. The sheltered, the unsheltered…
I realize if I collect any more Cold in my heart, I’ll start dishing it out for free. So I’m deciding to collect Warmth. No ban on that one. What do you say. Big favor to the human race. I love this Post. Get the feeling God likes this one too. Nothing to complain about, just be a collector of goodnesses. Receive it in big armloads. And if its not there recently, serve it from when we last received
I’m trying.
Loads of goodwill,
RN
Leave a reply to My Life in Our Father’s World Cancel reply