Too often we don't notice the important things around us in life because we are so focused on our projects, needs and schedules that we seldom notice our environment. We have been doing life this way for so long that we forget what it is to look around every now and then.
Sunday morning I was out for a walk with my dog before church. It was a beautiful morning in Chateauguay. It was a cloudless blue sky. The sunlight felt hot but there was no humidity. It was incredibly quiet, as it is often at this time on a Sunday morning. No cars. No people. A moment of pause in our small part of the world. Peaceful.
It wasn't until I was on my way home that I noticed them. Two young adults walking toward me on the opposite side of the street. Their body language didn't indicate they were a couple. Friends? Brother and sister? It was hard to tell but her body language screamed that she was in distress.
She had her arms wrapped around her mid-section in a self-hug, as if she was trying to keep herself together. Her voice sounded panicky although I couldn't make out the words yet. Her friend's face carried a deep look of concern and helplessness as he looked down at her. Obviously something was not right and he felt there was nothing he could do about it. Then her words reached me.
"But I'm scared for my mom! I'm scared for my sister! And I am scared for me!" Her voice seemed to choke on the words as she struggled to spit them out.
And as quick as that they were past me but her words hung heavy on my heart. What could this poor dear girl be so afraid of? What was happening in her family that even her friend felt the helplessness of the situation? The tangible fear seemed like a foreign intruder on such a beautiful morning.
The problem is that such things do not respect the moment. They will burst into our lives at the most perfect and delightful occasions. They will smear their ugliness all over the beauty of our day and they will try to rob us of all joy and peace. Whatever was happening to this family was acting like a life sucking leech and it was their little secret.
The world can be a very harsh and lonely place for those facing things that cause shame and fear. It takes a special place, a special community that is willing to walk with the suffering, the broken, with no judgement and condemnation. It takes a special people who see their responsibility to be open and available, even seeking out those who have lost their "normal".
It's all around us. It doesn't have to be a major event. A young mom who doesn't understand why her baby is not sleeping at night. Is she a bad mom? Her outlook can be renewed with a kind, encouraging word from a mom of experience.
An elderly wife who just buried her life-long partner. They had experienced everything together and now she is left to face it alone. What a difference it makes when her neighbour shows up to mow her lawn, when people stop to say hi and to share their day, when she is invited over for supper or to the backyard bbq. It's not the same but it helps knowing she is not alone.
A neighbourhood kid dragging herself home after school, wondering why no one likes her. Wondering why school seems such a lonely place. Wondering if this is what the rest of her life will look like. What a difference it makes when the people around her include her, ask for her opinion, ask what her plans are, invite her to special things, compliment her, tell her what they appreciate about her. Life won't always be like today. That may be the bit of hope she needs to make it to tomorrow.
But to be these "breaths of fresh air" we have to look up. We have to be aware of our environment. We have to see what is going on. We have to decide to care for more than just ourselves. Hurting, broken, lost, lonely, and desperate people are all around us. They have a special place in our Father's heart and he wants us to see them. He wants our heart to break over what breaks his.
"Whatever you do for these least of these you do for me."
James says it is our purpose to live out, "Love and value your neighbour as you love and value yourself". But it requires that we look around. It requires that we care.
As for that young lady and her friend, I did the one thing I know how to do, perhaps the best thing I could do given the circumstances : I prayed. In fact, I haven't stopped praying for her. I am praying that the people living life around her will stop and look around and care.
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