The Crossing Guard

Every day, when I drop my spousal unit off at work, I get stopped at the crosswalk while various medical staff make their way across the street.  It’s not enough that the crosswalk is some 25-30 feet wide or that they have a gigantic sign telling you to “Yield to Pedestrians in the Crosswalk.”  Nope, they have a crossing guard too.  Rain or shine, cold or hot, some poor parking attendant stands out there for three hours every morning telling cars when they need to stop or go…as if I would have plowed through the throng of people otherwise.

One day, I actually saw the blessing of the crossing guard.  This kind-hearted woman stopped traffic on both sides, when there were absolutely zero people waiting to cross the street.  At first, I was annoyed, but then a solitary squirrel, who had been waiting patiently on the sidewalk, tentatively scampered across the street as the guard coaxed him with a “come on.”  Having come into many life-defining encounters with squirrels over the years, I was instantly grateful for this crossing guard and for the squirrel who was courteous enough to use the crosswalk.

Christmas Roulette

My spousal unit and I each ordered Christmas gifts this year from Amazon, using my wife’s Prime account to get the free shipping.  However, we forgot to put some indicator on the outside label to tell which ones are hers and which ones are mine.  This became blatantly apparent when the packages started to arrive in their non-descript brown boxes and white plastic packages…all with my wife’s lovely name adorning the outside.  So, we have now begun a game of Christmas roulette, as we try to tell what vaguely might be in the package, simply by squeezing and shaking it.  Ultimately, we just have to take a chance and open it, and hope that it’s not our own Christmas surprise from the other person.  With each package like the last loaded chamber of a six shooter, as we shakily draw the knife along the tape.  And each success is a breath of sweet relief, as we guess correctly.

Thanksgiving with Strangers

One year, a Massachusetts man found himself alone for Thanksgiving.  His parents were getting divorced, and he decided that he’d be better off without the drama.  But he hated to eat alone, so he put an ad in the local newspaper calling for twelve other people with nowhere to go for Thanksgiving.  The ad promised a free hot meal, and all they had to do was reply.

Scott Macaulay had Thanksgiving dinner with strangers that year, and he’s been doing it ever since.  For 33 years, he’s been providing a place for people to go who otherwise would have been alone.  He doesn’t turn anyone away, so his guest list can range from 30 to over well 100 people.  He buys and personally prepares all of the food, which is a lofty challenge on the salary for a vacuum repairman.  But he willingly does it every year, because he loves the social interaction and loves to give back.  He even brings in homey touches to make the church where he hosts the dinner a little “warmer.”  Items like art, rugs, and even fireplaces.

“I think each of us are called to brighten a corner where we are and if everybody took care of their neighbor in their own neighborhood we’d have a much better world,” Macaulay said.  “Someday, maybe nobody will call me up and say they’re coming for Thanksgiving dinner, and I’ll be really happy that everybody’s got a place to go.”

Roots

Today, we returned back to College Station for the first time since we left some ten years ago.  We came down for the Texas Renaissance Festival and decided to visit our old stomping grounds for nostalgia’s sake.  We were shocked at how much everything had changed in ten years.  I mean we didn’t really expect it to stay exactly the same, but wow!  While the road names were familiar, the landmarks were all different; the development and improvement were astonishing.  The city has definitely grown and progressed.

After setting up camp at the Calvary Court hotel, we decided to take a drive around town.  I’m ashamed to say that we got lost several times and had to pull over to figure out where we were.  Eventually, I started to get my bearings again and could point out things that looked vaguely familiar, but nothing was quite the way I remembered it.  We spent an hour just driving around reminiscing about what we did here or there and finally ended up at T.Jin China Diner for dinner.  Even time couldn’t erase the memory of the best chicken and broccoli I have ever eaten!

We got it to go, because the restaurant was crowded, and headed back to the hotel to eat.  Which is when we encountered our next problem.  There was no proper table to eat on.  My spousal unit was just going to try to juggle all of her boxes in her lap, but I like to be creative.  So, I pulled out the ironing board and raised it to half height to make a makeshift table in front of the couch.  I am proud to say that it worked perfectly.  With some rags from the bathroom for towels and a Hallmark movie on the TV, we had a nice cozy dinner together.

We get to visit with some old friends tomorrow, and our visit will be complete.  I wish we had more time to roam around campus or take in a football game.  I have missed the culture and spirit of Aggieland.  But that will have to wait until another trip.

Carbon – Part 2

Over eight years ago, I wrote a post about carbon.  I surmised in that post that if we’re all made up of carbon, then every time we breathe out, we’re actually breathing pieces of ourselves into the world.  And every time we breathe in, we’re breathing in pieces of others into ourselves.  Which means we’re all connected, apart of each other. 

People are unintentionally affecting me without me even knowing it.  They are giving me pieces of themselves, and I am keeping them with me.  I am taking them in and making them apart of who I am.  They are subtly changing me from the inside out.  Obviously, the more time I spend with a person, the more pieces they are giving me.  Thus, they are making a bigger impact than say someone on the other side of the world.  So, just by breathing the same air, people are literally leaving a carbon footprint on my heart.  Some footprints are darker, deeper; others are vague, barely there.

Everyone makes an impact on you.  They can’t help it.  It’s chemical.  It’s carbon.

Do Something

A man was watching the news one night, and he was saddened and appalled that story after story was about something bad; forest fires, child abandonment, homeless men freezing to death, people starving in Africa.  So, he prayed and asked God why He didn’t do something about all of this.  Why didn’t he give aid to the people affected by the fires?  Why didn’t he find a home for the children who had lost their parents?  Why didn’t he provide shelter and clothing to the men freezing on the streets?  Why didn’t he provide food to the people starving across the world?

And God answered the man’s prayer.  He simply said, “I did do something.  I created you.”

Most of us sit around and expect some miracle to cure the ails of the world.  We say, “Somebody should do something about that.”  But if everyone expects someone else to take care of it, then nobody is taking care of it.  God could easily wave His hand and fix everything, but instead He created us with the means and ability to affect the world around us.  I don’t know about you, but I know that I have lived selfishly long enough.  I have been blessed, and I feel a longing in my spirit to bless others too.  I’m going to take one step and see where God leads me from there.

Noah’s Ark

Noah’s ark is a famous story from the Bible where God asked a man to build a gigantic boat to house his family and two of every kind of animal to save them from a worldwide flood.  Scholars have debated the logistics of such an undertaking for hundreds of years.  While the Bible goes into great detail about the dimensions of the boat, it says absolutely nothing about the truly important questions.  Like did Noah lock up the chickens in pens or did he let them roam free?  Cage or cage-free eggs?  Or would they be free-range?  You see what I mean?!

Assuming that he let them out at least part of the time in those forty days, then how did he keep the tigers from eating them?  I’m not sure what he had brought to feed the tigers, but I’m sure after a few days of going vegetarian that seeing that chicken strut by all cockily (pun intended) would be very tempting to his natural instincts.  Logistically, I guess all of the animals could have been in pens, and Noah and his family could have taken them out one-by-one to get exercise to reduce temptation.  But I like to think that everyone was just roaming free about the boat, and they just KNEW not to eat each other.  I mean the God of the universe was running the show, so I like to believe that he suppressed their natural instincts until they’d had a chance to repopulate the Earth again.

Dessert First

My spousal unit and I went out to eat today to celebrate our 3^rd 15^th wedding anniversary.  By the time we finally got our food, we were starving, so we dug in like we hadn’t seen a meal in years.  It seems like the entire meal was still sliding down my throat by the time the first piece hit my stomach.  So, of course, I didn’t realize that I was already full halfway through…until it was too late.  By the time the last piece hit my stomach, I let out an audible groan.  I had to unbutton my pants just to keep from slouching in my chair.  I was miserable.  I looked across the table to see my spousal unit in the exact same state.

As we drove home, I told her that it was a shame that I had eaten so much, because I really wanted dessert.  To which my spousal unit replied, “Well, you don’t have to be hungry to eat dessert.  It doesn’t really have calories or fill you up.  That’s why a lot of people eat it first.”  Spoken like a true dessert connoisseur.  I am not sure that I agree with her logic, but I like where her head was going!