Looking Out the Window: Water Spray

Clear water bubbled from the fountain and shot heavenward like liquid crystals; then, spilled into the blue pool. Strolling up to it from a sea of cars in the parking lot was like trudging through a dark, dense thicket in the forest and emerging on the other side into a bright, sunny day. The presence of water spurting triggered thankfulness for prayers answered and delight renewed. Until several years ago I’d taken the fountain for granted. In the summers I had relaxed with my family on the patio of a restaurant at the mall that overlooked the dancing water in a city in Georgia. Even shoppers walking past it and diners chatting near me hadn’t drowned out its sweet babbling / splashing sounds that had sent soothing vibrations into the busy day. Erupting from the cement, sparkling underneath the sun, it had brought nature to life amid the asphalt and concrete buildings, until the drought.

Since the dry spell had lasted for a couple of long years the fountain had sat quiet. Each time I had walked past the dormant decoration, I had thought of those ghost towns I used to see in western movies, when I was a kid. Since I, like nearly everyone else, had gotten accustomed to rationing my water when washing clothes, brushing my teeth, showering and using the kitchen sink, it struck me as strange that the idle fountain had such an impact on me, but it did. It was a visual reminder that Georgians were in drastic need of a life sustaining force.

Georgia, Alabama and Florida all had shared in bounty from a large lake near Atlanta, Lake Lanier. When the supply had dropped to extremely low levels, quarrels and threats of law suits among the states had dominated the airways. At one time Georgians had looked into trying to annex part of Tennessee, claiming that an old survey had wrongly placed part of one of its water sources in that state. We all had thoughtlessly taken one of God’s blessings for granted until we no longer had it in abundance. Seeing the fountain today, I gasped in glee.

We’ve been having record rain and many are saying “enough” water. Perhaps, now Georgians need to pray for the right balance of rain and sunshine. But water spraying from the fountain brings joy to my heart and reminds me of all the natural resources God has given us. For these and all of God’s blessings I am thankful.

1Chronicles 16: 8 - 9: “Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts.”

Looking Out the Window: Memories on the Heart

Several weeks ago my husband, Rick, and I ate at a restaurant we frequent fairly regularly. The cute, young waitress who usually waits on us took our orders for burgers and fries. I’ll call her Mandy. As usual Mandy’s smile and bubbly personality brightened our day. We giggled and confessed to her that we shouldn’t eat the fries, but we were going to do it just this once. She joked. “Okay, you’re being bad today.”

Not long after we got our food a couple came in and sat in the booth behind us. Mandy walked up to the table with her big grin. “Hi, how are you?” she asked.
The man, who had salt and pepper colored hair and a pudgy face, spoke in a harsh tone, “I want the steak.”

“Sure, which one would you like?” Mandy asked.

“I don’t want you to put it in the microwave. That will make it tough. Do you understand?”

Mandy’s lips turned down. “Yes sir, which one do you want to order?”

“I want it medium rare. I don’t want blood oozing out of it. I want it cooked right.”

“Yes sir, which steak did you prefer?”

“Oh, I think I’ll take the rib eye. And, I want a glass of water with five lemons in it.”

I assumed he meant lemon slices, and knowing Mandy, I’m sure she interpreted his demand that way also. “Yes sir.” Wrinkles creased Mandy’s brow.

“Oh, and I want the glass filled to about one inch of the top. Don’t put too much water in it.”

“Yes sir,” Mandy said.

As soon as Mandy left I leaned across the table and whispered, “Rick, can you hear that grouch?”

Rick nodded. Later I saw Mandy come out of the kitchen, carrying a plate with a rib eye steak on it. Judging from the strained look she had, I suspected it was for the persnickety customer. Sure enough, she walked to his table and set it down. She hesitated for a moment. Then in a voice so soft it almost was a whisper she asked, “Does everything look all right?”

In my head I heard the drum roll often played in a movie in a suspenseful moment while the audience waits to see if something awful is going to happen. But, the man said, “Yes.”

Thank goodness, I thought. As I watched Mandy go back and forth to that table with wrinkles creasing her brow and her lips pressed tight I realized how the man’s rudeness had put a damper on her day. Perhaps, he was the type person who wants to make sure he takes care of everything in the beginning to avoid problems later. Maybe, nothing had gone right in his life for some time, and he just wanted to know that this lunch would. It’s possible the man didn’t feel well, even though he looked fine. There could be hundreds of reason’s why he sounded so unpleasant. But none of them excused the harsh tone he took with Mandy.

At first I felt so bad for Mandy, but finally I heard her laughing and talking to another customer. Hmmm, she only has to contend with him for about an hour, and he’ll be out of her life, I told myself. At that point I felt moved to get up, walk over to the woman with him and say, “Good luck, lady.” Of course I didn’t.

Today, we returned to the restaurant. We weren’t in Mandy’s section, but she came by our table to speak to us. After we chatted for a moment I mentioned the cranky customer. In an instant she remembered him. “Oh yes, that was horrible. The whole time I waited on him I was so nervous. I was afraid that everything wasn’t going to be all right, and he might explode any minute.”

It dawned on me. Even though I may only enter someone’s life for a moment, I have a brief opportunity to brighten that person’s day by being kind to him or her as a student in one of my daughter’s classes has been to her. My daughter told me, “Mom, this semester I have to take so many books and papers I have a backpack and my arms full, when I start my classes. Every morning one of my students grins real big and grabs the door for me.” She always says, ‘Here I’ll get that.’ It’s a small thing, but it starts my day on a happy note.”

Of course, I also have the option to make someone unhappy, put him or her under a strain or cause that person to be nervous as the rude customer in Mandy's section in the restaurant. I wonder what affect a series of brief meetings in a day has upon a person. It would be interesting to know how a person feels if their quick encounters are all positive or all negative. The impact probably mounts as the moments add up to minutes, hours and possibly even days. The next time I’m in a position to interact with someone even if it’s just for a short time and even if I’m feeling lousy, I’ll try to remember to ask myself, How do I want this person to remember me?


Galatians 5: 22: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”

Behind The Scenes With Guest Blogger Eva Marie Everson

THINGS LEFT UNSPOKEN

I've been asked a lot lately what inspired my new novel, Things Left Unspoken. It’s a natural question; people often assume that novels are a look into the writer’s real life. Typically, for me, that’s not true. But in this case, it’s partly true.

When my great-uncle died, he left my great-aunt (they had no children) in the house she’d grown up in. She was unable to live alone so she came to live with my mother. My mother sold the house — now in a dying town — to a land developer who was going to restore not only the house, but the town. (It didn’t happen … ) Anyway, it snowed the day we buried Uncle Jimmy. Fleeting snow. Years later (about 10 years!) I was sitting on my back porch, rocking in one of the front porch rockers given to me from my great-grandparent’s estate. It was cold. February. Very gray. And I thought, “It snowed the day we buried Uncle Jimmy.”I knew immediately I had written the first line of a novel. So, I ran inside and typed one sentence, then saved it. It snowed the day we buried Uncle Jim.A few weeks later I wrote some more, then more, and then — as I thought about the restoration of the town that didn’t happen — a story formed. I wrote about five chapters and put it away. Some time later I was talking to my editor at Baker/Revell (Vicki Crumpton) and shared with her three ideas I had for a new line of Southern fiction. The story we now know as Things Left Unspoken was one of them …I wanted to write this book for a number of reasons but one is that I believe we are all lied to. Call it the devil or your own self esteem issues … we hear the lies and we believe them. We think we are the only ones. Or that we are protecting someone, even putting ourselves at risk to do so. One of the characters — Stella — is holding on to more than one family secret. One, she thinks she is protecting someone she loves more than life itself. The other, the same … For Stella, it’s not about her, but about them. Then there’s the main character — JoLynn. Her secrets are so deeply engrained she doesn’t even know what they are. She’s missed out on something she wants so desperately … so many things … but her silence will harm her spiritually and … in the end … maybe even physically!

Finally, this book had everything to do with my own self-discovery, so to speak. I had been writing The Potluck Club books with Linda Evans Shepherd. These are great books, full of things that Christian women deal with. Though the subjects were deep, sometimes the approach to them was light. I’d been reading some deep fiction on my own and really wondering “what I wanted to be when I grew up” as a writer. I knew I was searching for deeper things. I wanted to write things that made a difference (not that TPC doesn’t!) and were more literary. Things Left Unspoken is my first stab at that.

Eva Marie Everson

ABOUT EVA MARIE

Eva Marie Everson grew up in a rural southern town in Georgia just outside of Savannah. She is married, has four children and five grandchildren, and lives in Central Florida. She taught Old Testament theology for six years at Life Training Center in Longwood, Florida and has written numerous articles for Crosswalk.com (including the acclaimed Falling Into The Bible series), and has had articles featured in numerous publications, including Christianity Today, Evangel, Christian Bride, Christian Retailing,, The Godly BusinessWoman and Marriage Partnership magazines. Eva Marie has been interviewed by radio, television, newspaper, and Internet media outlets. In 2002 Eva Marie was one of six Christian journalists sent to Israel for a special ten-day press tour. She was forever changed.

Writer of Books, Author of None
Eva Marie’s work includes the award-winning titles Reflections of God's Holy Land; A Personal Journey Through Israel, Shadow of Dreams, Sex, Lies and the Media, and The Potluck Club as well as The Potluck Club: Trouble's Brewing, The Potluck Club Takes the Cake; The Potluck Catering Club Secret's in the Sauce, The Potluck Catering Club A Taste of Fame, The Potluck Cookbook, Things Left Unspoken (her first in the new series of Southern novels released by Baker/Revell), Oasis: A Spa for Body & Soul, and Sex, Lies and High School to name a few. Eva is a contributing author and/or editor to a number of other publications.

Looking Out the Window: Sometimes We Only Have the Faith of a Mustard Seed

No one likes to be deceived, especially by someone he or she loves. But that’s what happened to Cammie O’Shea, the main character in my recently released romance / mystery, LOVE TURNS THE TIDE. Her fiancé not only dated other women during their engagement, but he also was apprehended for beating one of them nearly to death. Not long after Cammie learns of his crime she moves to Destin, Florida, to complete a job assignment with a new newspaper named The Sun Dial.

Getting the paper off to a good start hinges largely on Cammie’s article about a new development, Pelican Point, owned by Vic Deleona. Still heartbroken over her failed romance, she intends to keep her relationship with Vic strictly business. Therefore she works hard to write a good story about his real estate venture and tries to complete it as soon as possible. But he keeps scheduling appointments with her to see a unit or to pick up pictures. Since she's spending so much time with him or at the office she meets no friends and grows terribly lonely. Finally, one evening when the sun casts golden red hues across the sky over the emerald sea, she walks on the beach, turns to gaze at the sunset and accidentally bumps into a young woman, Angie Jones. They introduce themselves, and Angie invites her to meet for dinner at a local restaurant. Cammie's thankful she has a companion, but no one can take the place of her family and the community she’s known all her life in Cedar Forks, Georgia, her hometown. While she feels she needs God more than ever she believes she’s drifting away from him.

One Saturday morning she reaches for her Bible, and it falls open at a bookmark placed in Romans. She reads Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him…” In her heart she knows the words are true, but she can't understand how a move to Destin, Florida, possibly can be good for her. Nonetheless, she opens her daily devotional book to that Saturday's verse, Mark 11: 24, which reads, ‘Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours." If only her faith could be that strong, she tells herself.

To make matters worse, she and Angie have break-ins at their condos. But Cammie keeps praying, reading Scripture and going to church. Sometimes when she strolls on the shore, she is overwhelmed by the magnificence of the sea and wonders if God sent her to Destin so all the beauty would make her forget the ugliness of her broken engagement. Is Cammie’s move to Destin a disaster or a blessing in disguise and could her appointments with Vic lead to romance? To find out look for LOVE TURNS THE TIDE on the Awe-Struck E-Books Web Site. Simply Google Awe-Struck E-Books and go to the New Releases page.

Matthew 17: 20: “…I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”
A VISUAL WORTH HAVING: Once when I was quite ill a friend of my daughter’s sent me a mustard seed in a clear glass jar four inches high. He said, “Tell your mother to put this somewhere she can see it everyday.” And I did.

ABOUT DESTIN:

The Beginning: Once dubbed the “World’s Luckiest Fishing Village” Destin dates back to seventh century A. D., when American Indians lived there. It’s named for Leonard Destin, who moved from New London, Connecticut, about 1845. For years he and his descendants fished and navigated the only channel passage to the Gulf of Mexico between Panama City and Pensacola, known as Destin’s East Pass.

The White Sand: Destin’s sand originated 20,000 years ago during the Ice Age, when temperatures warmed and ice caps started melting. Quartz particles from the Appalachian Mountains were swept into the water and carried by the Apalachicola River
to the Gulf of Mexico, one-hundred twenty-five miles east of the area that became Destin. As the sea level rose, the quartz sands formed a new shoreline. The process continues today.

Destin Currently: A tourist area, Destin’s activities include fishing, golfing, boating, snorkeling, kite boarding, and scuba diving. For more information visit http://www.destin-ation.com/; http://www.destinchamber.com/.

Guest Blogger Cecil Murphey Talks About His New Book

When Someone You Love Has Cancer
Author: Cecil Murphey
Harvest House Publishers
ISBN: 978-0-7369-2428-3
Retail $10.99


A Word from The Man Behind the Words
When Shirley walked in from the garage, she didn't have to say a word: I read the diagnosis in her eyes. I grabbed her and held her tightly for several seconds. When I released her, she didn't cry. The unshed tears glistened, but that was all. I felt emotionally paralyzed and helpless, and I couldn't understand my reaction. After all, I was a professional. As a former pastor and volunteer hospital chaplain I had been around many cancer patients. I'd seen people at their lowest and most vulnerable. As a writing instructor, I helped one woman write her cancer-survival book. Shirley and I had been caregivers for Shirley's older sister for months before she died of colon cancer. All of that happened before cancer became personal to me--before my wife learned she needed a mastectomy. To make it worse, Shirley was in the high-risk category because most of her blood relatives had died of some form of cancer. Years earlier, she had jokingly said, "In our family we grow things." In the days after the diagnosis and before her surgery, I went to a local bookstore and to the public library. I found dozens of accounts, usually by women, about their battle and survival. I pushed aside the novels that ended in a person's death. A few books contained medical or technical information. I searched on-line and garnered useful information--but I found nothing that spoke to me on how to cope with the possible loss of the person I loved most in this world. Our story ends happily: Shirley has started her tenth year as a cancer survivor. Not only am I grateful, but I remember my pain and confusion during those days. That concerns me enough to reach out to others who also feel helpless as they watch a loved one face the serious diagnosis of cancer. That's why I wrote When Someone You Love Has Cancer. I want to encourage relatives and friends and also to offer practical suggestions as they stay at the side of those they love. The appendix offers specific things for them to do and not to do--and much of that information came about because of the way people reacted around us. It's a terrible situation for anyone to have cancer; it's a heavy burden for us who deeply love those with cancer. by Cecil Murphey

ABOUT THE BOOK:

The World Health Organization reported that by the year 2010 cancer will be the number one killer worldwide. More than 12.4 million people in the world suffer from cancer. 7.6 million people are expected to die from some form of cancer. That's a lot of people, but the number of loved ones of cancer sufferers is far greater. What do they do when a special person in their life is diagnosed with this devastating disease?

Murphey brings his experiences as a loved one and many years of wisdom gained from being a pastor and hospital chaplain to his newest book When Someone You Love Has Cancer: Comfort and Encouragement for Caregivers and Loved Ones (Harvest House Publishers). His honest I've-been-there admissions and practical helps are combined with artist Michal Sparks' soothing watercolor paintings.

Readers of When Someone You Love Has Cancer will receive:
Inspiration to seek peace and understanding in their loved one's situation
Help in learning the importance of active listening
Guidance in exploring their own feelings of confusion and unrest
Suggestions on how to handle anxiety and apprehension
Honest answers to questions dealing with emotions, exhaustion, and helplessness
Spirit-lifting thoughts for celebrating the gift of life in the midst of troubles
Murphey explains why this is a much-needed book: "Most books about cancer address survivors. I want to speak to the mates, families, and friends who love those with cancer. I offer a number of simple, practical things people can do for those with cancer."

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

1. The first sentence of your book reads, "I felt helpless." Tell us about that feeling. Because her doctor put Shirley into the high-risk category, I felt helpless. To me, helpless means hating the situation, wanting to make it better, but admitting there was nothing I could do for her.

2. On that same page you also write, "One thing we learned: God was with us and strengthened us through the many weeks of uncertainty and pain." How did you get from feeling helpless to that assurance? Shirley and I sat down one day and I put my arm around her. "The only way I know how I can handle this," I said, "is to talk about it." Shirley knows that's my way of working through puzzling issues. "Let's consider every possibility." If her surgeon decided she did not have breast cancer, how would we react? We talked of our reaction if he said, "There is a tumor and it's obviously benign. Finally, I was able to say, with tears in my eyes, "How do we react if he says the cancer is advanced and you have only a short time to live?" By the time we talked answered that question, I was crying. Shirley had tears in her eyes, but remained quite calm. "I'm ready to go whenever God wants to take me," she said. She is too honest not to have meant those words. As I searched her face, I saw calmness and peace. I held her tightly and we prayed together. After that I felt calm. Since then, one of the first things I do when I awaken is to thank God that Shirley and I have at least one more day together.

3. When most people hear the word cancer applied to someone they love, they have strong emotional reactions. What are some of them? What was your reaction when your wife was diagnosed with breast cancer? As a pastor, a volunteer chaplain, and a friend I've encountered virtually every emotional reaction. Some refuse to accept what they hear. Some go inward and are unable to talk. Others start making telephone calls to talk to friends. Me? I went numb, absolutely numb. That was my old way of dealing with overwhelming emotions. I heard everything but I couldn't feel anything. It took me almost two weeks before I was able to feel--and to face the possibility that the person I loved most in the world might die.


4. "What can I do for my loved one with cancer?" That's a good question for us to ask ourselves. How can we be supportive and helpful? Many think they need to do big things; they don't. Express your concern and your love. Be available to talk when the other person needs it--and be even more willing to be silent if your loved one doesn't want to talk. Don't ask what you can do; do what you see needs doing. To express loving support in your own way (and we all express love differently) is the best gift you can offer.


5. Why do you urge people not to say, "I know exactly how you feel"? No one knows how you feel. They may remember how they felt at a certain time. Even if they did know, what help is that to the person with cancer? It's like saying, "Stop feeling sorry for yourself. I know what it's like and I'm fine now." Instead, focus on how the loved one feels. Let him or her tell you.


6. Those with cancer suffer physically and spiritually. You mention God's silence as a form of spiritual suffering. They pray and don't seem to sense God. What can you do to help them? God is sometimes silent but that doesn't mean God is absent. In my upcoming book, When God Turns off the Lights, I tell what it was like for me when God stopped communicating for about 18 months. I didn't like it and I was angry. I didn't doubt God's existence, but I didn't understand the silence. I read Psalms and Lamentations in various translations. I prayed and I did everything I could, but nothing changed. After a couple of months, I realized that I needed to accept the situation and wait for God to turn on the lights again. Each day I quoted Psalm 13:1: "O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way?" (NLT) I learned many invaluable lessons about myself--and I could have learned them only in the darkness. When God turns off the lights (and the sounds) I finally realized that instead of God being angry, it was God's loving way to draw me closer.


7. Guilt troubles many friends and loved ones of caregivers because they feel they failed or didn't do enough. What can you say to help them? We probably fail our loved ones in some ways. No one is perfect. If you feel that kind of guilt, I suggest 3 things:


(1) Tell the loved one and ask forgiveness.
(2) Talk to God and ask God to forgive you and give you strength not to repeat your failures.
(3) Forgive yourself. And one way to do that is to say, "At the time, I thought I did the right thing. I was wrong and I forgive myself."


8. Do you have some final words of wisdom for those giving care to a loved one with cancer? Be available. You can't take away the cancer but you can alleviate the sense of aloneness. Don't ever try to explain the reason the person has cancer. We don't know the reason and even if we did, would it really help the other person? Be careful about what you say. Too often visitors and friends speak from their own discomfort and forget about the pain of the one with cancer. Don't tell them about your cancer or other disease; don't tell them horror stories about others. Above all, don't give them false words of comfort. Be natural. Be yourself. Behave as loving as you can.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Cecil Murphey is an international speaker and bestselling author who has written more than 100 books, including the New York Times bestseller 90 Minutes in Heaven (with Don Piper). No stranger himself to loss and grieving, Cecil has served as a pastor and hospital chaplain for many years, and through his ministry and books he has brought hope and encouragement to countless people around the world. For more information, visit http://www.themanbehindthewords.com/.
Something Extra! Cec designed the appendix to be the most practical part of the book. He's witnessed too many situations where genuinely caring people had no idea what to do, so he has tried to give a few general guidelines.


1. Before you offer help. Learn about the disease before you visit. Determine to accept their feelings, no matter how negative. Pray for your loved one before you visit. Don't throw religious slogans at them, such as, "This is God's will" or "God knew you were strong enough to handle this."


2. What you can do now. As the first question, don't ask, "How are you?" Instead, ask, "Do you feel like talking." Don't offer advice. Be willing to sit in silence. If you need to cry, do so. Be natural. If appropriate, hug your loved one. Human touch is powerful.


3. Long-term caregiving. The overarching principle is to let the seriousness of the disease determine the amount of time and commitment you offer. This can be a time for you to help them spiritually. Think about tangible things you can do that say you care. Plan celebrations for every anniversary of being cancer free. Ask them reflective questions such as:
What have you discovered about yourself through this experience?
What have you learned about relationships?
How has your faith in God changed?

Looking in the Window: Sharing from the Soul

When a new theater opened in Cobb County, Georgia, near us, we rushed to get tickets for a show, "Lord of the Dance." Since I'd wanted to see the performance for a long time and already had in mind how good it would be, I thought I possibly had set myself up for disappointment. But the international dance troop charmed me from the instant their nimble feet tapped the stage. Following the story about the Little Spirit that travels through time to help the Lord of the Dance protect his people from Don Dorcha, the Dark Lord, I glanced quickly at my bulletin between scenes.

While the Irish background music, fiddlers and black and white costumes set the mood for different dances the entertainers' body movements depicted honor, impending danger, evil and finally the triumph of good. I sensed a desire from each of them to connect with the spectators to bring their message to us loud and clear. During some of the jigs the Warriors moved their tap shoes so fast I wondered if drumsticks could have kept up with the staccato rhythm. As limber as puppets on strings, they portrayed the victory of virtue over evil covering the stage with high-stepping energy and smiling faces. It must have taken them years to perfect their God-given talents to perform at their level. They took me to another world, letting me escape the pressures of this one for an afternoon.

Later, still filled with enthusiasm from seeing "Lord of the Dance," I returned to the theater to attend another performance, which I won't name because I sat through the entire show wondering when it would end. The artists dressed in black pants or skirts and white shirts sat on the stage in a semi-circle facing each other as opposed to looking at the audience. A man greeted those attending, and the program of musical renditions began. I only could name three of the songs they played, and that was because I recognized the melodies. I had no program and no one made announcements identifying the arrangements. Occasionally, one of the performers raised an instrument in the air at the end of a piece, and I wondered if it signaled something to the other artists, or if it was a gesture meant for the observers. On the way out of the theater my husband said, "I felt like I was watching a jam session."

"Yes, they seemed so detached from us."

I admire all musicians for the hard work it takes to become accomplished, so I mention the latter performance and our conversation about it for only one reason. Once it occurred to me that those on stage had distanced themselves so far from the onlookers I wondered, "Am I a Christian living in my own world like those artists?" It's one thing for me to go to church and Sunday school, to read my Bible and say my prayers. But am I devoted to my faith, passionate enough about it to include others in it? Just as the dancers in "Lord of the Dance" perfected their skills to reach out to viewers I need to hone my ability to communicate my convictions. And, I imagine it will take me even longer to accomplish my goal than it did the dancers. But, I'm going to start by trying to listen closely to people so I can identify those who may need to hear a kind word, be encouraged or be reassured. I hope when the perfect opportunity presents itself I will tune into the seeker and include him or her in the Christian community.

Hebrews 13: 1 - 2: "Keep on loving each other as brothers. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it."

Looking Out the Window: An Unexpected Kindness

Usually when I travel, I swim early in the morning before the pool opens, so I won’t be in the way of anyone else. But, this May, when I went on a Florida vacation with my family, I awakened each day to a temperature in the fifties and a north to northeast wind, gusting at thirty to forty miles per hour. By the afternoon when the sun had warmed the day to seventy something, the pool looked like a cross between an adult pool party and a kid’s birthday celebration. I didn’t want to join the women and men sun bathing on the blue and white chaise lounges, and I felt I’d be out of place in the crystal, clear blue water with the kids diving for their swimming pool rings, floating on rafts and jumping from the sides of the pool, not to mention that they left no room for a lap swimmer. However, after four days my yearning for water exercise grew great, so I put on my suit, cap and goggles and headed to a place far different from Cobb Aquatic Center in Marietta, Georgia, the indoor pool where I swim all year with like-minded patrons who wear caps, goggles and occupy their own lanes.

By the time I reached my destination many of the children had taken a break, gathered around a group of men and women who had their lawn chairs pulled up to the edge of the pool. Only a couple boys around middle-school age played in the ten-foot-deep area. Seeing this moment as my best opportunity to work out, I got in and slowly waded toward the rope between the shallow and deep ends of the pool. Pondering if the Mothers and Fathers would gasp in horror if I removed the divider, I also wondered how I’d politely ask the youngsters still standing between me and my swim to share. Then, I noticed two young ladies sun bathing right in front of where the two boys hung on a ladder. One of the gorgeous girls with long blonde hair, who sunned her back, raised her head and watched me with interested big blue eyes. Even though both youngsters had brown eyes and brown hair, I thought perhaps one of them was her younger brother, and she was taking care of them, so I asked, “Are you with the guys?”

In a kind voice she said, “No, I’m not, but they can move if they’re in your way. Do you want to swim laps?”

She understood. “She’s a swimmer,” I thought. But more importantly, judging from her assessment of my awkward situation and her concerned look, she was a caring young woman conscious of the needs of others, such as a Christian would be. “Actually yes, I’d like to move the rope and swim on this side for about fifteen minutes.”

“Sure,” she smiled at me. Then she said, “Guys, you play here. She’s going over there and use that side of the pool.”

They looked a bit shocked, but said, “O.K.”

I thanked them, swam my laps, and got out refreshed.

Matthew 7: 12: “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”