February 13 – “Small world moments”

We had one of those “small world” moments yesterday at the Veteran’s Administration hospital in Houston.  One of our Seasiders was having heart surgery, and as it turned out Jennifer was coming over to stay with Mom for the day.  So Chris and I took the opportunity to drive to Houston together to check on Robert.  We didn’t get there as early as we hoped, so Robert had already been taken back to the surgery suite.  We checked around the waiting area for his parents, but didn’t see them.  A quick check with the desk told us that the surgery was in progress, so we decided to head on back to Galveston.  As we waited for the elevator we heard a voice tentatively asking if we were looking for Robert.  We turned and there stood his partner with the ambulance service.  We talked with her for a long time, and finally did head downstairs.

Now the VA hospital has a valet parking system for its visitors.  Not that unusual for a hospital, I know.  The difference is, this one is free.  Completely free.  Quite the perk.  Of course that means the line is incredibly long, but it actually didn’t take that long to get to the door when we arrived.  Picking up the car was a bit of a different story, though.  I guess we decided to leave at the same time as hundreds of others, because the lobby was packed.  One lady was especially angry about her wait.  Angry enough that she was quite loudly complaining.  And she had her own ideas about how the operators should be doing their job.  And they were obviously perturbed by her “offers of assistance.”  As it happened we struck up a conversation with a nice old lady who was waiting for her car.  Seems that the screamer’s car had already been brought up once, and she wasn’t there to receive it, so they re-parked it.  All the yelling didn’t do much to get her car any quicker.  In fact, all it did do was make the rest of the crowd resent her.  Amazing how one person’s attitude can race through a crowd. 

We refused to take the bait, though, and instead struck up another conversation with an older gentleman who sidled up next to us.  He had the same idea we did.  Do our best to exist above the negativity around us.  And it was well worth the wait.  The guy had just had his eyes worked on, so he couldn’t really see us at all.  But he was very personable, and he accounted for our small world moment.  He asked where we were from, and what I did for a living.  He made sure I knew that he was a Presbyterian.  And then he shared that he was from a little town called Bay City.  Of course that’s where Chris was born and raised.  He and his friend (who had by this time joined us) both knew just where Hamilton’s Bakery had been (run by Chris’ grandparents).  And as the old guy and Chris started the traditional exchange of “Do you know’s” they soon discovered that the guy had been a high school classmate of Chris’ Dad.  The other guy remembered a really bad car wreck Chris’ little brother had been in years before.  Seems that his cousin’s boy was with Mark at the time of the wreck (that, by the way, literally ripped the Lincoln they were driving in half).  It turned into quite the old home week, and as a result our wait time for the car flew by. 

There has to be a message in there somewhere.  Don’t get swallowed up by the negative emotions of the world around you.  Instead look for opportunities to connect with people.  You never know who that is standing right next to you.  At least not until you ask!

Hebrews 13:1-2 says, “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.”

Father, thank you for the fascinating interlude into Chris’ past yesterday.  Oh, and thank you that Robert’s surgery went so well.  Heal him quickly now.  Amen.