Yesterday

I kept thinking things would end.  If I had only known that the nightmare of not one but two service calls on notebook computers was just the beginning, I would have prepared myself.  I know, in the scheme of human disasters, I got off extremely easy.  No lives threatened.  No damage or pain needs to continue beyond the moments which gave them birth.  Yet I kept wondering if it would ever end.
 
The litany if problems had a life of its own.  From broken bolts, to parts not quite right for fixing a computer, to unreturned phone calls, to tire blow outs – oh, even the frustration of standing in the “quick” line for fifteen minutes while the young cashier fumbled at getting her drawer open.  On the latter note the experience took on a new dimension when she couldn’t find the price for eight square steel washers.  It seems as if I had company for my day, the solution came when the supervisor yelled across the store to “just give the washers to the customer”.  At least on this front the nightmare took a break!
 
The harsh reality comes home frequently – in your life, mine, and for many in our community.  They long to know peace, a sense of belonging, and hope.  Their quotes should haunt all of us, even the strong.  They go something like this; “Because of this news I'm doubled up in pain, writhing in pain like a woman having a baby, baffled by what I hear, undone by what I see.  Absolutely stunned, horror-stricken, I had hoped for a relaxed evening, but it has turned into a nightmare.”  (Isaiah 21.3, 4) 
 
I find it helps to know that I’m in this world with others who care.  God has given us the gift of relationship – to share the joys and the heartaches, ups and downs, the wonderful paths and the dull.  A divine gift we are empowered to give away is described by the words compassion, mercy, and unconditional acceptance.  Yesterday others were there for me.  Today I will be there for them.