Thursday, May 18, 2017

White Shoes

Today I saw too many people standing on the side of the road, asking for help. In the three miles I travelled to get to my errand, I saw three people. The one that struck me the most was a woman standing alone with a small sign in front of her that read, "family needs help." She didn't look like she should have been there. She looked clean and decently clothed, and her face was full of worry. You never know what people are going through. How many times have I been walking through the grocery store, probably looking like a "normal" person, but in total agony on the inside? Too many. 
 
In these past 5 years, there were some points where I felt so hopeless I also wanted to end my life. It all gets too much sometimes - still. And then people came to my rescue in some way. I know God orchestrated all of this. There is no way you can tell me any different. Some helped in big ways, like paying bills for me, some just being a friend to me when I really needed one, a job offer, and more. So, today I felt like I really wanted to do something to help.
 
Today is R's Birthday. He helped people without giving it a second thought. Year after year, I try to think of something special to do on his birthday and these grieving anniversaries, but I have been waiting for the right idea to come to me that could start a yearly tradition to celebrate his character. Maybe today I found it. Maybe it'll just be for this year. We'll see if it sticks. 
 
Here is the back story:
One evening we were walking to our car after a movie, in quaint little downtown San Marco. An older man stopped us and asked for money. R surprised me and the man when he pulled out his wallet and said, "I can do better than that! Here ya go," he said as he handed him a gift card to Burger King. R looked at the man's feet, and said, "what's your shoe size?" I was confused. Shoe size?
The man said a "12."
R said, "Come on over here, man." He led him over to the trunk of our car, opened it and handed him a pair of very gently used leather white shoes. The man was so surprised, he tried to turn them down.
"Aww, naw man! I can't take your shoes!"
R insisted- "take them! I don't need them!" He put them in the old mans hands.
He looked at R and grinned and thanked him profusely.
 
I don't have a lot of money to give out, but I figured, a person who is on the side of the road will probably take anything. I've always wanted to make Blessing Bags to keep in my car, but struggled with what to put in them that won't melt during summer... or for that matter, what do they really need at this moment? I don't want to assume that I know what they need. That's when I thought of a gift card. I can keep it in my car for when I run across these poor souls and just hand it to them, with a little word of encouragement. So, I went into Dollar Tree with some money I just made off of selling my son's clothes to a consignment store. I didn't spend all of it, but it was enough to create 4 Blessing cards. One person will get an especially nice message. I bet God has that person picked out already.  
 

I had these cards from the Billy Graham Library, that have been sitting in my purse waiting to be given out. Benji kept grabbing handfuls of them and we came away with a little stack. So, each card contains one of these, too. I planned to hand them all out today, but wouldn't you know it, on my way back home they had all disappeared. So it will have to wait for the next time. For those chosen people. Who are they? What are their circumstances? God knows.
 
Don't ever think that your little bit of kindness isn't worth anything. I have appreciated a sympathetic look in my darkest days. Your kindness could be saving someone's life by letting them know they are worthy to be here.