The other day, I was tired
and just wanted to go home, but I had to pick up a prescription at the
pharmacy. We have a new health insurance
as of February 1, so I knew it would take longer than usual while they ran everything
through under our new plan. Though I’d
called in the refill the day before, they didn’t have the prescription ready.
It was less than 10 minutes
before the woman at the counter determined that our new plan doesn’t cover
anything through their particular pharmacy chain. Oh wonderful!
Not only was I taking up this busy woman’s time, but I wasn’t even her
problem anymore.
The second pharmacy I went to
had an equally long line at pick-up, but there was only one person ahead of me in
the drop-off/consultation area. I
decided I was going to walk down to A.C. Moore.
I texted Kevin to let him know of the latest development in our ongoing
healthcare saga, but he was at work, so I knew he wouldn’t get the message
until his shift had ended and/or perhaps not until he checked his phone once he
was sitting across from me at home. (It
wouldn’t be the first or the last time this has happened even after we finally
got smartphones last month.)
Bright, beautiful colors so
deep you could get lost in them inspire me as do arts supplies, project ideas, and
décor items. My imagination was working. Of
course I’d managed to leave the A.C. Moore coupon I’d printed out the other day at
home, so I didn’t buy anything, but it was fun to look. (When telling Kevin about this he reminded me
I could have just pulled the coupon up on my phone. Yeah, we’re new to this whole smartphone
thing. That didn’t even occur to me as
an option.) In this case, looking and liking
did move me, though.
I went back to get my
prescription. No line this time. I only
had to wait 10 minutes tops before they were finished filling it. I didn’t have the energy to do any grocery
shopping, though I knew we needed some things.
I just wanted to get home.
I was sighing and whining on
the inside as I hauled my stuff from my car.
Then everything changed.
I saw one of our neighbors
ahead of me. This woman had a stroke
decades ago and basically only has use of one side of her body now. She lives alone, has no family in this state,
loves the color purple, and usually walks wherever she needs to go.
Here was an elderly woman
before me who had just walked several blocks to and from a nearby pharmacy in the
cold of winter. She held her cane in the
hand she can still use, her purse hung around
her neck, and her coat was only half on since she can’t get her other arm into the
sleeve.
Our neighbor dropped her cane on the ground as she attempted
to punch in the pass code and hold her bag.
I picked it up and held the door open for her. I gently reminded her that Kevin and I are
happy to give her a ride to the store whenever she needed to go, and she responded as
though our previous offers were but a distant, faded memory for her.
I’d certainly been put in my
place. I have a job, health insurance,
food, shelter, clothing, a car, a husband that loves me, and God who provides
the grace needed for a temporarily self-centered, ungrateful wretch like me to
remember all of that when I see Christ in distressing disguise before me.
Lord, I can be so incredibly blind to the needs of others sometimes. I get so focused on my own feelings, wants, and needs, I'm oblivious to ones that are equally (or even more) important around me. Please open my eyes, heart, and mind to those around me who are in need. Let me love them and care for them as You do. Amen.
