A Good Samaritan
Can you believe we made it through a Monday without a tragic event?
I may be awfulizing things just a bit...but it seems like every Monday, something falls apart. I did wake up to a pool of water on my kitchen floor, coming from my fridge. Turns out it was just a clogged freezer drain. Did you know you are suppose to clean out your fridge freezer drain every year?!! Who knew? It's been 15 years for me...how embarrassing!
I have really been struggling with the situation with the woman I met while minding my own business last week. All of a sudden, before I knew it, she was my business! I don't believe that things just happen without some purpose or meaning; a lesson to be learned. I've been struggling to understand why this person crossed my path...maybe just to keep me safe and that is a blessing I can't argue with.
Truly, she is the hardest person I have ever had to deal with. She is so mean and so aggressive but so sad, lonely, and completely broken. She has clearly had a life that has not been easy...ever, and so my heart goes out to her. In many ways, I can appreciate and empathize with what she is going through, but at the same time, she scares me and I can't deny how fearful and anxious I feel around her. As I spoke to my dad, he reminded me that fear is not from our Father in Heaven and could be a sign that she is not a person I can have in my life, for whatever reason....the reason, is what I'm searching for...for good or for bad.
I was talking to my kids about it Sunday night at dinner and they said, "Well, have you prayed about it?" They were being a bit snarky since I frequently ask them that same question. So that night, I did make it a more intentional prayer. I don't want to rush this experience if there was truly something else I needed to be learning.
Monday morning, a got a call from a friend. This dear friend moved from here several years ago and now lives in Florida. Here's the thing about this friend...we have something different, important, special. We never went to dinner or a movie together. We never had playdates with kids. We never hung out or shared recipes. We didn't talk for hours on the phone. We connected for the first time when Shelbie was going through an extremely hard time- chemotherapy, hospital stays and all the things! Without being asked, she brought over some freezer meals, gift cards for the climbing wall her and her husband owned and even checked in from time to time. We had this instant connection and I feel like we were probably the best of friends in the Spirit World. There is a familiarity with her that I feel like I've' known. Since she moved, we have only connected a couple of times but everytime, it's meaningful and absolutely and answer to prayer.
Monday morning was no different. I explained my situation with this woman and how conflicted I felt. She shared personal experiences she has had with a family member who has a mental illness that sounded much like this new 'friend' I stumbled upon. She gave me new ways of thinking and concrete ideas to maintain safe boundaries. It was absolutely an answer to prayer.
This week, I've been distancing myself from the woman. I think because of that, I received some mean and accusatory text messages today but instead of feeling panicked, I am able to see that it is her mental illness speaking and I can remain a safe distance emotionally from her and not respond when she is acting like this. It's giving me a little more clarity. I'm so blessed to have a friend like K in my life.
Being a good Samaritan is hard. I don't think we have given quite enough credit to the parable of the Good Samaritan. It's easy to bandage the wounds and care for the people we love and understand or the ones we somehow make a connection with. I have thought constantly about May. She was extremely mentally ill but she was always grateful and happy for any help and attention I offered so serving her was easy. Very easy. I felt understood and loved in return, even though the majority of the time she was not in the same realm as the rest of the world.
The Samaritans and the Jews hated each other. They saw no good in one another, yet this Samaritan didn't think twice about helping the Jew who had been beaten. I guess one simple lesson is the reminder that even the sad and angry people, the ones who make us uneasy and uncomfortable need to be loved. We have to be sensible and maybe guarded if their illness spills into our safety, but we can still offer compassion and help and a simple connection.
I may be awfulizing things just a bit...but it seems like every Monday, something falls apart. I did wake up to a pool of water on my kitchen floor, coming from my fridge. Turns out it was just a clogged freezer drain. Did you know you are suppose to clean out your fridge freezer drain every year?!! Who knew? It's been 15 years for me...how embarrassing!
I have really been struggling with the situation with the woman I met while minding my own business last week. All of a sudden, before I knew it, she was my business! I don't believe that things just happen without some purpose or meaning; a lesson to be learned. I've been struggling to understand why this person crossed my path...maybe just to keep me safe and that is a blessing I can't argue with.
Truly, she is the hardest person I have ever had to deal with. She is so mean and so aggressive but so sad, lonely, and completely broken. She has clearly had a life that has not been easy...ever, and so my heart goes out to her. In many ways, I can appreciate and empathize with what she is going through, but at the same time, she scares me and I can't deny how fearful and anxious I feel around her. As I spoke to my dad, he reminded me that fear is not from our Father in Heaven and could be a sign that she is not a person I can have in my life, for whatever reason....the reason, is what I'm searching for...for good or for bad.
I was talking to my kids about it Sunday night at dinner and they said, "Well, have you prayed about it?" They were being a bit snarky since I frequently ask them that same question. So that night, I did make it a more intentional prayer. I don't want to rush this experience if there was truly something else I needed to be learning.
Monday morning, a got a call from a friend. This dear friend moved from here several years ago and now lives in Florida. Here's the thing about this friend...we have something different, important, special. We never went to dinner or a movie together. We never had playdates with kids. We never hung out or shared recipes. We didn't talk for hours on the phone. We connected for the first time when Shelbie was going through an extremely hard time- chemotherapy, hospital stays and all the things! Without being asked, she brought over some freezer meals, gift cards for the climbing wall her and her husband owned and even checked in from time to time. We had this instant connection and I feel like we were probably the best of friends in the Spirit World. There is a familiarity with her that I feel like I've' known. Since she moved, we have only connected a couple of times but everytime, it's meaningful and absolutely and answer to prayer.
Monday morning was no different. I explained my situation with this woman and how conflicted I felt. She shared personal experiences she has had with a family member who has a mental illness that sounded much like this new 'friend' I stumbled upon. She gave me new ways of thinking and concrete ideas to maintain safe boundaries. It was absolutely an answer to prayer.
This week, I've been distancing myself from the woman. I think because of that, I received some mean and accusatory text messages today but instead of feeling panicked, I am able to see that it is her mental illness speaking and I can remain a safe distance emotionally from her and not respond when she is acting like this. It's giving me a little more clarity. I'm so blessed to have a friend like K in my life.
Being a good Samaritan is hard. I don't think we have given quite enough credit to the parable of the Good Samaritan. It's easy to bandage the wounds and care for the people we love and understand or the ones we somehow make a connection with. I have thought constantly about May. She was extremely mentally ill but she was always grateful and happy for any help and attention I offered so serving her was easy. Very easy. I felt understood and loved in return, even though the majority of the time she was not in the same realm as the rest of the world.
The Samaritans and the Jews hated each other. They saw no good in one another, yet this Samaritan didn't think twice about helping the Jew who had been beaten. I guess one simple lesson is the reminder that even the sad and angry people, the ones who make us uneasy and uncomfortable need to be loved. We have to be sensible and maybe guarded if their illness spills into our safety, but we can still offer compassion and help and a simple connection.
You're such a blessing. And smart. Maybe I can be a bit more like you when I grow up. :)
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