Holy wow. What a week. And I haven't even reached the week mark yet.
On Thursday night I saw The Dark Knight Rises at midnight showing. The following day I found out about the shooting in Colorado. Not only was I shocked into silence, but it sort of rocked me upon seeing the movie on Friday with some friends. All I can do is pray for both the victims and the man who thought this was a good idea. I simply cannot fathom someone doing something like that. It doesn't compute to me.
The crazy thing is, this sort of insanity jars people into inspiring hope and goodness. For a day, we act kinder. We see the world beyond our sphere. We might even pray and not condemn the God who gives us breath. For about a day, we remember this awful thing, offer up our condolences via social media, and hope nothing like that happens again.
Then the second day comes.
As if waking from a stupor, we go back to how we really are. Tragedy doesn't truly shock our core anymore. It's just part of the world. However, if one celebrity dies through their own stupidity (or through natural causes), it's like the world swallowed salvation. For days we'll get media coverage. People will play their songs, watch their movies, read their books, etc. till we're sick of them. Facebook pours with how horrible it is that that one person is gone.
But a man comes in and kills many, injures more, and it's only worthy of one day? Only worthy of one moment's thought? How have we gotten to this point? Are we that desensitized? Or is it simply that we cannot imagine multiple deaths? Is it that the higher the toll is, the harder it is to believe or what? I don't understand.
But enough of this musing and doom and gloom.
This week is VBS (Vacation Bible School), at my church. We do an evening one, so I'm working morning shifts and then shooting home to eat then I'm off to church till about 9 in the evening. It's a great experience and uplifting to see young kids learning verses, singing songs of praise, and getting excited as the hour arrives to start. I can't help but smile at some of these kids and their enthusiasm.
And because of how sleep-deprived I'm becoming from this past weekend/week, I am boldly going into the realm of coffee. I'm a bit afraid, but I find it'll be necessary tomorrow with my 4:45 wake up call. So tonight I went to experiment at Wawa to ensure whatever I get tomorrow morning won't make me gag.
Niki and I were standing there, talking about what I might try. I've never done this. How expensive is one cup? What's hot, and what's cold? Can I mix flavors? How big of a cup should I get? How tired am I? Do I really want something hot when it's 96 degrees outside?
Then this one man offered help. He pointed out the prices, joked with me about how to get my hot coffee cold, and the like. I went up to pay for my $1.35 coffee and he was two people in front of me. He's paying for his and points toward me and says to the cashier, "And for her too."
I smiled.
That never happens to me! I'm the person that hears about others doing that sort of thing - random strangers paying a bill, offering a hand, etc. It brought this bit of hope into my heart. A random act of kindness. Can we achieve that? What if we all just took a moment, an action, a smile, and gave it to someone else? What if we all decided to buy the next person in line a coffee?
How much greater could this world be?
I pray a special blessing for that one man. Wherever he is and whatever he's doing, I think he deserves a good dose of God's blessing. Because that one action made my tiring, headache induced day a whole lot better.
Currently Writing: Nothing. Just jotting down ideas for the next story (which starts next week!!)
Currently Reading: The Once and Future King by T.H. White
Currently Listening to: "Awakening" by Chris Tomlin
P.S. - This was my 100th post. Just FYI.
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