A ray of sunshine

Everyone has days when we wonder what life is all about. Even though we may have all kinds of responsibilities to uphold, and myriad things to accomplish each day, we can still find ourselves wondering at some philosophical level or another about the true meaning of life.

Then, along comes an experience that keeps us grounded, a moment when we truly are granted a glimpse of the simplicity of life and the great gift that we can be to each other.

Yesterday, I found a note on my desk asking me to check in on Fern. She's a shut-in who has had her fair share of health problems of late, but every time I've seen her, she's always got a whiticism or a quip of some sort to offer: the kind of one-liner that cuts right through all the red tape we can often wrap around ourselves, and reminds us to be real about life, to celebrate the good times and to greet adversity with an honest but courageous outlook.

This is the lady who would meet me and always have a word of wisdom or just a simple gesture of kindness - more often than not a hug - that spoke more voluminously than any words ever could.

I spoke with Fern yesterday afternoon, and agreed to pay a short visit today. Despite the fact that she's physically slowing down due to the ravages of time (she'll soon begin her 9th decade of earthly existence), she still has the sparkle in her eye that betrays her genuine love for visitors and friends, and I would suspect, more than just a few strangers too. We spent almost an hour this afternoon, sharing stories and talking about mutual friends, about people who are coming to visit and others who are far away.

As I left, I couldn't help but utter a little prayer of thanks for this moment of grace, an opportunity to see that when all is said and done, life is not about how many appointments we book, or how busy we are. When we get right down to it, life is about relationships, about loving without boundaries, about welcoming the strangers and taking care of those who can't care for themselves, all the while doing these little things with great amounts of love (credit Mother Teresa of Calcutta for that one).

Thanks for sharing a ray of sunshine in the midst of the rain storm.