Ever the Student

Knowing that everyone has something to teach me is sometimes a burden.

With some people, I really want to learn what that lesson is, so I can move on.

Here is an example of what I mean.

About twice a year, I run into a man, whose kids used to go to school with mine.

For seven straight years, this man would always stop me, and ask me about the Real Estate market. (I promise you, to this day, he does not know my name, but he did know I was a Realtor.) He always told me that he wanted to sell his house, and was just waiting for the right market.

Aside from a couple of conversations about our kid’s football team, we never discussed any other topics.

Yesterday evening, I was doing my Monday grocery run at the local Wally world when I heard a voice. “How’s the real estate business? Are you still selling?”

Two questions, before I even located the voice. Sure enough, here was my old pal, asking his usual question.

“I placed my license in referral. I haven’t really been selling any Real Estate for over two years now.” I replied. I knew I had already discussed this, but I decided to have some fun with it.

“What are you doing now?” He asked.

“I do healing work.” I answered. “Energy healing!” I added, in response to the “deer in the headlight” stare on his face. I even moved my hands in an “energy ball building ” sort of way.

“What is that?” he asked.

“It’s sort of like prayer.” I replied, using one of my standard answers when talking to people who have never heard of energy work.

“Oh, I believe in that.” He smiled and his eyes lit up.

He began telling me stories of times he had prayed and people were healed; times his congregation had prayed for someone and they were miraculously healed.

His wife was in a bigger hurry than he was and so he moved on with her.

Every other aisle, we met again and the stories continued. As with every other conversation we ever shared, asking me about something was only an obligatory thing to do in order to keep me standing by as a listener. I must do alright. as a listener, as this man obviously likes talking to me.

On one aisle, he invited me to a men’s prayer and bible study group, well sort of. It was like an invitation, but it was actually a segue to more stories of wonderful healings brought about by prayer.

I had plenty of time last night so I just stood by, sending this man love, and wondering if I would ever be included in the conversation, or if he was just using me as practice for some later monologue.

Fortunately his wife kept him moving. The look on her face, last night, and at times of other heroic rescues, told me she is very comfortable in her role of saving others from her husband.

Under the guise of returning to find something from the cheese section, I was captured one last time before we left the store. This time, my teacher launched into an explanation about why this was the "end times", as prophesized in the bible. Citing examples of Israeli actions, Iranian responses, and their correlations to scripture, I could see he was sincere in his belief.

I left him with this one thought, “Fortunately, we have free will; therefore, no future is locked in stone. Everything is subject to change.”

His perfect deer in headlight look was a Kodak moment.

I thought it was fitting that the evenings conversations would end with the same dazed and confused flavor with which they began.

So, what does this child of God have to teach me; compassion, tolerance, allowance, patience, all of the above?

Last night, I saw a scared child, searching for his place in the world. In my soundless listening, I sent that child a loving message that he was not alone; that he was loved; and that he need not be afraid.

Maybe I got it this time. We will see