Monday, December 18, 2006

"Do You Want To Know the Truth?"

Does the greeting that questions your well being make you cringe?  That person passing by ~ that you may or may not know ~ who, perhaps means well, nods with a smile and politely asks,

"How are you?"

Well, I know that it annoys many people, but I have to admit, I am one to ask.  I don't ask as a greeting, but as a genuine concern for others.  What I really like is when someone answers me with,

 "Do you really want to know?"

Well, yeah... That's IS why I asked, and if a moment can be spared in the hustle and bustle long enough for you to tell me, I will be happy to listen.  If not, stay in touch.  Lord knows I've needed someone to offer an open ear and heart many a time...

So this happened tonight.  I had spent a VERY long afternoon and evening shopping with my daughter's, trying to find just the right outfit for Amanda to wear to her junior high concert tomorrow night.  Yeah, I said tomorrow.  I'm also a self-professed procrastinater...  so sue me.  ::smile:: Two and a half hours and six stores later, we finally managed to find an outfit that she was semi happy with.  We stopped for a quick bite to eat (another fiasco that I won't even get into...) and then headed home.  But WAIT.  I forgot to buy something to share at our staff Holiday celebration tomorrow ~ food and socks for the swap.  So I drop them off and head BACK out yet again...      keep in mind that I hadn't been home since 7:30 this morning, and I was BEAT. 

So I go to the grocery store first, and I happen to run into someone that I have had, oh, maybe four random conversations with in the time I have known him.  Never anything more than a "hello, how are you?"  Who was this person, you might ask? 

My children's school bus driver.

So we see each other, smile, and say the usual.

"Hi!  How are you?"  We both say, smiling politely.  Then he stopped and turned back to me.

"Do you want to know the truth?"  He asked.

"Yes, of course I do.  Do YOU?"  I dared.

"Well, if you have a moment, let's talk."  He suggested...

So we stood there, among the lettuce heads and broccoli spears, spilling our hearts out.  He began by telling me how wonderful his life has been since so and so came into his life.  That he just can't believe that after all this time (he is in his fifties) that he has found The One.  It has been a struggle, he shared, for the last couple of years, and now the fates have finally smiled.  As he spoke of his love for her, he had to stop...He was crying.

He asked me if I was okay.  Like I said, I dared to ask the same question of him...  Did he want to know the truth?  At first, I simply smiled.  Probably a little too weakly, because I had actually been wiping tears out in the parking lot only moments earlier.  He knew.  He held his hand out to me and told me that I was so young and beautiful (<cough>) and deserved to find happiness the same way that he had.  I was so moved, right there in the produce aisle.  Honestly, I was.  After a time we simply shook hands and went about our way... 

I have friends, I really do.  But I have isolated myself from people for far too long, and I have opened up to very few about what is going on in my life.  And a virtual stranger touches my heart out of nowhere. 

If you build walls around yourself to keep from being hurt than no one worth the stars can get in either.  I might need a VERY heavy hammer, but I am bound and determined to break down these walls...

Stay safe, and happy shopping!

 

 

 

 

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Awwwwwww you have touched my heart. What a lovely moment to share, thank you so much. I Know that meeting must have helped you both..... good thing you forgot those few things that you needed. Hugs, Ann

Anonymous said...

Well, you are beautiful, and you're younger than me :-)

Anonymous said...

Wow...that was interesting!!  Hmmm....I know about those walls we build.  I'm trying to keep mine to a minimum, but it doesn't work darn it!!
Pam

Anonymous said...

As much as we revel in the comfort of those walls keeping others out, they also keep us out of the lives of other people, too.  You don't have to rip the walls down, just put in a window and a door.  I've just about got the door installed in my walls!  :)
~~Kath~~

Anonymous said...

You are going to make me cry just reading this. What an angel that bus driver was!! I am so glad you two spoke to each other...i wish you'd share your struggles....i care about you very much. I do totally understand isolating yourself from everyone though. What a wonderful moment that you needed!
love, lj

Anonymous said...

That's a beautiful story...and YOU are beautiful for sharing it with us.   I have as much faith in you as you do!
And I'm glad to be watching you unfold...
Hugs,
Nancy

Anonymous said...

"If you build walls around yourself to keep from being hurt than no one worth the stars can get in either."  That would be me.  I have so many walls, no one can knock them down.  This sstory made me teary, because I always have a soft spot for a sappy love story.  How nice that he found the "one."  Not an easy feat at our age.  What a nice Christmas he must be planning on having this year.

I'm glad you are bound and determined to break down your walls.  I will keep mine up, thank you very much! :)

Hugs and love
jackie

Anonymous said...

I love your serenity prayer graphic! Its nice to meet a fellow sister in Christ
Lori

Anonymous said...

i will send you some snow gladly:) added you to alerts so i will be back

Deb

Anonymous said...

You keep busting down those blocks around you, girlfriend! For me it wasnt' that I was keeping anyone out, but that I was keeping someone else in. I discovered that I kept Jesus locked away in my heart, and didn't share Him enough with others. I never expressed the joy in my heart to people. Once I recognized that the two were related (Jesus locked in my heart, joy never released), I learned how to let them both out. Opening one's heart sometimes means letting out love as well as letting in love! Good luck with your new discoveries. Glad you recognize when a person needs to talk. Don't forget when to recognize their need to listen to your deep thoughts and feelings. It's all about opening doors, whether they open to the inside or to the outside! love, bea

Anonymous said...

What a nice entry.  That is one obviously happy man, and aren't you glad you really did want to know how he was doing?  He's obviously a perceptive and kind man, too, to want to make sure you were okay.  Sorry I haven't around much lately.  I kind of took December off, and now am trying to catch up with what's going on with everyone before I really start writing again in my own journal.
Lori