Speak

To speak or not to speak; that is the question!

A friend of mine recently lost her father. He is one of the missing Marion recently wrote about. Perhaps it was the fact that she was accustomed to visiting him every day and could no longer do so that prompted her to drop in to a local coffee shop. It was just a few days later, and she had never done that before.

While there, she noticed a man who, from his clothing, was clearly a cyclist. Because she is a cyclist herself, she had an urge to begin a conversation with this stranger. To speak or not to speak must have been the question. She is not a forward person, and it must have taken some courage to approach this stranger to ask about his morning ride.

As they chatted, the man mentioned that he was retired from Babcock and Wilcox; a large engineering and manufacturing firm that is also a prominent local employer. My friend responded, “Oh, my father worked there too.” The man enquired as to her father’s name, and when she told him, he replied, “When I was a young man, newly arrived from Northern Ireland and starting work at that new place, it was your father who took me under his wing and taught me how to do the job.” He then went on to tell her that her father was not just his mentor at work, but also in life! He had taken an interest in this young man and offered him good counsel and advice to help him find his way.

In the chance encounter (?) with this cyclist in a coffee shop where she had never gone before, my grieving friend found an affirmation concerning a side of her father’s life she had never known. What a blessing! She felt as if she had received a message from her missing father himself. When I happened to call later, she was anxious to tell me all about it.

What if my friend had resisted the silent urge to reach out to this stranger? What if she had remained within her quiet, shy nature and not spoken to the man? She would never have known! Oh, the joy she would have missed!

How often do we meet someone and want to speak to them but are too introverted to do so? How many times do we deny a blessing to ourselves or someone else because we are reticent to speak to someone who catches our attention? How often do we resist the promptings of our spirit to reach out to another human being? In doing that, do we deny ourselves a blessing?

May God's peace be with you today, and if you have the opportunity, may you also share that peace with someone you may meet. Who knows what blessings may await.

Posted by Carman