I thought of how every
day each of us experiences a few little moments that have just a bit more
resonance than other moments – we hear a word that sticks in our mind – or maybe
we have a small experience that pulls us out of ourselves, if only briefly…we
would realize that we have been having another life altogether; one we didn't even know was going on inside us. –Douglas
Coupland
We often say, one day
at a time but I say, one moment at a time.
A day, all 24 hours is packed with so many planned and unplanned
events. So, I suggest you have the
overview of the day, but take it in small steps, one moment at a time. –Eveth Colley
Last
week: It’s Wednesday. I’m leaving work right around 6, and the sun
is peeking out after what seems like a year of hiding. I am grateful. It’s been a long week full of emotional
triggers that have been hard to check at the door, and the week is only half
over. The sun, warm on my face and
stinging my eyes through the windshield is like a tangible ray of hope, Shirley
Temple style.
Unlike most
days of the week, I have a passenger. A
small fourth grader occupies my backseat, his green and black coat tossed
haphazardly across the seat, his backpack tucked between his feet. I give this nervous boy a lift home once or
twice a week – his mom doesn't have a car.
Despite the small inconvenience of the trip, on days like today when I
have too much on my mind, I welcome the distraction. I’m learning to find hope in my students too.
This
particular boy always wants us to be first out of the parking lot, but I've
never asked him why. Rarely do I pull
out of my parking spot before my boss, and he exhales an audible sigh of
disappointment in the back. “Man, she’s
going to beat us.” This day is no
different; we are second.
He comments
all the way down the road on how far ahead her white hatchback seems – will we
ever catch up? He wants me to drive
faster. His excitement is palpable as we
pull up to the stop light and wait to turn – we are directly behind her. I honk and she joins in the fun, playing a
modified peek a boo game in her rear view mirror. As the light turns green, I say out loud, “I’m not sure we’re going to make this
light.” The green doesn't last long and
we are barely positioned within the turn lane.
I hear my student plead, “Please stay green, come on, come on, stay
green.”
It’s not
until later, as I reflect on my week and all it has held, that I wonder – why
was he so intent for the light to stay green?
Who was he pleading to? I
remember being a kid and doing the very same, the promise of a game continued
was exciting. I wasn't concerned with
how long the game would last; I only wanted to keep it going. As we sailed through the still green light
and his cheers of success leaked out the car’s cracked windows, I was struck by
the simplicity of his request and the joyous result when it was granted.
The more I
chew on this experience, the more I see God in it. As I fought my way though each day last week,
feeling the strain of life, I felt as if I were trudging through knee deep
mud. But I was reminded in this
interaction that God desires to give us good gifts. He hears every whispered request, no matter
how big or how small, and he is overjoyed that we would come to Him and
ask. But we need to ask. What a privilege to see a request so
immediately answered, a game continued, a memory made. I have no way of knowing how such a small
interaction may have changed this small boy’s view of the world, or his
relationship with us as leaders, but I am grateful for having been a part of
it.
I've always
been told that working with students isn’t just about you teaching them – it’s
about them teaching you. I was reminded
not to be afraid to ask for what I need, no matter how big or how small. It doesn't matter how urgently I ask, or how
loudly, what matters is that I ask and then watch, in hope and expectation, for
the answer.