Journey To Something More

I was in college and I was a young mother, alone and on my own. My mom had passed away the year before. She was so proud of me being in school and working so hard to give my son more than what she could have financially ever given me. I struggled daily after she died but I never gave up and I know I was at a point in my life where I was trying to decide what my actual career choice was going to be. I had wished many times that my mom was there to be my sounding board but that was not the way God had planned it. I had learned early on that I had to roll with whatever God laid in front of me. There was always a purpose to his reasoning and I didn't have to understand any of his decisions. I just had to trust in him.

On this particular day everything seemed to be going wrong. Much to my frustrations and already complicated life, I found myself at the local laundry mat due to my washer had broken down. I had tons of studying to do and no time for all the confusion.

As I unloaded my laundry I noticed that there was only one other person there. She was a well dressed lady that appeared to be very nice. She came over and began speaking to me almost immediately after my arrival. We talked for what seemed to be hours. I discovered that she was from a neighboring town and her washer had broken so she had no choice but to find a laundry mat for this day. She was in her early sixties and she had spent her entire life as a Social Worker. She told me stories of her Journeys in and out of other peoples lives. Some of the people she met blessed her with adventures of a lifetime while others left her sad and empty. She explained to me all about how so many people left a footprint on her heart. That all of her encounters made her into the person that she was. She took a little piece of all of them and wrapped them together. Being a Social worker was both a blessing and a trial. That it was sometimes hard to stay true to what you believe and who you are unless you hold tightly to what God has already given you. Stay focused and help who you can and just remember that we are only human. We can not, and are not expected to save the world just because we answer a calling to be a social worker. Some of us are just born to do so. Just like we are born to be School Teachers or Librarians. Its something that fills us and makes us complete.

It was this conversation and day in time that decided my future. I knew from that day forth that I had to finish college and become the Social Worker that I had wanted to be. I was a very young and impressionable twenty-two year old. I enjoyed my conversation immensely with my new found friend. During our time together we talked so intensely and with so much driven power and purpose that I never noticed that she was by my side the whole conversation. It wasnt until after our conversation was over and I was home that I realized that I had never seen her with any laundry. As my heart lifted and a smile crossed my face I found myself remembering that among all my troubles earlier that morning I had asked God for some guidance....So... as tears rolled down my cheeks I had to ask myself, “ Was my new found friend really a Social Worker or was she something more? “

Chance Meeting

Families are far from perfect and mine was the same. We loved each other but I was a teenager and I definitely knew all about pushing my mothers buttons. The consequences were not always good for me. When we would argue I would separate myself from the problem at the time and my tomboy side would kick in. I would find my fishing pole and head down to the local Reservoir. Mom and I seemed to argue a lot in my early teenage years. It might have been because my chores weren't done or I was gone to long and didn't feel the need to tell her where I was. She was my best friend but at this age she was also my worst enemy. I had a new stepfather and he meant well but he wasnt my favorite person. So, usually any argument mom and I had it gave me a reason to run out on her.

On the one day that stands out the most to me we had been fighting and my step father had gotten in the middle of the fight again. I felt alone and angry that he even thought he had a say so in our argument.

I was determined to sneak away and make my mom learn to appreciate me a little more. So, I grabbed my fishing pole and headed out. It was hot and there were a few people already with their poles in the water. I found a place and got comfortable. My dad use to always tease me that I could barely be quite let alone set still long enough to wait on a fish. True to this statement, I was throwing my line in the water and reeling it back in. I was not catching a single fish when I heard a mans voice a little ways down from me hollering. He had caught a fish. Of course I had to say something to him because I still wasn't catching anything. I wanted to know what his trick was.

Before I knew it hours had passed and I was starting to catch fish. It was all about a fishing lure and being patient but more than that I think it was about having someone to talk to. The mystery voice was connected to a man who had all sorts of fish stories to tell. He was nice and taught me how to put the lure on my pole and set it at the right depth for me. He was amazed that I knew so much about fishing. Really I think he was amazed that I was a teenage girl that was still into fishing. As he talked I listened intently and then shared stories about me and my dad. Eventually the stories went from being about the fish to being about what brought us to the lake to fish. I told the man all about my stepfather and how I felt about his intrusion on my life. We talked about our fights, School, not seeing my dad and many other topics. The man was a gentlemen and not once inappropriate.

As the day was starting to get late I said my thank yous and bid him farewell but I never shared a phone number or an address. When I did return home I looked at my Stepfather a little different. The man himself was a Stepfather and he had shared some of his stories about how his family treats him. It finally became clear to me on that day that everyone is human and not always out to get the other person. I learned a lot that day with a fishing pole in my hand. Was it a by chance meeting or an arranged blessing from God? I guess only God knows that answer but I can say that I never saw the man again but I was and am forever grateful to him. He showed me both sides of the coin that day and changed my views forever on Stepfathers...

So Little

I had never seen such perfect ten fingers and ten toes. She was beautiful and my heart was so full of love. Her beautiful blue eyes. Her cries were strong. We knew right away that she would be strong like her mother. So little but yet she filled our hearts up completely. How could something so little have such an effect on so many people at one time. As we all smiled and continued to talk about this bundle that I had just held it occurred to me that the one that I thought of as my own daughter wasnt a little girl any more. As I turned to look her direction my heart lifted into a state of awe. There she laid with eyes only for this crying bundle at her side. It was as if none of us existed. To feel the love for your own child is amazing but to see the love in your daughters eyes for her child, well it was beyond amazing. All I could do was wipe a tear from my cheek. She was so beautiful. They were so beautiful. I silently watched as she counted ten fingers and then softly lifted the blanket and counted ten toes. The whole time her eyes never drifted from her baby girl. The smile on her face never faded. She had found a piece of this world that she now loved more than life itself. There was not a doubt in my mind that this baby girl would never want for anything. Emmalynna Grace was a true gift and a blessing to her mom and her dad. For when I looked beside Emmalynna's mom it was there that I found her dad and at that moment I knew, this day was just the beginning to a beautiful life.....