Reflections. I know you. Yeah, I know you, too. Abundant Life? No. You work at the airport? No. Yahoo? No. Okay, Abundant Life, Yahoo, Holy Angels-- Holy Angels! Thats it. I had run into a member of my old church at Lowes, and I knew him from a mens community service group wed both belonged to years ago. His hair had thinned and grayed, and he spoke and moved a little slower, but I recognized him. He filled me in on what had been going on: he was leaving his career in tech to work in finance, and he had miraculously recovered from a stroke he suffered six months ago. And hes just 13 years older than me. When I joined that group in my early 20s, he was set up as one of my mentors, though he never took on the role. He was quiet, unassuming, and deferential towards the other members who were decades older; and he was a good man. He had joined the group to find connection with the faith community, and he was serving through ushering and traffic duty on Sundays. Like many Catholics, he didnt say much about his personal faith in God, but spoke about his faith in the Church. He was married, had a daughter attending the parish grade school, and was working in tech. And though he was on the path that all of the men in the group were walking, I distinctly remember saying to myself back then, In 10 years I dont want to be like him. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the path on which he and others were traveling -- I just didnt want to be on it. Fifteen years later, here we were, standing in the middle of Lowes, trying to remember who the other person was. And though my life is different than his, I still felt like I was looking at a mirror.
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 18:24:35 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015