THE TATTOOED STRANGER

He was kind of scary. He sat there on the grass with his cardboard sign, his adorable dog and tattoos running up and down both arms an even on his neck. His sign proclaimed him to be "stuck and hungry" and to please help.



I'm such a soft touch for anyone needing help. My husband both hates and loves this quality in me.



I pulled the van over and in my rear-view mirror contemplated this man, tattoos and all. He was youngish, maybe forty. He wore one of those bandannas ties over his head, biker/pirate style. Anyone could see he was dirty and had a scraggly beard. But if you looked closer you could see that he had neatly tucked in the black T-shirt, and his things were in a small, tidy bundle. Nobody was stopping for him. I could see the other drivers take one look and immediately focus on something else — anything else.



It was so hot out. I could see in the man's very blue eyes how dejected and tired and worn out he felt. The sweat was tricking down his face. As I sat with the air- conditioning blowing, the Scripture suddenly popped into my head. "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these, my brethren, so ye have done it unto me."



I reached down into my purse and extracted a $10 bill. My 12-year-old son, Nick, knew right away what I was doing. "Can I take it to him, Mom?"



"Be careful, honey," I warned and handed him the money. I watched in the mirror as he rushed over to the man, and with a shy smile, handed it to him. I saw the man, startled, stand and take the money, putting it into his back pocket. "Good," I thought to myself, "now he will at least have a hot meal tonight." I felt satisfied, proud of myself. I had made a sacrifice and now I could go on with my errands.



When Nick got back into the car, he looked at me with sad, pleading eyes. "Mom, his dog looks so hot and the man is really nice." I knew I had to do more.



"Go back and tell him to stay there, that we will be back in 15 minutes," I told Nick. He bounded out of the van and ran to tell the tattooed stranger.



We then ran to the nearest store and bought our gifts carefully. "It can't be too heavy," I explained to the children. "He has to be able to carry it around with him." We finally settled on our purchases. A bag of dog food, a flavored chew toy shaped like a bone, some doggie snacks, two bottles of water (one for him and one for the dog), a water dish and some people snacks for the man.



We rushed back to the spot where we had left him and there he was, still waiting. And still nobody else had stopped for him. With hands shaking, I grabbed our bags and climbed out of the car, all 4 of my children following me, each carrying gifts. As we walked up to him, I had a fleeting moment of fear, hoping he wasn't a serial killer.



I looked into his eyes and saw something that startled me and made me ashamed of my judgment. I saw tears. He was fighting like a little boy to hold back his tears. How long had it been since someone showed this man kindness? I told him I hoped it wasn't too heavy for him to carry and showed him what we had bought. He just stood there, like a child at Christmas, and I felt like my small contributions were so inadequate. When I took out the water dish, he snatched it out of my hands as if it were solid gold and told me he had had no way to give his dog water. He gingerly set it down, filled it with the bottled water we brought, and stood up to look directly into my eyes. His were so blue, so intense, and my own filled with tears as he said, "Ma'am, I don't know what to say." He then put both hands on his bandanna-clad head and just started to cry. This man, this "scary" man, was so gentle, so sweet, so humble.



I smiled through my tears and said, "Don't say anything." Then I noticed the tattoo on his neck. It said, "Mama tried."



As we all piled into the van and drove away, he was on his knees, arms around his dog, kissing his nose and smiling. I waved cheerfully and then finally broke down in tears.



I have so much. My worries seem so trivial and petty now. I have a home, a loving husband and four beautiful children. I have a bed. I wondered where he would sleep tonight.



My stepdaughter Brandie turned to me and said in the sweetest little-girl voice, "I feel so good."



Although it seemed as if we had helped him, the man with the tattoos gave us a gift that I will never forget. He taught that no matter what the outside looks like, inside each of us is a human being deserving of kindness, of compassion, of acceptance. He opened his heart.



Tonight and every night I will pray for the gentle man with the tattoos and his dog. And I will hope that God will send more people like him into my life to remind me what's really important.



If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? 1 John 3:17

GOD, JESUS & ME

Sally jumped up as soon as she saw the Surgeon come out of the operating room. She said: "How is my little boy? Is he going to be O.K.? When can I see him?"

The Surgeon said, "I'm sorry, we did all we could." Sally said, "Why do little children get cancer? Doesn't GOD care any more? GOD, where were you when my son needed you?" 

The Surgeon said, "One of the nurses will be out in a few minutes to let you spend time with your son's remains before it's transported to the university." Sally asked that the nurse stay with her while she said good-bye to her son. 

Sally ran her fingers through his thick red curly hair. The nurse said, "Would you like a lock of his hair?" Sally nodded yes. The nurse cut a lock of his hair and put it in a plastic bag and handed it to Sally. Sally said, "It was Jimmy's idea to give his body to the university for study. He said it might help somebody else," and that is what he wanted. 

I said no at first, but Jimmy said, "Mom I won't be using it after I die. Maybe it will help some other little boy to be able to spend one more day with his mother." Sally said, "My Jimmy had a heart of gold, always thinking of someone else and always wanting to help others if he could." 

Sally walked out of the children's hospital for the last time now after spending most of the last 6 months there. She sat the bag with Jimmy's things in it on the seat beside her in the car. The drive home was hard and it was even harder to go into an empty house. 

She took the bag to Jimmy's room and started placing the model cars and things back in his room exactly where he always kept them. She laid down across his bed and cried herself to sleep holding his pillow. 

Sally woke up about midnight, and laying beside her on the bed was a letter folded up. She opened the letter and it said: 

Dear Mom,

I know your going to miss me, but don't think that I will ever forget you or stop loving you because I'm not around to say I LOVE YOU. I'll think of you every day mom, and I'll love you even more each day. Some day we will see each other again. 

If you want to adopt a little boy so you won't be so lonely, he can have my room and my old stuff to play with. If you decide to get a girl instead, she probably wouldn't like the same things as us boys do, so you will have to buy her dolls and stuff girls like. 

Don't be sad when you think about me. This is really a great place. Grandma and Grandpa met me as soon as I got here and showed me around some, but it will take a long time to see everything here. The angels are so friendly and I love to watch them fly. 

Jesus doesn't look like any of the pictures I saw of Him, but I knew it was Him as soon as I saw Him. He took me to see GOD! And guess what mom? I got to sit on GOD'S knee and talk to Him like I was somebody important. I told GOD that I wanted to write you a letter and tell you good-bye and everything, but I knew that wasn't allowed. 

God handed me some paper and His own personal pen to write you this letter with. I think Gabriel is the name of the angel that is going to drop this letter off to you.

God said for me to give you the answer to one of the questions you asked Him about - where was He when I needed him? God said, "The same place He was when Jesus was on the cross. He was right there, as He always is with all His children. "

Oh, by the way Mom, nobody else can see what is written on this paper but you. To everyone else, it looks like a blank piece of paper. 

I have to give God His pen back now. He has some more names to write in the Book Of Life. Tonight I get to sit at the table with Jesus for Supper. I'm sure the food will be great. 

I almost forgot to let you know - Now I don't hurt anymore and the cancer is all gone. I'm glad because I couldn't stand that pain anymore. And God couldn't stand to see me suffer the pain either, so He sent The Angel of Mercy to get me. The Angel said I was Special Delivery! 

Signed with love from:

God, Jesus and Me

THE MISSING RIB

A girl in love asked her boyfriend: "Tell me, who do you love most in this world?" 

 

"You, of course!" 

"In your heart, what am I to you?" 

The boy thought for a moment and looked intently in her eyes and said, "You are my rib. In the Bible, it was said that God saw that Adam was lonely. During his sleep, God took one of Adam's rib and created Eve. Every man has been searching for his missing rib. Only when you find the woman of your life will you no longer feel the lingering ache in your heart." 

After their wedding, the couple had a sweet and happy life for a while. However, the youthful couple began to drift apart due to the busy schedule of life and the never-ending worries of daily problems. Their life became mundane. All the challenges posed by the harsh realities of life began to gnaw away at their dreams and love for each other. The couple began to have more quarrels, and each quarrel became more heated. 

One day, after a quarrel, the girl ran out of the house. At the opposite side of the road, she shouted, "You don't love me!" The boy hated her childishness, and out of impulse retorted, "Maybe it was a mistake for us to be together! You were never my missing rib!" 

Suddenly, she turned quiet and stood there for a long while. He regretted what he said, but words spoken are like thrown away water - you can never take them back. With tears, she went home to pack her things and was determined on breaking up. 

Before she left the house, the girl said, "If I'm really not your missing rib, then please let me go." She continued, "It is less painful this way. Let us go on our separate ways and search for our own partners." 

Five years went by. He never remarried but he had tried to find out about her life indirectly. She had left the country and came back. She had married a foreigner and divorced. He felt anguished that she never waited for him. In the dark and lonely night, he lit his cigarette and felt the lingering ache in his heart. He couldn't bring himself to admit that he was missing her. 

One day they finally met - at the airport - a place where there were many reunions and good-byes. He was going away on a business trip. She was standing there alone, with just the security door separating them. She smiled at him gently.

"How are you?"

"I'm fine. How about you. Have you found your missing rib?"

"No."

"I'll be flying to New York on the next flight."

"I'll be back in 2 weeks time."

"Give me a call when you get back. You know my number. Nothing has changed."

With a smile, she turned around and waved good-bye.

One week later, he heard of her death. She had perished in New York - in the event that shocked the world.

 

Midnight.. And like before, he felt the lingering ache in his heart. He finally knew that she was the missing rib that he had so carelessly broken.

~~~~~~~

Sometimes people say things out of moments of fury. Most often than not, the outcome could be disastrous and detrimental. We vent our frustrations 99% at our loved ones. And even though we know that we ought to "think twice and act wisely," it's often easier said than done. 

Things happen each day, many of which are beyond our control. Let us treasure every moment and everyone in our lives. Tomorrow may never come. Give and accept what you have today. 

"Men stumble over pebbles, never over mountains" Emilie Cady