This reflection is shared with us courtesy of Chaplain Kristi. She said, it’s “headlines” really captured her attention and enlived her spirit…and perhaps ours, too.
Sometimes I just want it to stop. All the stress of COVID, racism, conflicts. I lose my way. But then I meet an 87 year old gentleman who talks of living through polio, diphtheria, war, protests…and yet is still enchanted with life. He seems surprised when I say that 2020 must be especially challenging for him.
“No,” he says, slowly looking me straight in the eye, “I learned a long time ago not to see the world through the ‘headlines.’ I see the world through the people that surround me. I see the world with the realization that we love BIG. Therefore, I just choose to write my own headlines.”
“HUSBAND LOVES WIFE TODAY.” “FAMILY DROPS EVERYTHING TO COME TO GRANDMA’S BEDSIDE.” He patted my hand and winked: “OLD MAN MAKES NEW FRIEND!”
His words collide with my worries, freeing them from the tether I had been holding tight. They float away. I am left with a renewed spirit. My headline now reads, “WOMAN OVERWHELMED BY SPIRIT OF KINDNESS: REMINDED THAT CAPACITY FOR LOVE IS NEVER-ENDING.”
(-author unknown)
You know what we’re going to ask you: “What is your headline today?” Let’s write some headlines together!