Thankful4

4 tales of strangers who became my neighbors today

1. Bus Companion—We’ll call him Eric. As we rode the otherwise empty S bus from the hospital parking deck to the business school, Eric told our bus driver how much he appreciated her, and how patient bus drivers have to be to endure routes filled with construction and sometimes grumpy passengers. Then, he just asked me how I was, how my day was going so far. And I asked about his day, what was in store for him. We parted with one of the most sincere “have a nice days” I’ve ever heard.
2. UNC Professor—We’ll call him Paul. I got a call from Paul mid-morning, asking for assistance setting up a new computer. When I arrived, he made a point of making me feel welcome in his office. He even cracked a few bad jokes for my benefit, a pleasant change from the stressed graduate student I had just finished helping. He was gracious when I was unable to solve all his problems, and thanked me for my effort. Later that afternoon, I was walking to main campus, late for a meeting, when Paul pulled along side me to say thank you, and asked if I wanted a lift. I am thankful for Paul’s kind and generous personality, as well as his lead foot.
3. Senior Administrator—We’ll call him Dean. A busy man with a lot to do took the time to shoot the breeze during lunch.
4. BJ the Great —We’ll call her BJ the Great, since that is how she introduced herself. BJ works at the ID card office at UNC, and I came to fix a misspelling on my work ID card. She took my picture, made my new ID card, and as I was about to walk out the door, she told me she liked the way I pronounced things. She asked what I was majoring in, and then what I planned to do with a degree in philosophy. My response about going to seminary led to a 20 minute conversation about her experiences growing up in the faith, her favorite sermon ever, and her disgust at the hypocrisy she sees in so many churches, including her own. BJ the Great is well aware of the log in her eye, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t see the speck in your eye too. “You should leave church with your feet hurting” she told me, “cause God should have stepped on your toes a little.” Who knew spunky grandmotherly prophets worked at Carolina?

AP
Thankful for a new pair of eyes