What Do You Want Of Me, God?

I got a call today from my priest telling me of a woman who needed friendship and comfort.  She was a person of diminished capacity, had breast cancer, was totally alone and needed company; someone to reach out to her.  I was told she was at a behavioral treatment center but didn't know much more than that.   I decided to go visit but felt awkward and edgy.  I really didn't know what to expect.  What I found was something I would have never thought of.  I arrived to find myself visiting a secured and locked down facility.  She was a very broken human being.

 

Some people just don't seem to get any breaks in life.  A dead brother.  Another brother not in her life.  An invalid mother.  A disappeared father.  Two children.  One grandchild.  Beatings. Alcohol and drugs. Mental health issues.  A desperately rough life crossing the generations.  She is an intelligent woman with much suffering in her life.  Following the threads of a conversation was easy.

A few minutes into our visit we learned the Fr.  . . . .  had arrived.  That is when I remembered that he had said he would try to get over there but I had forgotten all about that possibility.  We talked about getting a phone number to her that she needed and had lost.  We talked about follow-up visits and seeing her at the hospital after her surgery.  I don't know how easy that will but I'll try.

Meeting a person like her is an object reminder of how blessed I am in my life.  Writing this will  serve as a remind to me that when God spoke through the Holy Spirit, I managed to actually be paying attention, listen and act.  Thank you, God.  What next?