Service Doesn't Have to be a Big Deal

When I was growing up our family lived in the country next to a gravel road. One summer they decided our gravel road needed to be blacktop. I was probably 8 or 9 and the neighbor boy a year younger. We set up camp on our front porches and were intrigued watching the men and the big equipment transform our road. There were big willow trees around our house and when they would take breaks or stop for lunch they would come sit in the shade of the willows. Mom told us not to pester them, but we would go sit with them and listen to their stories.

The next day as they moved further away from us, I remember thinking how hot they must be. There were no willow trees to provide shade for them. We enlisted the help of my mother and we made chocolate chip cookies and put some Kool-Aid in a canteen and headed out on our bikes when we saw they were taking a break. They were gracious and invited us to stay and have lunch with them. They were out of sight by the end of that day and we never saw them again.

The 2nd floor apartment I lived in that first year of school overlooked a house that was next door to us. From our living room window, we could look down into their living room window. There was, what appeared to be an older woman and her husband who lived there. She would see us watching them and would get up and close the drapes. She looked a little scary and we, not so kindly called her the witch lady.

One evening after she had pulled the drapes yet again, we got to talking and wondered how many times she’d had to sacrifice sunshine and light for her privacy from the eyes of the many girls who had lived in those dorms over the years. Our hearts were pricked and we decided that we needed to apologize. So, of course we made some chocolate chip cookies and knocked on her door. To say she was surprised to see us there would be an understatement. She did invite us in and we had a wonderful visit with she and her husband who she so lovingly cared for. Her name was Helen and after that day we would stop by often and say hello. She would invite us in and we would have the best visits. We made a new friend when we began to consider what her feelings might be. We grew to love Helen and I was sad when I left that apartment and moved to Logan, because I knew I was going to miss her.

If you have a thought that you should do something for someone – do it! Don’t wait. One such day I needed the prompting three times before I acted. When I showed up at the door of someone that I knew would be working, instead of being met with silence, the door opened to a tear-stained face and the words “I knew you would come.”