My best gift of Christmas was
four hours in the
ER on the
snowy night of
Dec 27th .
Around 4 pm, in my office, catching up on correspondence, I leaned too far over the edge of my office chair and got dumped onto my tail bone and left hip socket on the hardwood floor. When I tried to move agonizing pain ran through my hips. I called out for Noel and minutes crawled by as we painfully evaluated my condition whilst on the phone with emergency professionals. We determined the best choice was to get me into Noel’s Jeep, as he knew he could get me through the snow to urgent care (which turned out to be closed), then on to the Capital Medical Center ER.
Transported in a hospital wheelchair I made it through the intake interview, then to the waiting room with enough space to keep a safe, but masked, distance between myself and the others. As I was able to control my shock through breathing techniques I began to realize the others were homeless and/or mentally ill. Even in my painful confusion I could feel my implicit prejudices rise towards these people carrying all they owned.
Their face masks askew, as were their layers of dirty clothing, non-sensical mutterings directed to no one.
Instead of feeling threatened, I felt I belonged with them. Gathered in this cold ER, we were all in an emergency state. Our needs were different, but all of us were in pain.
My heart felt broken, as I often feel when considering the homeless, mentally ill, and the poor. Our country’s disgraceful and often contemptuous beliefs and treatments of the most vulnerable causes me deep pain. But, in an instant, as I gazed at each one His prayers filled my heart and mind. He helped me REMEMBER that God loves us all the same, we are his treasures, each and every one.
I witnessed and heard caring and compassionate exchanges between the staff and each person. Arrangements were made for their housing, including a ride to the location. It was right that I was one of the last to leave the ER that night, as I was the last to arrive earlier in the evening. God provided for these lost, broken people and for the staff who obviously had hearts full of the honoring of what it is to be lovingly human, regardless of their religious or political views. For that night they were in wam, relatively safe places.
I praise God that he keeps the least on my heart and in my prayers. I am grateful he has blessed us so that a portion of our funds goes to those who care for and serve these precious ones. The more generous I am, the more He cares for me, primarily in spirit, peace, joy, and satisfaction.
The age and time has come that my desires of fleshly pleasures have fallen away and the actions of prayer, praise, love, and service have become the most satisfying expressions and actions of who I am.
There is more to do, way more . . . there are groups of people, communities across our country who are working for solutions, such as the Partnership For Zero: https://www.realchangenews.org/news/2022/02/23/new-area-model-homelessness-services-funded-partnership-government-business-interests
As I prayed in the ER, He reminded me of this song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8AWFf7EAc4