The Encounter

His name is William.
He is homeless.
He will never know how he touched my heart and life.
I think he was sent to remind me of the promise of hope....of love....of caring...of life...of more promises than I can sit and list. 
Maybe he thinks I was put in his life for a moment for him, but without a doubt, the moment was for me.


Here is the story of how William touched my life:

I needed to do laundry.  Okay, so maybe this was an understatement.  I had realized that I actually had laundry from before Mark had been hospitalized in November that needed to be done.  A trip to the Laundromat was definitely in order.  Three loads at once...ah, the best way to do laundry!  My sweet step mom decided to gather up some laundry of her own and go with me. 

It was late.  The Laundromat was quiet.  We were set with diet drinks, snacks, and lots of quarters.  Laundry was started - three loads for her and three for me. 

Because we waited until after church on a Wednesday night, we did not even get to the Laundromat until almost midnight.  Thankfully we are both night owls, so this was no big deal. As I sorted clothes into the washers I came across a few articles of clothing that were my sweet Mark's - bittersweet moment for sure.  A couple of people came and went during our wash cycle, but everyone just kept to themselves. 

Then he came in.  He was a bit disheveled and his clothes were tattered and dirty.  He carried a backpack with him, about as tattered as his clothes.  He was quiet.  He came in and sat for a few minutes, minding his own business.  He seemed surprisingly young - I don't think he could have been over 35-40.  I motioned over to my step mom, with a warning look on my face, to watch our purses and the quarters we had for laundry.  My first instinct was to be cautious.

Then he left.

A little bit of time passed and our clothes were drying when he came back in.  Again, the instinct to be cautious kicked in. 

I went over to sit down while folding socks.  He was sitting there quietly, almost as if trying to be invisible - really focused on not bothering us.  I came across a pair of Mark's socks that were still pretty damp for some reason, so I set them to the side. 

Mom and I were talking about some infomercial that was on TV when he spoke up.  He was so respectful, so nice....so smart.  I cannot explain the feeling that overcame me except that I was strangely drawn to this man. 

After chatting about the infomercial for a few moments, I picked up the still damp socks and asked the man if he could "use" a pair of socks, apologizing that they were damp.  He looked almost shocked that I offered and graciously accepted.  He handled the socks like they were golden - almost reverently.  Not caring that they were damp, he removed his shoes and put on the socks.  I noticed that he had no socks on before that!  He was so grateful, so humble.

He introduced himself.  His name was William.

It then crossed my mind that as I had sorted the laundry there were other items of clothing that this man might be able to wear.  I cannot explain the peace that had overcome my entire spirit at this time.  I proceeded to offer him the remaining clothes - a shirt, a pair of slickies, a pair of shorts, and even a pair of dress pants.  This was no "chance encounter" - the clothes were EXACTLY his size! 

William started crying.  He tried to hide it.  He was so humbled.  So touched.  So grateful.  It was as if he had been given the most incredible gift ever.  What he did not realize is what this encounter was doing to MY heart... to MY spirit.  It was almost as if Mark had stepped down from heaven and was handing these gifts to William himself in his loving, caring, considerate way.

William offered to help us take our laundry to our cars and for some reason it seemed ok.  As he helped take baskets to the car my mom remembered a blanket that was in her car that we really did not need - she offered him the blanket.  More tears.  More thanks.  More gratefulness. 

Before we left we gave William a gospel tract from our church and told him that God loved him and that we believed that God had truly put him in our path that night.  We also made sure that William had enough money for coffee and a hot meal. (not something I would normally do, but again...it just seemed right.)  A light shone in William's eyes that had not been there before.  Honestly, I think a light shone in my eyes that had not been there before either.

This encounter with this homeless man name William touched my heart so deeply.  I am not even really sure of the words to describe how I was touched by this.  I believe that God himself put William in my path to be a blessing to me - NOT the other way around. 

When I left the Laundromat that night I had a renewed feeling of hope - of peace - even of life itself. 
To most people this might just seem like a simple story of a homeless man being given clothes by a lady doing laundry, but it was honestly SO, SO much more. 

As I got in my car to drive away, William could be seen in the Laundromat smiling and pulling on the pair of slickies that he had been given, right up over his pants. 

And me?  I drove home with a smile on my face and a peace in my heart! 

The simple things (and other stuff)

Such a simple thing.  Fresh strawberries, rinsed, then sliced into a bowl and sprinkled with a dash of Truvia sweetener.  The fresh, cool berry kissed with just the perfect amount of sweetness and a hint of tartness.  I actually smiled as I sat and ate my late night snack.  Sometimes it is about learning (or relearning) to appreciate the simple things. 

It is unconceivable in some ways that my sweet love has been in heaven for five weeks.  It seems like just yesterday that God gave us the grace to say goodbye....for now.  I have learned so much already and am so thankful that God is by my side every step of the way.  Some lessons have been hard.  Some lessons have been confusing.  Some lessons will take time to master.  Some lessons have helped me by purging negative things and people from my life....  Those lessons have actually been pretty rewarding.  I can only pray that I honor God each step of the way and that I can be a blessing to someone else by what I learn.

Today was another wonderful day at church.  I am so blessed by the church family God has given me.  I seem to cry or tear up at least once each service.  This morning was no different as Matthew sang an amazingly beautiful song during the morning service.  My awesome friend, Amber, who has such a sweet, sensitive spirit, is always so wonderful about knowing just the things to say or do, even if it is just holding my hand while I cry through the song - like she did this morning.  It really was comforting to my heart!  See, the simple things (comforting by just holding a hand or being there for someone) can really be amazing! 

Well, Team Mark will be the next missionary team going to Ireland in October of 2014!!!  I am so very excited about this!  What a way to honor Mark's legacy by having a missions trip in his honor!  I will tell more about this as time goes on.

I had a lot of thoughts rumbling and rolling around in my head; however, the muscle relaxer that I took earlier seems to have relaxed my brain too - either that or it dissolved my ingenuity!  The thoughts are garbled and the brain (and body) are actually tired.  Maybe I will actually get a few hours sleep tonight!

There are so many people who continue to keep my sweet Kyle and I in their prayers.  I am so grateful for that.  Never doubt the power of prayer!  I can truly say that the prayers and love and encouragement of so many has made an amazing difference during this journey!  I appreciate the continued prayers.... they are still so needed as we continue our journey!

Well, goodnight to all!