3:00pm City Bus

By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest. -Confucius

 

The talk of fools is a rod for their backs, but the lips of the wise preserve them.

Proverbs 14:3

I am on the number thirty bus headed home from an afternoon meeting that has left a bad taste in my mouth.  Things simply did not go my way.  I am flipping through a magazine as the bus makes a downtown stop.  A man gets on who grabs my attention.  He is wearing a tattered t-shirt that I am sure was once white.  His homemade blue jean shorts have tears in the back exposing the inner pockets and his buttocks.  On his feet are flip flops that appear to be chewed on all sides.  His white face isn’t dirty, it is stained. 

Of course, he sits right in front of me; my seat facing west, his facing north.  I am joyfully surprised that his body does not emit a stench I had anticipated from such an appearance.  He turns to face me and has a question. “So, what have you learned?” 

Is he speaking to me?  I look behind me.  When I turn back around he is staring me straight in the eyes and asks again.  “So, what have you learned?  What have you learned on this journey today?  What has life taught you?”

I am stunned.  I sit still and reflective.  Another stop comes and others make their way to seats before I have an answer for him.  “I have learned to listen more and use fewer words.  I have learned to give more than I expect others to offer.  I have learned that sometimes the best gift I can give is silence.”

“Very good,” he responds as he stands.  “You are on your way,”

He exits at the next stop.

Sometimes…when I look back on those brief moments of that hour of that day, it all seems so unreal it makes me wonder if it ever really happened.

God of Surprises, I thank you for the many unexpected moments of awakening!  I thank you for the way you bring people into our lives to help us claim the things we need to accept about ourselves.  Keep them coming, Lord, keep them coming!

This Hour’s Ponderings

1.  What have you learned so far on this journey today?

2.  What has life taught you?

3.  Who has been your teacher today?

4.  How is God speaking to you this hour of this day?