Reaching Out

It’s been a few weeks back now, so maybe the statute of limitations has run out, but I need to confess something. I stole $30 worth of gas from our local gas station. I know, right? Shocking. However, as everyone who has lived here for more than a month knows, you can’t get away with anything in this town. Shortly after I ‘stole’ the gas, I was sent a message from a friend who is good friends of the owner of this gas station that simply reminded me I failed to pay for my gas. I immediately returned, and since no police sirens were visible, I quickly paid what I owed.
And other than some razzing and bantering, no one cared about it, as far as I could tell. But in additional texts to the friend who graciously reminded me that I forgot to pay, these words she wrote about this community really struck me. After I wrote, “..can’t get away with anything around here…”, she replied, “Nope…but they’d do anything for you, too.”
And she’s right. I know I’ve written about that in past articles, but it’s just so refreshing to be a part of a small town that knows and cares about others. Sure there are those who don’t like each other and those who fight and bicker, but overall, this community seems to come together really well. From the hearts in the windows from a few weeks back to the PTO’s work in celebrating our ‘stay-at-home’ teachers who dealt with this cranky parent (and others) more than once, to the graduating senior’s posters popping up in yards and on the square, to local businesses supporting essential workers in various ways…there are lots of ways even in the midst of quarantine that we come together.
And I guess my point is to say thanks. At least my main point is to say a big THANK YOU! I feel so blessed to be part of it even though I’m a transplant here. And even though overall we do a good job of caring for others, I think we’ve probably done it uniquely in the last few weeks because we’ve slowed down enough to see more of what is happening. We see that the graduates don’t get a prom or a normal graduation. We see that widows and widowers are home alone now so we check on them. We see parents who just need a break. We see the need and pay more attention. And I just pray that as we move forward and (hopefully) get out of this quarantine, we find ways to continue to slow down and see. In so many ways, God has called us to slow down not only to spend time with him but also to pay attention to what is happening in the lives of the people all around us. God bless.