Today, I spent the afternoon helping a 55 year-old man move his worldly possessions from a mini-storage unit to the rooming house room he rents. There is so much I could say about the experience and the lessons that could be derived from it, but the biggest thing that hit me was that here we had a 55 year old man who has lived in the area his entire life and he had no relationships strong enough to help him move his stuff.
How does this happen? How is it that in 55 years you have not built any lasting relationships that you feel good enough about to ask for help? Instead, you are reduced to asking for help from this crazy missionary guy you barely know, who is more than willing to give up two afternoons in order to help you move the stuff you should have moved months ago, but you did not know who to ask for help.
People get tired of hearing me talk about relationships, but the longer I do this the more convinced I am that the key is in the strength of our relationships. I know a little of his story – the broken promises, the lost potential, the misplaced faith, but still: 55 years and I was the only one he felt comfortable calling.
photo credit: MargretheH
I had a similar situation with a 40′s something woman who lived in a rooming house that wanted to rent an apartment from me but had nobody to help her move.
As I loaded up everything she owned into the back of my small pick up, a couple of things struck me. One was how lonely her life was. Sadly, she is an active, participating member of a large, local, well-known church.
Second was how resourceful she is and how wasteful I am. Her “china and silverware” consisted of used take-out food boxes and plastic utensils carefully washed. Nothing is ever wasted in her world. This is closely tied to the very high degree of gratitude she exudes constantly.
Third is how easy it is to make a significant difference by just being nice and taking a couple hours to give to someone who is just too worn down by life to have many (or any) friends.