I came across this story when reading some posts I had gotten recently. I will share a
snippet of it which led me to my thoughts for this blog. It hit home to me as I think about
how I sometimes act when I am in a hurry and feel put out.

On my way to work one morning, I drove behind a small car with a handwritten
note taped to the back window: “Learning to drive stick. Sorry for any delay.”
As soon as I read it, my impatience dissolved. I stayed calm through every shaky
start, every cautious gear change and truthfully, they were driving just fine.
But then another thought surfaced: Would I have been so patient if I hadn’t seen
the sign? Probably not.

In my own life, the memory came back to me of my parents. My dad, who had less than
stellar hearing trying to understand what the clerks or waitresses were saying to him,
then fumbling around with his wallet trying to pay a bill. In the last years of my mother’s
life, she would often say inappropriate things in restaurants (or wherever we happened
to be) and feeling embarrassed for her. Both of my parents were clearly quite elderly
and my mother had dementia, but I only hoped people would understand and be kind to
them.

Most people don’t go around with signs explaining what they are struggling with. You
can’t see: “Going through a divorce.”, “Lost my spouse.”, “Fighting depression.”, “Just
diagnosed with cancer.”

If pain were visible, I wonder if our world would be gentler. Sadly, kindness shouldn’t
need an excuse. We should follow the words from Ephesians 4:32: Be kind to one
another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

God loves us unconditionally, even though we often don’t deserve it. His mercy and love
shine brightly in our lives every day. Let’s follow His example of goodness and treat
others as we would like them to treat us…with patience and kindness as God instructs
us to do. Thanks be to God for His everlasting love!

Patty