For the entire law is fulfilled in one statement: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Galatians 5:14 HCSB)
It wasn't a particularly peculiar day at work. It's not unusual to have several people inquire for direction to find certain library items. The Dewey Decimal system can be intimating to some. When the situation calls for service, it's also not uncommon to help a Patron hunt down a much sought after book. It could be the latest bestseller. I'm often asked to assist a mom finding craft books to busy her kids during the summer or help a gentleman that can't seem locate a certain title on building backyard decks. It's comes with the job. After all, it can get quite busy some days. Shelving and accepting library materials during a summer reading program can keep an avid library employee hopping. On this day, I had several inquires to assist one person after another. Although, not much surprises me--as over the years I have seen and heard some pretty odd things occur in our public library--I was about to be surprised.
I was going about my daily routine putting away a cart of books. The area I was in ranged from home decor, sports, poetry and literature. The routine sets one into a zone and shelving non-fiction becomes systematic. As I gathered my next batch of books to put away, out of my peripheral vision I spied a petite woman walking toward me.
"Do you work here?" she timidly asked.
I replied. "Yes, yes I do."
The lady stood around 5 foot tall, nicely dressed and spoke broken English. I noticed right away her Asian dialect as she began to talk to me.
She began to explain to me that she was trying to write to a friend that had just moved to Florida. The lady proceeded to pull out several snapshots of her friend's new home. This lady wanted to return a card expressing how beautiful the Florida home was and a few other personal words of endearment. Although, she knew what she wanted to say, her understanding of how to put this into a letter format baffled her. She proceeded to ask for my help to complete a short note to her friend.
At first, I admit, I felt awkward. This stranger wants me to write a personal note to another stranger. It felt weird. I wasn't sure how to respond, but then I quickly saw in this woman's face that she genuinely wanted to express her feelings to her friend. She unfolded a single sheet of filler paper. It's first two lines had only a few words. She explained what she had written so far, but found herself stuck. I assured what she had so far was nice. A letter is simply words from a person's heart, sharing thoughts and sentiment to another. It could be anything she chose to share.
So, she began. As she spoke her thoughts to me, I wrote down the words, using the metal shelving as a make shift desk. She mentioned she would copy it over to the greeting card later.
The words were simple. "Your home is beautiful. I hope your family is doing well. My son is moving into his own apartment on July 19. I love you and miss you. It has been really hot in Arizona. I will give you a call." Love,....."
When we finished, I showed her how to address the envelope and where to include her return address. Then, I took her over to the section in the Library that holds books on letter writing. I referenced several pages showing examples of styles and formats of letter writing. She was so happy. I told her that she could use these as examples to help her along.
She seemed content with the letter she could now prepare for her friend. The thought suddenly hit me about having a Servant's Heart. Aren't we here to help one another in ways we may never expect and even when it takes us out of our comfort zone?
I decided to share the experience a co-worker. As I relayed the story, I noticed her attitude wasn't the same as mine. Maybe the day had already been too long for her. Maybe her time on the job had become too tiresome. Maybe her heart was disconnected from remembering the days of common courtesy. Her only response was to tell me of a complaining customer she had dealt with earlier. As she spoke, I thought, how sad. This place, where I began working over 13 years ago, used to go the extra mile, to help a customer. We took our time when we could to assist or share a laugh and personal inner action. After all, we are serving our community, the families that live in our neighborhoods. However, due the lack of staff, over-worked employees, and higher stresses, the attitudes have changed. The HEARTS attitudes have changed!
It is sad, but it's reality. However, in the back of my mind, the thought wouldn't escape me. The World VS God. The World says, rush, don't take your time to help others, be impatient. God says, to love others as you love yourself!
The thought of God smiling makes me so much happier than making the world happy.
I also had this thought:
Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. Hebrews 13:2.
You never know....
