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The
passengers on the bus watched sympathetically as the
attractive young woman with the white cane made her way
carefully up the steps. she paid the driver, using her hands
to feel the location of the seats, walked down the aisle,
and found the seat he\'d told her was empty. then she
settled in, placed her briefcase on her lap, and rested her
cane against her leg.
it had been a year since Susan, thirty-four, became blind.
due to a medical misdiagnosis, she had been rendered
sightless, and she was suddenly thrown into a world of
darkness, anger, frustration, and self-pity. once a fiercely
independent woman, Susan now felt condemned by this terrible
twist of fate to become a powerless and helpless burden on
everyone around her.
"how could this have happened to me?" she would plead, her
heart knotted with anger, but no matter how much she cried,
protested, ranted, or prayed, she knew the painful truth
that her sight was never going to return. a cloud of
depression hung over Susan's once optimistic spirit. just
getting through each day was an exercise in frustration and
exhaustion. and all she had to cling to was her husband
mark.
mark was an air forces officer and he loved Susan with all
of his heart. when she first lost her sight, he watched her
sink into despair and was determined to help his wife gain
the strength and confidence she needed to become independent
again.
mark's military background had trained him well to deal with
such sensitive situations, and yet he knew this was the most
difficult battle he would ever face.
finally, Susan felt ready to return to her job, but how
would she get there? she used to take the bus, but was now
too frightened to get around the city by herself. mark
volunteered to drive her to and from work each day, even
though they worked at opposite ends of the city.
at first, this comforted Susan and fulfilled mark's need to
protect his sightless wife who was so insecure about
performing the slightest task. soon, however, mark realized
that this arrangement wasn't working, it was hectic and
costly.
Susan is going to have to start taking the bus again\' he
admitted to himself, but just the thought of mentioning it
to her made him cringe, she was still so fragile and so
angry. 'how would she react?' he admitted to himself again.
just as mark predicted, Susan was horrified at the idea of
taking the bus again. "i'm blind!" she responded bitterly
"how am i supposed to know where I'm going? I feel like you
are abandoning me".
mark's heart broke to hear these words, but he knew what had
to be done. he promised Susan that each morning and evening
he would ride the bus with her, for as long as it took,
until she got the hang of it. and that is exactly what
happened.
for two solid weeks, mark, military uniform and all,
accompanied Susan to and from work each day. he taught her
how to rely on her other senses specifically her hearing,
how to determine where she was, and how to adapt to her new
environment.
he helped her befriend the bus drivers who could watch out
for her, and save her a seat. he made her laugh, even on
those not-so-good days when she would trip exiting the bus,
or drop her briefcase. each morning they made the journey
together, and mark would take a cab back to his office.
although this routine was even more costly and exhausting
than the previous one, mark knew it was only a matter of
time before Susan would be able to ride the bus on her own.
he believed in her, he used to know before she'd lost her
sight, who wasn't afraid of any challenge and who would
never, ever quit.
finally, Susan decided that she was ready to try the trip on
her own. Monday morning arrived, and before she left, she
threw her arms around mark, her temporary bus riding
companion, her husband, and her best friend. her eyes filled
with tears of gratitude for his loyalty, his sincerity, his
patience, and his love. she said good-bye, and for the first
time they went their separate ways. Monday, Tuesday,
Wednesday, Thursday, each day on her own went perfectly, and
Susan had never felt better. she was doing it and she was
going to work all by herself.
on Friday morning, Susan took the bus to work as usual. as
she was paying for her fare to exit the bus, the driver said
"hey, I sure envy you" Susan wasn't sure if the driver was
speaking to her or not. after all, who on earth would ever
envy a blind woman who had struggled just to find the
courage to live for the past year?.
curiously, she asked him "why do you say that you envy me?"
the driver responded "it must feel so good to be taken care
of and protected like you are". Susan had no idea what the
driver was talking about, she asked him again "what do you
mean?".
the driver answered, "you know, every morning for the past
week, a fine looking gentleman in a military uniform has
been standing across the corner watching you when you get
off the bus. he makes sure you cross the street safely and
he watches you until you enter your office building. then he
blows you a kiss, gives you a little salute, and walks away.
you are one lucky lady".
tears of happiness poured down Susan's cheeks. for although
she couldn't physically see him, she had always felt mark\'s
presence. she was fortunate, so fortunate, for he had given
her a gift more powerful than sight, a gift she didn't need
to see to believe, the gift of love that can bring light
where there had been darkness. you don't love a woman
because she is beautiful, but she is beautiful because you
love her.
god watches over us in just the same way. we may not know
his presence, and we may not be able to see his blessed
face, but he is there nonetheless... he is there no doubt,
we must be so thankful and grateful for him for he is always
there for us.
be blessed in this thought: 'god loves you even when you are
not looking'.
'give and it will be given to you' |
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