We need to learn how to live the true meaning of life.
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, us ing her hands to feel the location of the seats, walked down the aisle, and found the seat he had 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 S us an, 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, fr us tration, and self-pity. Once a fiercely independent woman, S us an 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 S us an ' s once optimistic spirit. J us t getting through each day was an exercise in fr us tration and exha us tion. And all she had to cling to was her h us band Mark.
Mark was an Air Forces officer and he loved S us an 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, S us an felt ready to return to her job, but how would she get there? She us ed to take the b us , 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 S us an 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 was not working, it was hectic and costly.
'S us an is going to have to start taking the b us again ' he admitted to himself, but j us t 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.
J us t as Mark predicted, S us an was horrified at the idea of taking the b us again. "I am blind!" she responded bitterly "How am I supposed to know where I am 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 S us an that each morning and evening he would ride the b us 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 in his military uniform accompanied S us an 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 b us 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 b us , 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 exha us ting than the previo us one, Mark knew it was only a matter of time before S us an would be able to ride the b us on her own. He believed in her, he us ed to know before she had lost her sight, who was not afraid of any challenge and who would never ever quit.
Finally, S us an 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 b us riding companion, her h us band, 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 S us an had never felt better. She was doing it and she was going to work all by herself
On Friday morning, S us an took the b us to work as us ual. As she was paying for her fare to exit the b us , the driver said "Hey, I sure envy you" S us an was not sure if the driver was speaking to her or not. After all, who on earth would ever envy a blind woman who had struggled j us t to find the courage to live for the past year?
Curio us ly, she asked him "Why do you say that you envy me?" the driver responded "It m us t feel so good to be taken care of and protected like you are". S us an 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 b us . He makes sure you cross the street safely and watches you until you enter your office building. Then he blows you a kiss, gives you a little salute, and walks away. You are really one lucky lady".
Tears of happiness poured down S us an ' s cheeks. For although she could not physically see him, she could see the light he had created despite her darkness, 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 did not need to see to believe, the gift of love that can bring light where there had been darkness. You don ' t love a woman beca us e she is beautiful, but she is beautiful beca us e you love her. To the world you are j us t a person, but to a person you might be the world, be the world for somebody else.
God is always standing and watching over us in j us t 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, He never abandons us , He watches our activities very closely. He stands beside us at difficult times, and encourages us to stand up once again on our feet to face the new challenges lying ahead of us . He wants us to work very hard with maximum efforts, and in return, He will certainly show us the right path towards success. We must be trustful, thankful, and so grateful 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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