Evelyn Dove Coleman: Gifts Everywhere

As I looked around my home, I was amazed at the number of items which came to me as gifts. My family and friends have showered me through the years with the things they know I enjoy. And I am grateful. But some of my gifts came from complete strangers. One example is a winter scarf that I love to wear.  One day in the V.A. Hospital elevator, I admired a scarf a stranger was wearing over her coat. As the elevator door opened on her floor, she swooped it off and gave it to me. Then she rushed off to her appointment. I had to yell my surprised thanks through the closing doors.

Her generosity so surprised me because we had just met on the elevator. I wouldn't recognize her today because we didn't get to really spend any time with each other or even exchange names.  But on days when I wear her scarf, I hope that we'll pass in the hallway and she will make herself known.  If that never happens, I still wish her well every day where ever she is.

Maybe that scarf is karma.  When I was in law school at UNC, a student in the class behind me was in the cold weather without a coat. It hurt me to see her in the cold without a coat.  I had another coat in my car, so I gave her my coat of many colors that I had worn that day. It cheered me to see how she wore that coat like she adored it. During the break between classes, I went to the car to get my plain old black coat and wore it with sheer contentment. 

I hope that each of us can have experiences that create memories to bring us cheer when life seems a little dreary. Long, long time ago, Kinston Attorney Jimbo Perry reminded me of the scripture that says "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but God delivers us from them all." Gifts that people give to us and that we give to others swirl around us in a positive haze to lift us when we need it.

    Evelyn Dove Coleman established PathChoice Ministry in 1992. Send prayer requests to http://www.pathchoicepastoralcounseling.weebly.com or EvDove03@yahoo.com.