While waiting to board a bus recently, I had an experience that moved my heart. There were two young men, in front of me in the line, who had a number of large suitcases. When one of the men handed his bus ticket to the woman bus driver, she inquired as to whether or not he had someone weigh his luggage. She indicated that since some of his bags were obviously oversize, he would need to pay a service charge. The friend, who accompanied the passenger in the line-up, told the bus driver that his buddie was on the way to a rehabilitation centre in Northern Ontario. It was then that mercy made an unexpected appearance. The woman bus driver’s facial expression softened. Filled with compassion, she declared, “Congratulations! Good for you! I wish you all the best! Don’t worry about paying for your bags.” This powerful encounter that I witnessed was clearly of God. There was such a sense of ‘rightness’ in her action. Her response, which moved so quickly towards mercy for this young man, made me wonder if someone close to her had suffered with an addiction. When it was my turn to give her my bus ticket, I felt moved to comment to her about the kindness of her heart. With a big smile, she thanked me.
Kathy O’Keefe CSJ