Recently, I went with a friend to see the ‘Masterworks from the Beaverbrook Art Gallery ‘exhibit at the Judith & Norman Alix Art Gallery in Sarnia.
From the person at the reception desk, the volunteer in the first exhibit room to the other volunteers helping folks along the way, we were truly welcomed.
Given that these works of art are extremely valuable, besides volunteers, each exhibit area also included a paid security guard.
Now ‘picture this’: while a tour group, having been regaled about all the history and qualities of the paintings, moved on to another gallery, the security guard left his post and came towards me and my friend. Had we stepped over the ‘line’? Were our purses too large? No. It wasn’t anything we had done; it was all about what he wanted to do.
The guard told us that he had witnessed so many tours going through that he had absorbed much of what had been said. He then took us through one picture after the other, intriguing us with their ‘stories’. His obvious delight in sharing his new found knowledge was infectious. I simply found myself caught up in his enthusiasm. The guard had morphed into our own private guide!
Somehow, I don’t think that this Security Guard fellow had any previous appreciation for art. But he does now. He could have spent his shifts with the bored and vacant expressions of the other guards. Instead he expanded his awareness, increased his knowledge and then took great pleasure in sharing this with others.
This small story speaks to me of how being open and responsive to what life presents to each one of us is the key to our own personal growth and to how we can be ‘gift’ to others.
As stated by Dag Hammarskjold, “Each morning we must hold out the chalice of our being to receive, to carry, and to give back.”
Ann Steadman,
CSJ Associate