A Hug Was Enough

A hug was enough.

From a complete stranger.
                    In an unfamiliar city.
                         In an all too familiar hospital cafeteria. 

                I was in the hospital very late on a Friday night after having driven four hours…after the phone call:  “He is not expected to live, you need to come to the hospital right away.”   As I looked into the eyes of the hospital cafeteria cashier and saw her kindness, tears flooded my face and the sadness overtook me. 

                So many emotions:  Will my 88 year old father live through the night?....Will my siblings get here in time? ….But mostly I was remembering the 4 ½ years that I practically lived at the hospital caring for my late husband, as he fought his battle with cancer.  4 ½ years & 30 hospitalizations were too many to forget easily.

                In that moment of the rawest of emotions, it was if God Himself wrapped His arms around me.  The cashier saw the tears and understood.                       No questions asked.                                No explanation offered.

                She simply said, “Do you need a hug?”  And so, in that moment God provided comfort.    I will never see that woman again, never know her story, never know her name.

                I realized something very important from that hug:  We weren’t strangers at all.  In the midst of entering into the raw emotions of another person we are connected with the scarlet thread of God’s mercy.  My challenge now is to also be bold enough to enter into the raw moments of the lives of other people that I lock eyes with daily. 

Psalm 46:1God is our refuge and strength, a very PRESENT help in trouble.