4 Minutes apart

I scale the stairs up to the home of 97 yr. old De.  She is going blind and is very hard of hearing.  Communication is difficult with De.  Visitors write on a white board so she can see their response to her conversation. She does not hear much when you speak.  Her ability to read lips slips away with her failing eyesight.  None of that stops her from telling the stories of her life.

De lights up when she sees me, a connection from the outside, a welcome change from a normal day of waking, eating, napping, and relying on her caregiver, Maria.  Maria takes care of her ‘round the clock.  In spite of this working arrangement, De needs a friend & Maria needs a break.  De is very fearful of the days ahead.  I pray with Maria before I leave, asking God to reveal his truth and to bring his light into this home.  Maria’s response, “If your volunteers are like this, I want you to know that this is exactly what we need, kindness and positivity in our lives.  Please find us a volunteer, even though I do not think anyone in their right mind would sign up for this.”  

I leave this home visit, realizing that Maria is right.  This request is more than what a typical volunteer can give.  I process all of this on a 4 minute walk to meet a prospective volunteer who found us online.  

Joan welcomes me into her home with the genuine love of Christ.  She moved here during the pandemic to be closer to her daughter and grandchildren.  Her elderly parents recently passed into eternal glory.  She was their caregiver.  Joan is retired from health care and is Hospice trained.  Her desire is to become a volunteer and long term friend to someone who may need the love of Jesus in their lives along with her trained skills.  We visit and I tell her about De.  Joan lights up.  We pray together over the possibility of her volunteer friendship with De & Maria. Joan feels in her heart that this will be a perfect fit, a calling from God.