The Answer, My Friend, is Blowing in the Wind

A couple of weeks ago at church (Southland Christian Church) our pastor, Jon, talked about his practice of writing things that are holding him up in life onto a balloon and then letting the balloon go.  I don’t know about you, but I have had some things that I have been struggling to let go of in the last year or so, so this idea appealed to me.  And my sweet friends Lindsey and Rachel (or at least I talked them into doing it with me).  

Today we went to the Arboretum to do the thing, but before hand Rachel decided to run approximately 100 miles (go Rachel!) so Lindsey and I walked in the absolutely perfect weather.  No more than 3 minutes into our walk, an older lady randomly singled us out mid-stride and started a conversation.  After standing still and talking for several minutes, we invited her to walk with us.  Things escalated quickly.

For two hours we listened to her talk about disappointments related to churches and small groups, disappointments about relationships with family members, disappointments about her career, disappointment about her lost youth, and her desire to feel connected to the world and to people.  If we are going to be honest, I am confident she literally could have talked about her disappointments forever.  Forever.  

As we got to the end of the trail, slightly exhausted from all of the listening, we invited her to do the balloon activity with us and prayed together.  She seemed like a sweet lady who just didn’t have a full grip on reality... we will never know on this side of heaven if listening to her, attempting to encourage her, or the therapeutic activity will even make a dent in her emotional or mental health, but it sure did give us a lot to think about.

A few months ago I, too, thought I had a good handle on an issue I was dealing with.  However, every time I met with a new life group (mostly strangers) I found myself breaking down in tears and realized that was indicative I probably didn’t have as good of a handle on things as I hoped.  I’m grateful that those strangers listened and invited me to coffee and lunch.  Because they did, I’m not crying about that issue anymore, and today I popped my balloon and let it go for good.  [It turns out if you leave balloons in a hot car all day, it loses the floating effect so you just have to pop it].  

I am sure that I will think about today for years to come and still not figure out the purpose of that meeting in full.  Preliminary thoughts though:

1. I am sincerely thankful that at 23-25, my cute friends and I were able to analyze what we need to let go of.  It seems like it would be a difficult habit to start at age 60.
2. I am thankful/proud that I have at least two sweet friends who were willing to listen patiently to a stranger who had a lot to say.
3. Everyone needs friends.  It’s easy to forget when you have them.  It’s hard to reconcile when you don’t.  

So tell your friends you love them, folks, and don’t be afraid to make new ones.