A few months back, I was Leah’s transportation to classes she was taking each week in Omaha. The drive would take about 30 minutes each way. Oh how I enjoyed our designated car time.
This was a confined space where just the two of us could catch up on the latest guests that Ellen had on her show or who she was voting for on American Idol. I would play her some new songs that had been released that week – there was always time reserved for jamming out to some tunes.
Never missing an opportunity to celebrate, Leah would convince me to stop for a chocolate chip cookie almost every week. I mean, we hadn’t seen each other in a few days! Bring on the treats.
One chillier day in late November, the drive was chugging along as normal with a soundtrack of Celine Dion per Leah’s request. As we approached a stop light, I noticed a man with a cardboard sign very close to the side of the road. I didn’t want Leah to feel uncomfortable, so without much thought, I nudged the car forward just enough so the man was out of sight. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Not for Leah.
Without skipping a beat, she looked over at me curiously and asked, “I wonder and I kind of thinking is it a normal thing or is it okay for me to feel a little sad for that man?” With the most sincere intentions, my girl was calling me out in a big way.
She continued, “I just thinking about him when I see him and I just thinking he is thirsty and hungry too.”
I nodded and smiled and shook my head in disbelief at Leah’s ability to transform how I see others. “Yes, Leah, it is a normal and good thing to see him and to feel for him. Maybe we can start carrying water bottles in my car to give to people who we see during our drive. How does that sound?”
She nodded in approval and we carried on, though she had no idea how much she had just impacted me.
The best part of it all? His sign? It read in big, bold words, “NEED WEED”.
Leah sees people as people first. Her lens cuts through judgment immediately. If she was driving the car, she wouldn’t have nudged past that man, hoping to push him out of sight to protect me from being uncomfortable. She would’ve reached in her backseat and grabbed him a water bottle. She would’ve acknowledged his existence, looked him in the eye, and seen him. And that could’ve been exactly what he didn’t know he needed. Also, I’d bet he was thirsty:).
Here’s to turning our minds Upside Down.
