Late Night Visitor

Hospitality is a gift of the Holy Spirit.  It is not my Spiritual gift, but I wouldn’t shut the door on a visitor.  In fact, I have been known to deep clean and make ready the space visitors will inhabit whether it is for a few hours or a couple of days.  The key for me is to know ahead of time of the visitor.  I like to be prepared.

One night while we were sleeping, somebody started ringing the doorbell and followed up with persistent pounding on the front door.  Bolting up in bed, my husband and I looked at each other wondering who could be stopping by at this time of night.  The caller kept ringing the bell and pounding on the door.  Before going to the door, we checked our security camera to see who was there.

A short person was standing with their back to the camera and we could not see their face.  We did notice a travel suitcase, on wheels, parked next to them and it measured about half their height.

The persistent little person would not just go away, so my husband cautiously approached and answered the door.  My husband was stunned to see this person was faceless, but able to tell him that he was looking for me.  As protector, my husband inquired who they were.  The little person proceeded to pull out a badge with their identification and my husband put aside his protectiveness and inquisitiveness and called out, “Honey, it’s for you!”

I approached the door cautiously.  I sized up the faceless little person and the size of their luggage.  I kept thinking about not expecting company and that I did not deep clean.  I have nothing ready for a visitor, and why are they here in the middle of the night?

The little person showed me their credentials, and I let out a sigh.

I wasn’t prepared for grief to show up in my life.

Psalm 31:9 (NIV)

⁹ Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress;
    my eyes grow weak with sorrow,
    my soul and body with grief.

Breaking Up With Writer’s Block

Dear Writer’s Block:

It’s not you, it’s me. I cannot keep seeing you every day. You bring me down and you keep me idle as if my hands were tied and my thoughts are like mush. I packed your belongings that you left at my place and put them out in the yard for you to pick up. I cannot extend hospitality to you any more. If I forgot to pack something of yours, let me know via email and I will gladly get it to you.

At the beginning of our relationship I heard bad stuff about you from others, but I acted out of pride thinking I could change you. When we first met, you did not have a big impact on me, but there is something mesmerizing about you that made me forget all my hopes and dreams of being a writer. The only way to be a good writer is to write – daily. But you kept demanding my attention and I put my personal goals and desires on the back burner and for what?

I desire a more energetic relationship with others. I want to play the field…with the alphabet. I have watched them from a distance how they can be rearranged into fun words and sentences. They have more meaning than you do and for that I desire to be a part of their lifestyle rather than the boring life you and I have been living for the past few months.

I do not want our paths to cross ever again.

Sincerely,

Kristine