And so I began. I told him about the confusion in my life. I told him about financial difficulties, personal relationships and the feeling that life was just slipping away. I told him that I felt as if I was lost and that I had looked everywhere for answers but found none. I told him that I had even resorted to pleading with God for answers, but so far He refused to answer me as well. I even admitted to him my greatest fear, the fear of failure, in all it's hideous forms. Yes, I know it's unmanly to admit you are afraid of anything. After all we all are indestructible aren't we? For some reason though, I could talk to this man and talk I did. I poured out my whole life story to a man who I had never seen before. Foolish I suppose, but it felt good to get it out and to have someone, anyone, listen for a change.
When I had finished, I apologized for making a fool out of myself. Then it was his turn. It seems that he had some friends that were supposed to meet him in a certain location. The route, however, was a long one and his friends apparently got lost. He had been traveling the route looking for them and he was worried
�It seems like a simple thing�he said, a hint of frustration in his voice,� all you have to do is read the signs and follow the route but time and time again they get lost�. �I try to prepare them, but if you don't bring a map you get lost. If you don't read the signs you end up somewhere you didn't want to go. If you go too slow, you never get there. If you go too fast, you could wind up dead. You have to stay focused and pay attention to what's going on during the trip otherwise, you can cause many of your own problems. But they are like little children, they ignore me, they take me for granted they get lost and end up scattered all over. Nearly always it is their own fault, but you can bet if something happens to them, they are sure to blame me�.
He looked a little sad and in an effort to comfort him a little, I asked him if this was the way he was treated, why didn't he get himself a new batch of friends. It seemed foolish to me for him to continue to suffer abuse such as he described. But he smiled a little smile and told me that in spite of everything, they were his friends and that he cared about them and always would and that he would search until he found them all, one by one. Looking down as I swirled the remnant of my cup of coffee, I told him I thought that his friends were lucky.
By this time, the swallow of coffee I had in my cup had grown quite cold. After gulping the last of it, I offered him a cup as I ordered a new one of my own. He declined saying that he had to go and that he was glad we had both found what we were looking for. Assuming he had seen a friend of his outside, I glanced into the parking lot but could see no one. So I wished him well and waved to him as he left the cafe.
I sat down again with a fresh cup and resumed my daydreaming. I wondered about the man I had met and who he was. Strange I could open up to someone like that and I never even got his name. Still I thought of him as a friend although I was still confused about his parting statement. He distinctly said �we had both found what we were looking for�. I wondered what he meant by that? Maybe he did see one of his friends in the parking lot, but what did that have to do with me?
About that time a bolt of lightning hit me, life too is a journey. The rules of the road he had pointed out applied to life as well. How many lives were wasted because they had nowhere to go or no idea how to get there. How many time do we lose ourselves by not paying attention. How many lives had ended in tragedy because someone failed to recognize or chose to ignore the signs. How much do we miss by speeding through life only to meet a lonely and premature death. How many have never fulfilled their destiny because they were too slow in pursuing it. How many times do we blame others for misfortune that through carelessness and inattention we bring upon ourselves? Suddenly it all seemed so simple.
They must have thought me a madman the way I bolted out of there. I shot up so fast that I up ended the table, spilling hot coffee everywhere. I ran through the double doors and into the parking lot hoping to catch him. I wanted to thank him and ask his name, but there was no one there. Regretfully, I said a silent thank you to my unknown friend and wished him well on his travels
Once more inside the cafe, I made amends to the staff and begged the forgiveness of the patrons who were unfortunate enough to be in the way of my coffee. I used some paper towels in the men's room to blot some of the coffee from my own jeans and decided to call it a night. It was raining now, but for some reason I didn't mind. Walking to my car I even had the courage to hold my head up. Once inside, I sat there for a few minutes thinking. I wish I could have gotten to know the man a little better. It seemed as if we could have become good friends. I thought about his travels and the rain and hoped he found his friends and that they had a safe journey. With the shrug and sigh that so many of us display when reality is forced once more upon us, I muttered, �He was right, we both found what we were looking for, I just wish I knew who he was�.
It was time to go now, back to reality, back to the world and it's troubles. But now things were a little different, now it was time to think about what had happened, time to start driving again, time to start using the rules of the road. This time I would read the signs and stay focused. This time, I understood. Turning the ignition, I fired up the engine and turned on the wipers. A pamphlet had been placed under my wiper, something that usually annoy's me to no end. This time though, I think it was the answer to yet another question of mine. I watched awe-struck for several minutes as it traveled back and forth with the wipers, reading the bold print on it's face over and over....Jesus saves....Jesus saves...Jesus saves...
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