My Twilight Zone Moment

Question: What is wrong with this picture?

Answer: It was taken on this First Day of Spring. Ack. Not one hopeful sign of Springtime anywhere out there. 

To live in snow country, you must be brave, rugged, patient and able to encourage yourself in the Lord like King David did. :)

And that's all I'll say about that.

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So! On Monday, Tom and I arrived at the medical complex for one of his back injections. This always means a 3-hour wait for me which I don't mind during lovely weather when I can relax outside in the car with coffee, snacks, books and opened, breezy windows and happy blue skies. Those are practically like days at the beach for me.

But these wintertime injections are never what you'd call beach-like. 

This medical complex is large and lovely, but oh! The waiting areas in the halls and front garden room portion... They are dark, hard to read in, for they have only recessed canned lights dotting the ceiling like mini stars. People walk around these areas all squinty-eyed, searching for room numbers. 

And you'd think the garden area with the huge window walls and plants would be bright, but noooo. Though they do have amazing you'll-fall-asleep-if-you're-not-careful black chairs, the windows face north, the floors are deep brown and the ceilings also have those mini star-like lights. 

One word describes this place: dark.

Anyway, I kissed Tom good-bye at his doctor's office then stepped down the shadowy hall to the mini bistro where I bought a decaf, then over to the vending machine for honey-roasted peanuts. Then I sat my purse and heavy book bag (with 4 terrific books) and coffee down upon a table, removed my coat, took a sip of probably the best decaf I've had in months and then realized with horror that I'd forgotten to bring my reading glasses.

And that's when I had my Twilight Zone Moment.

Remember that original TZ episode where the Earth is destroyed and only one man survived? And yet while walking in the midst of the crumbled-down city library he realizes one amazing thing: all those thousands of books belong to him and now, finally, he has all the time in the world to just read every incredible book ever written. 

Now, instead of facing a catastrophe, he's feeling gleefully blessed.

But as he reaches down for the first book, his glasses slip, fall, and shatter on some rocks. And he cannot read without them.

Heh. That scene suddenly appeared to me while I sat there at the table with four books, three hours, two dark rooms and no reading glasses.

But ol' Debra tried to keep her sense of humor. I finished my coffee while thinking happy thoughts then packed up everything, walked down the hall out to the large garden room and sank into the comfy chair nearest a huge window. I whipped out The Prize Winner Defiance, Ohio (my book with the largest print), aimed the pages toward the window 8 feet away (attempting to capture hopeful bits of a glare) and for the next two-and-a-half hours, squinted through just three pages at a time before pausing lest my eyes become strained. Over and over.

Oh, and fondly recalled how, until age 42, I'd had perfect vision.

Oh well! I survived. And even better-- I felt so blessed while, during my pauses, I'd watch people holding the glass doors opened for each other, running to do that in some cases, even though big square buttons open the doors automatically. Sometimes folks in wheelchairs (and persons behind them to push) paused before the doors (inside), waiting for their driver to bring the car through the snowflakes, and people walking in would hold the door and ask, "Are you leaving?", perfectly willing to stand there holding the door for as long as it took.

I do love Buffalo folks. And I do love a God who blesses us and gives us a sense of humor if we'll only stay open to receiving what He sets down right in front of us. And always remaining very, very grateful.


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Psalm 28:7 
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. 
My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.

Philippians 4:6 
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.


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Oh! After we arrived home Monday from the always-scary-but-more-so-in-the-snow NYS Thruway, Tom and I finally watched The Odd Life of Timothy Green. Oh. My. Goodness. Absolutely loved that movie and cried through the entire thing. Highly recommended and it's squeaky clean--yay!

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