While out for breakfast recently, the wait for a table was extremely long. Shifting from one foot to the other, we all tried to avoid invading one another’s space, but the diners who had the misfortune to be seated nearby had the line spilling over by their tables.

I was trying to be inconspicuous and not pay attention to diners’ conversations, when it occurred to me that there was an elderly man next to me. At first I thought he had finished his breakfast and was trying to move past me to leave the restaurant. I smiled at him and stepped aside to give him enough room to maneuver with his cane when I realize that he, too, was a fellow patron waiting his turn. We exchanged a few pleasantries, and that’s how our conversation began. The poor fellow suffered from shingles over two years ago and since then, was left with the debilitating pain of neuropathy. He has tried every treatment the world over to find relief but alas, none could be found. He told me that if it wasn’t for the love of his family, he certainly would have taken his own life by now.

He was quick to tell me that he has been married 56 years and that while he and his wife have not always agreed on things, they have never fought. They have always been respectful of one another.

I learned that he started his first company when he was 25 years old and is still running 50 companies scattered all over the world. He expressed how blessed he felt, and that because of his need to ‘give back’ he launched a charitable foundation in 2007 whose mission it is to provide clean, safe water throughout the continent of Africa. In those parts, clean water is hard to come by, requiring women to walk up to eight miles each day to obtain enough water for that day’s needs. Nearly one in five deaths under the age of 5 are caused by water-related diseases and more than 50% of all hospital beds are occupied with people who have water-borne illnesses from contaminated water.

I was engrossed in our exchange when my name was called for the next available table. I felt torn from a conversation that had been truly inspiring. The quote that popped into my mind at that moment was, “we often entertain angels unaware.” I felt as though I had been in the presence of an angel. This man was in constant pain and yet what he focused on is the good that he can still do for others.

It left me wondering how often I brush elbows with other ‘angels’ without ever knowing it and how important it is to treat everyone with reverence. There is a part of each of us that is angelic and it is a blessing and an inspiration to uncover this in one another.

~Zanne

InSearchOfAuthenticity.com

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