The People Along the Way

This week I've been reminded that it's not about the journey.

It's about the people we meet along the way.

I went to the travel clinic on Tuesday, to pick up some scrips and get some shots. There was next to no wait before I was chatting with the doctor. We chatted about immunities, the weather, allergies, and odd diseases. We had a bit of a debate about whether or not I really did have hepatitis when I was thirteen (I found the two weeks of agonizing pain and extreme lethargy coupled with the bright yellow eyeballs and skin to be rather convincing). Then we moved on to topics like cancer and death. He told me a story about a friend of his, and we talked about how we almost never know the 'Why' behind our pains. We just have to get through them -- and then walk alongside others with a truly understanding empathy. We agreed that it's all in God's hands. Then he looked at me and told me that most of the people he sees in that clinic are traveling for business or pleasure. "Thank you for doing this mission," he said, before walking back out of my life.

Then the nurse entered, with forms to sign and shots to administer. I sat on the table trying to stay calm -- flash backs of all those other inoculations were flying through my mind. Yellow fever, polio, that tb shot in Paris -- still have the scar from it. Oh, and that one in the back... Then I thought of the time when Wesley was two and we brought him out to visit my parents in Cote D'Ivoire. He got a bunch of shots. After, the nurse asked if he wanted a sticker. He started screaming! For a good year after that, he'd cry whenever anyone offered him a sticker... I felt like telling this nurse that I'd changed my mind. I didn't want a sticker after all.

She got the shots ready and began heading to my left arm. I told her everything had to go in the right because I'd had lymph nodes removed. She nodded, and told me she was sorry. Then we started talking. It turns out she was a breast cancer survivor (just like me). Almost five years (just like me). She'd had reconstruction when she was 38 (just like me). But she was a step ahead of me on the journey. I asked her questions, she asked me questions. We kept talking long after the shots were administered; comparing notes, giving and getting support. "I'm so glad I met you today," she said as she finally left the room.

That wasn't the travel clinic I had intended to go to. It was simply the travel clinic that had an open appointment slot. That wasn't the only doctor at the clinic, and she wasn't the only nurse working that day. But that was the nurse God had prearranged for me to meet.

We may never hear the back story behind most of the events and 'coincidences' in our lives. We won't know what had to happen to allow two strangers to bump into each other for such a short period of time. We just have to remember to always keep our eyes and ears open.

Enjoy the journey, and take time to get to know some of your fellow travelers.

Oh, by the way, the doctor ordered a blood draw to check, and I ended up winning the argument about having Hepatitis. That's one shot I'll never need to have.