Two Cups of Tea at Hope’s Cafe
Once when I was working for Hospice of Chattanooga, I had a first appointment with a new client. My car’s GPS malfunctioned, sending me miles around my destination when I had been very nearly there.
This week my brain mimicked my car’s GPS that scrambled day seeking my client’s home. I had nearly begged the receptionist at the doctor’s office for what was a time-sensitive appointment, one critical for medical clearance needed for an upcoming surgery. On the way to the appointment, I realized I was going to be nearly an hour early. I made a fateful decision to do a quick trip through Costco instead of waiting till after the doctor appointment as I had planned.
All was fine until I came out of Costco and mistakenly went straight where I should have turned to get back on the interstate. Suddenly I was in totally unfamiliar territory, with very little time till I was due at the doctor’s. There was no means to call because I had forgotten my phone when I left that morning. Frantic, I totally forgot that the doctor’s address was stored in my GPS from a previous trip.
I drove for miles before I recognized the road where the office is located, calculating and recalculating what direction to take. By then I was so very late that I had to be rescheduled.
Recalculation by definition is calculating something again either to correct errors or to consider additional information. In the course of living, we can encounter those “forks in the road” where we recalculate our direction. I am in one of those spaces now as I approach the fifth anniversary of this blog (May 1). Conceived during the pandemic to do something constructive in a time when any routines we had were upended, and to keep myself writing regularly, I hoped a byproduct would be to offer something uplifting in a time of uncertainty.
Though the pandemic is behind us, uncertain times are even more prevalent. The need to find what provides a counterbalance is even more necessary. But my “recalculations” include adding into the mix that the results of this surgery may well limit my ability to provide a weekly blog.
If a new blog doesn’t appear, or I re-publish a previous one, keep in mind that I am “recalculating,” seeking direction going forward while I focus on my recovery.
The invitation is open to share two cups of tea anytime at Hope’s Café or anywhere you share companionship and conversation.
May we bearers of hope, the “wait staff” at Hope’s Café, for each other and all those we encounter. Shalom, Kate
Hope's Cafe 