the open-handed random act of kindness

Tonight I chatted to someone at Mass.  Not a person really involved in my personal life, but someone who is aware of the sort of "main" things in my life, as one often is with certain people you regularly go to Mass with.  God has the most incredible timing when putting someone in front of you and inspiring them to say something highly relevant or helpful or kind at exactly the most perfect moment. 

Such was this conversation tonight. 

Wrestling with a number of things in my head at once, and a lot of time to wrestle with them now that I am officially on leave, I arrived at Mass with a very mixed head and mixed heart.  

I had prepared my reading for the evening  well by not only going over it several times, but by going to a Catholic site to have the meaning of it explained (love Google) because I believe that the infliction in your voice is affected by what you perceive the reading to mean.  Sometimes I feel myself emphasising certain words when I read, only to find out when the Priest talks about the first reading in his Homily, that I have failed dismally.  So I find this research helpful.  So I was feeling centred in my mind for this, but at the same time I had a lot of stuff spinning in it and I was trying to find the calm space.  In all this time I had a chat to a fellow church-goer. 

And in that 10 minute conversation he took such an interest in Jess' recovery, gave advice on the fact that we do not know where to have the staples removed in CT and just chatted in general about stuff I told him, that I was feeling completely in my calm space when the Mass bell was rung.  

And then straight after that our Priest spoke about closed fisted and open handed people.  And trying to be the latter.  And be it consistently.  It touched me for a variety of reasons, but it made me think on the way home of one fellow parishioner who had spoken to me for 10 minutes with an "open hand".  

Thank you ...... your random act of kindness came at the perfect time. 
Tomorrow I will try and pay it forward

"Nothing can make our lives or the lives of other people more beautiful than perpetual kindness" - Tolstoy 

Till soon 
c'est la vie 
xxx