A Free Gift from The King: Part 1

Once upon a time, in a beautiful kingdom, there was a young prince who was not particularly well-behaved. He was rude to the servants, brushed off his responsibilities, was always late and made fun of the disfigured. He didn't care too much about his title or his kingdom because he had older brothers and sisters who were all very responsible and who would inherit the kingdom. He would never have the glory or the riches that came with being a king. In fact he hardly ever bothered to speak to his father the King and he pretty much figured that his father didn't give a hoot about him or what he did.

Until one day, while he was relaxing under a tree, pondering what to do with all of his spare time he thought he heard his father calling for him. He ignored the call at first, annoyed that he should be bothered. Then after awhile he began to wonder what the old man wanted. It felt as though he hadn't seen his father in ages. With a sigh he got up and went to look for his father. He wasn't in the throne room. The Prince felt like giving up the search right then. After all, if it was so important, his father should just come and tell him so. But just then he met his older sister who said she could show him where to find their father. Why not? thought the Prince, I was bored anyway. He let his sister guide him out into the Royal Garden. She pointed him in the direction of their father who the young Prince could now see sitting on an ornate bench surrounded by vines with huge blossoming golden flowers. In the King's lap was a small mirrored box, reflecting rays of sun onto his father's aged face. The King turned then, and seeing his son in the garden he ran to his son, laughing and holding him in a warm embrace. The Prince was a bit stunned - he didn't remember his Father being so loving or so full of joy.

"Come son, sit beside me here in the garden, I want to speak to you," said the King as he motioned the Prince to sit on the bench to his right. "Son, let's not beat around the bush," said the King. I love you. I love you more than you could ever imagine and it has broken my heart not to have you near me. I want to give you the most valuable thing I have. I want to give you the keys to the Kingdom. I want you to rule by my side." The King handed the little mirrored box to the young Prince.

The Prince was absolutely stunned. He had come to the garden expecting to maybe just catch up with the old man, probably get scolded at worst. However, now his father wanted him, the least deserving of the family to inherit the Kingdom. This must be a joke, he thought. He caught his reflection in the top of the mirrored box and for the first time he really saw himself clearly and he was saddened by how he was living.

"Father, you've got to be kidding me. You must not have any idea of what I have done," said the Prince.

"Sure I do," said the King. You've lied and cheated, you've been selfish, prideful and rude, you've been lustful, crude, uncaring. You've been petty and you've held hate in your heart. You have hurt others and you have disrespected even me. I know you don't deserve what I'm giving you, but frankly, there's nothing you could have done to deserve a gift this awesome. I hate what you have done in the past, but I love you and I can forgive everything you've done. All you have to do is accept my gift to you. I promise you that I mean it son. I. love. you. Do you believe me?"

The Prince was amazed that this was happening to him, but his father was speaking with such sincerity and such overwhelming love that the Prince knew he was speaking the truth.
"Yes father, I believe you. I will accept the keys to the Kingdom. But father, please, I have not learned how to live like a good son and prince. If it pleases you, allow me to leave the kingdom and travel to the far, far away places where I can meet people and learn how to be a good servant so that I will return knowing how to be a good ruler. I want to tell everyone I meet along the way of the wonderful gift you have given me."

The King pondered this for a moment. "Son, that is a very honourable request. The keys to the Kingdom are yours and they are freely given to you. I will never seek to take them away from you. Hold them close to your heart and through them you and I will always be able to hear and speak to each other. However, when you venture into the far, far away lands you will encounter many dangers. If you lack vigilance you may lose the keys, or there may be people who would seek to take them from you. Remember too that the farther away you are from the Kingdom the heavier the keys become and you may become tired and stumble. Above all things, remember that the day will come when I will summon you back to the Kingdom. If you arrive at the gates without the keys you will be locked out forever, stuck wandering the far, far away lands. Please son, be careful. You belong here with me."

So the Prince set out to learn how to lead by serving others. Even though he traveled in joy and faith he was beset by some troubles in the far, far away lands. But that is a story for another time. . .

The End.

"Make my Day"

I feel that God has put it in my heart to write about this right now - I think this because I can’t seem to fall asleep, so I figured God wants me to put this to paper now. I’m thinking about how every day we have a free gift that we can give to other people. Well, maybe not free, because we may have to put our own wishes or feelings or problems aside in order to give it I suppose. But it’s free, as in you won’t have to go the store to search and pay for it, type of free. 

I didn't really have a picture for this post.
But she's cute - so she'll do.

Every day, we have the power to make someone’s day - or at least a part of their day. Seriously! I think we are totally under-valuing this power. Just think about it - you can affect someone else’s life for the better every. single. day. You can even do it numerous times a day. 

Sadly, I didn’t really figure this out until last summer when I had my revelation of sorts. But now that I have realized this power I feel I have a responsibility to give this gift and I enjoy the feeling I get in return from giving it. I also feel shame on the days when I could have chosen to give this gift but didn’t because I was in a bad mood, or was preoccupied by thoughts and worries or because I was being selfish or because I wasn’t feeling well. Why? Because it would have only taken me a pittance of time, of focus, of love and caring to do it. 

Now I’m not talking about being a saint, or a martyr or any of those overwhelming words. I just mean taking a small amount of time to touch someone’s day. Like asking how the cashier’s day is going and doing it with sincerity. Being brave enough to compliment a stranger when it strikes you. Smiling at people - just smiling because why the heck not? Pausing to give directions, and when it looks like they don’t get it, taking a few moments longer to write them down, and when they still seem unsure, taking a few moments longer to let them follow you in your vehicle as you lead them. How about tipping your waitress a bit more than usual, even if she didn’t do an extraordinary job. One special thing that has always made my day is when I’m in the drive-thru for an ice cap and when I pull up to the window to pay they give me my drink and tell me that the people ahead of me already paid for it with the message “have a good day” or “pay it forward”. All these small things that have the potential to make someone feel better about the confusing world we live in - even if it’s only for a few minutes. 

I am fortunate that I work in a field where I get to interact with people every day. I’m trying to realize that I have the privilege of making someone feel better, even if it’s not necessarily with medicine. How I enter the room, whether it’s an emergency or a simple transfer, can set the tone for the patient’s entire experience. If I can come in with positive energy, a reassuring smile, introduce myself and ask with sincerity how they are feeling today I believe I can really improve that patient’s situation. If I can try my best to create a rapport with my patient and really listen to them then they might leave me feeling refreshed - the same way I feel refreshed after having a really good conversation with someone. If I can use my small stature, little voice, bubbly-ness and a dose of humility to get a chuckle out of a patient then that should be the least I can do for them.

Then why is it so hard to do that sometimes? When I’m having a less-than-stellar day it can just seem like people are so annoying or mean or stupid or clueless! I don’t really want to look at them, much less try and make their day better. I just want to focus on me. I’m trying to remember that when I’m having one of these less-than-stellar days, I’m at risk for the less-than-stellar part of my nature to negatively impact my friendships, my family, my coworkers, my patients, etc. There are times, when I’m in one of those moods, all that it takes is another person just trying to better my day in a small way. Sometimes that’s enough to snap me out of it. I’m also learning that often it takes more.

I remember when I was about half-way through final practicum I came to my site for the beginning of my shift knowing that I was in a miserable mood. I had a really good site, and a really good preceptor and had been fortunate that up until that day I’d been a pleasant and easy-going student that was well-liked by the staff. But that evening, as I was alone doing the routine check of the ambulance I knew that I was grouchy, and that I could not afford to be grouchy when my paramedic future was riding on this practicum. So there, as I sat in the airway chair staring at a bag full of drugs for what felt like the gazillionth time I tried something I hadn’t done before. I prayed to God to take away my wretchedness and replace it with his grace. You might think this is silly, but for me I realized it as a miracle right away because just then, two staff members walked in and instead of shutting them out or being curt with them, God gave me a warm heart and sincerity in my speech and we were soon laughing over one of many outrageous stories you would only hear on an ambulance. If God can grant me that when I ask, then I need to be asking more often. 

The other thing I need to be doing more often is telling people when they have blessed me. I just think, if I knew when I was really making a difference in someone’s day I think I might be all the more motivated to try to be a blessing to others. I should tell the waitress that she made my day when she remembered my “usual” even though I hadn’t been there in months. I should tell the sales representative that I really appreciated that they went the extra mile to help me get that deal. I need to take the time to sincerely return the thanks that patients will sometimes give for my service in this industry, instead of just brushing it off as “no big deal”. You should know that when you take the time to comment on this blog it encourages me to keep writing. I want to tell my work partner that when he indulges me in one of our deeper conversations it is often the best conversation that I have all week. I want those people that think to invite me to their home for dinner, or to a volleyball game to know that I look forward to it every time and being part of the family means so much to me. I’m only just beginning to fathom the power we have to be a blessing to other people. I hope you see it too!

“If the world is cold, make it your business to build fires”

-Horace Traubel