Just a simple gesture
Just a simple gesture
Was rather surprised to receive a card mailed to my home yesterday. I was wondering who's sending some invites to me or something like that. As I opened the envelope, it was a "Thank-you" card, and all the more it makes me puzzle who's thanking me, and for what???
It was very heart-warming as I read the words written by a colleague who has recently lost her grandmother. Very short and simple statement, "Thank you for your presence and support during my bereavement. It meant a lot to me!"
Honestly, it didn't occur to me that the visit to her grandmother's wake meant so much to her. To me, it was just a simple gesture of love shown to a colleague. In fact, both pal and myself felt so embarassed to have reached her place so late at night, kind of like around 10.30pm or so??? and then we left her place like in less than 1/2 hour coz we didn't want to hold her up to rest after a tiring day.
Well, of course there's reason why we were there so late, and pal would have her fair share of "complains and woes" about what a bad navigator I was as I hitched a ride in her car, giving her directions to get to the place. Haha, pal concluded that if she were to go for a cross-country car competition or something of that sort, she wouldn't want me as her navigator =) But hey, let me justify myself k ... the words in the road directory were so small, and the place we were going was like right smack in the middle of all the private residential estate and it's just a small tiny little lane in the directory, and hey! it's at night lah, it doesn't take a driver to agree that vision at night are usually worse compared to vision in the day. So ... =)
OK, so much for the "sidetrack" ... I guess from this incident/card, God reminded me that simple gestures sometimes mean a lot to people who are receiving it. To me, it's just a bit of time off from the rountines of my life, and a breather from all my readings and assignments; but to my colleague, it meant I care enough to give my time to pay her a visit ... to me, it's just my presence at her place; but to my colleague, it meant support as a fellow sis-in-Christ and a testimony of Christian love to some of her relatives who are not believers yet ... to me, I struggle with what to say to those going through bereavement so I rather keep quiet; but to my colleague, my silence doesn't matter as much as my physical presence ...
Just a simple act - but it meant so much to someone. I'm just WOW-ed by the implications behind my actions.
I think most of the time, we don't usually think that what we do will have an impact on another person in that much of an extent, right? So sometimes, out of "convenience" we act in kindness, but it probably meant so much more to the recipient than we can ever imagine.
A smile is probably just an exercise of our muscles, but it may be what someone else needs to be uplifted in his/her spirit ... A word of "hello, how are you" may be words that are seemingly "flippant" or normal or casual, but to another person, it may mean, "Oh, thanks for showing the very basic concern to me" ... an extension of invite to a coffee time or lunch might be something that is "convenient", but to someone, it may mean "thanks for considering me a part of your social circle" ...
Simple gestures - don't take much efforts and time, but are we willing to be conscious in our speech and actions that they build up and encourage another person? Galatians 6:9-10 reminds us "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers."
Was rather surprised to receive a card mailed to my home yesterday. I was wondering who's sending some invites to me or something like that. As I opened the envelope, it was a "Thank-you" card, and all the more it makes me puzzle who's thanking me, and for what???
It was very heart-warming as I read the words written by a colleague who has recently lost her grandmother. Very short and simple statement, "Thank you for your presence and support during my bereavement. It meant a lot to me!"
Honestly, it didn't occur to me that the visit to her grandmother's wake meant so much to her. To me, it was just a simple gesture of love shown to a colleague. In fact, both pal and myself felt so embarassed to have reached her place so late at night, kind of like around 10.30pm or so??? and then we left her place like in less than 1/2 hour coz we didn't want to hold her up to rest after a tiring day.
Well, of course there's reason why we were there so late, and pal would have her fair share of "complains and woes" about what a bad navigator I was as I hitched a ride in her car, giving her directions to get to the place. Haha, pal concluded that if she were to go for a cross-country car competition or something of that sort, she wouldn't want me as her navigator =) But hey, let me justify myself k ... the words in the road directory were so small, and the place we were going was like right smack in the middle of all the private residential estate and it's just a small tiny little lane in the directory, and hey! it's at night lah, it doesn't take a driver to agree that vision at night are usually worse compared to vision in the day. So ... =)
OK, so much for the "sidetrack" ... I guess from this incident/card, God reminded me that simple gestures sometimes mean a lot to people who are receiving it. To me, it's just a bit of time off from the rountines of my life, and a breather from all my readings and assignments; but to my colleague, it meant I care enough to give my time to pay her a visit ... to me, it's just my presence at her place; but to my colleague, it meant support as a fellow sis-in-Christ and a testimony of Christian love to some of her relatives who are not believers yet ... to me, I struggle with what to say to those going through bereavement so I rather keep quiet; but to my colleague, my silence doesn't matter as much as my physical presence ...
Just a simple act - but it meant so much to someone. I'm just WOW-ed by the implications behind my actions.
I think most of the time, we don't usually think that what we do will have an impact on another person in that much of an extent, right? So sometimes, out of "convenience" we act in kindness, but it probably meant so much more to the recipient than we can ever imagine.
A smile is probably just an exercise of our muscles, but it may be what someone else needs to be uplifted in his/her spirit ... A word of "hello, how are you" may be words that are seemingly "flippant" or normal or casual, but to another person, it may mean, "Oh, thanks for showing the very basic concern to me" ... an extension of invite to a coffee time or lunch might be something that is "convenient", but to someone, it may mean "thanks for considering me a part of your social circle" ...
Simple gestures - don't take much efforts and time, but are we willing to be conscious in our speech and actions that they build up and encourage another person? Galatians 6:9-10 reminds us "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers."
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