Nope, it wasn't the Governor.
I was "werkin' at the Merc" today and had just finished fixing my lunch when I noticed my co-worker talking to a woman at the counter I had never seen before. She was using hand gestures and speaking very quietly. I thought at first maybe she was deaf, but as I got closer, I realized she could definately hear but I also noticed the obvious discomfort of my 21-year-old co-worker at trying to communicate with her.
I walked to the counter with my lunch and sat next to where she was standing. My co-worker asked me something about Hidden Springs in order to answer a question she had tried to ask him. I looked at her and answered her question. Then, choosing her words very carefully (she reminded me much of myself after chemo, when I couldn't remember the simplest words) and told me that she had had a stroke. She looked to be in her early 30s and so I asked her how long ago it had been and we proceeded to talk about it.
I laughed with her and told her how I had a hard time (still) trying to remember the simplest words. She was such a sweet girl and it was obvious that she was gratful to be talking to someone who didn't speak to her as if she was stupid or deaf (by speaking slowly to her as my co-worker had done.)
So we had a normal conversation and I told her about the barn down the road and told her how to get there. She told me how some of her therapy was to drive and so she had ended up in HS. She actually lives near Micron so we talked some too about the recent fire. After visiting for 10 minutes or so, she decided it would be a good walk to go toward the barn, so off she went.
It was amazing how I felt after she left. I hope she ends up here again. It was such a pleasure to meet and visit with her - it made my day.
4 comments:
Wow, it was meant to be that you would be there at that time. Think about how her day would have gone if she hadn't met and talked to you. That's a great story sis, and you're a good egg for sharing your experiences with her.
I will bet you made her day, too! What a truly wonderful person to meet *and better than the guv'ner any old day. :)
She will remember you and your easy conversation. It worked out nicely that you were having your lunch and could sit next to her and visit.
How sad that at her age she'd had a stroke. Wow. that's hard !
Isn't it amazing when we meet people we connect with, how what and who is really important is put into persepective? If you have a good heart, and I know you do, sharing it with one person can impact them in ways we could never imagine!
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