Beautiful People

I have had the rare opportunity to meet some beautiful people lately. They are not beautiful by the world's standards. Some would say they're raggedy, tattered, old. But this one person in particular is one of the most beautiful people I have ever met. We call him Amber's Angel. He came to her in Subway when she was going through a very difficult time. She felt betrayed, lonely, scared, overwhelmed, anxious, insecure. But he was there. With his deep-set, vibrant blue eyes, his tattered cowboy hat, his wrinkled, weathered skin and his less-than-perfect toothy grin. He brought a smile and a word of encouragement just when she needed it....more than once, and always at just the right time. She told me about him and I knew he must have been sent from God. It was awhile later before I got to meet him. After meeting him, I KNEW he was sent by God. He loves the Lord with all his heart and is in tune to the people around him. He knows when someone is hurting or in need without them even saying a word. I don't think he has much as far as material possessions go but he has something far greater. When you look into his eyes, you see a deepness and a wisdom and a love for people. There's a peace in his life even when he has reason to not be peaceful. A few weeks ago he lost his wife to cancer. He's left alone to raise their down-syndrome son. He's not anxious or flustered. He's calm and at peace because he knows his rest comes from the Lord. He IS a beautiful person.

The other beautiful people I've had the privilege to meet is a sweet, precious couple in their 90's. She recently had a stroke and was in an assisted care facility for awhile but then returned home. The husband has been taking care of her by himself. She's paralyzed on her left side and needs help for things we take for granted....walking, getting dressed, etc. They needed someone to live-in with them to help out. Mostly to help the hubby. He's a farmer, hunter, fisherman and it's very hard for him to be in the house all day long. For someone in his 90's, he's still very active...still drives. He needed to be free to roam about his farm and piddle with his tractors as men do. But he lovingly looked at his wife and said he couldn't put her in a nursing home. She looked back at him and said they didn't want to be apart. They have been married for 71 years! Can you imagine!!! Seventy-one years! I thought twenty-two years was a long time. Wow!

I was telling Frank about them and their seventy-one year marriage and he said we'd get there one day. I didn't take the time to figure out how old we'd be to celebrate our 71st wedding anniversary but simply because he wants that for us puts him right at the top of my Most Beautiful People list. Can't wait to see what he looks like in forty-nine years.