The Bus

Intercity transit let me down today. I got on the 12:40 bus to go to the transit center where I would normally hook up with the Mason County Transit at 1:00. Well the Olympia bus was 5 minutes late. This is bad because the next bus to Shelton leaves at 3:40. Now what? I start to get mad. then I stop. so what if I get home three hours later. the world won't end, my life isn't hanging in the balance. people are starving, dieing, and I'm going to throw a pity party because I'm three hours late? (at frustrating times like these there's a little dialogue in my head. two competing parties are arguing for control over my mind.) Why? i ask myself. i don't know so I ask God even though I don't expect an answer. Then my mind says the why doesn't even matter. God wants me to be thankful in all things. but whats to be thankful about?the fact that it's cold, beginning to rain, and that I'm three hours late getting home. that's exactly what to be thankful for. I come to a conclusion: I'll be thankful but I won't be happy about it.

2 hours and 40 minutes later I board the Shelton bus. I decide to sit in the very back because it's usually warmer, today it wasn't. There was one other guy sitting in the back row. he was reading his book. I just wanted to be left alone. Five minutes down the road i see he is actually reading a new testament. "wow, that's really cool," I thought. Then I attempted to sleep. I woke up and there he was. just reading the Bible. I couldn't help but be drawn to this fact. This guy read the Bible for 30 minutes straight. A few minutes before his stop he stopped reading and drew a smiley face on the window with the word smile above it. Yet again, I was drawn to this. I kept thinking about it. I looked at the smiley face. It felt like the face was ordering me to smile. it wanted me to smile. skitzo. anyway I looked at the guy who had been reading the Bible, and the smiley face. there was just some connection between this all. I didn't get it. I still don't. What I do know is that this guy had been almost like the source of solace for me while on the bus. and this person, whoever he was read the Bible. I haven't been reading mine. so excuse me I'm going to listen to God for a change.