St Francis Wears a Hearing Aid
May. 6th, 2011 10:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cinema_babeLet's understand one thing: I'm no fan of squirrels, to me they are rats with big fluffy tails,
Ok, now that I have that out of my system.
The other day I was on my way out to run some errands including going to the post office. When I got into the small parking lot of my building, I noticed a man in the blue postal uniform standing with his back to me. I held out my envelope and asked the man he would take it.
No answer
I asked again.
Still no answer.
Now I'm getting ticked. I stood there, hand outstretched, irritated, assuming that he was just being a jerk; he had to turn around and face me sooner or later. When he finally turned around, I saw that he had a sizable bag of sunflower seeds in his hand. When I asked him again if he could mail my envelope, he reached up to his left ear flipped a switch and then reached over to his right ear and did the same thing. He spoke with mouth of someone who had lost their hearing in childhood.
Why yes, I am an asshole, why do you ask?
It turns out the postman was friendly and greagrious and quite happy to take my envelope.
Then I saw what he was doing, leaving small piles of sunflower seeds on the ground. He explained that during that unbearably snowy winter, he found a squirrel that had starved to death. He is an animal lover and told me about his pet, all shelter animals. He realized that in the deep snow it was difficult for squirrels to get to their buried nuts. Saddened, he began to leave piles of seeds and nuts in little piles along his route, always near trees where squirrels would gather naturally.
I remember one snowy day getting out of my car and seeing how someone had left some nuts and a cut up apple sitting on top of the snow. I wondered who had performed that act of mercy towards the birds and squirrels. I began to occasionally leave a half eaten apple or pear and some of my other neighbors began to do the same.
The told me that there was still a shortage of food so he was still leave nuts for the animals. He also told me that he had spent $500 of his own money buying food to leave around town, including Johnson Park.
Sometimes, grace comes where you least expect it.
Ok, now that I have that out of my system.
The other day I was on my way out to run some errands including going to the post office. When I got into the small parking lot of my building, I noticed a man in the blue postal uniform standing with his back to me. I held out my envelope and asked the man he would take it.
No answer
I asked again.
Still no answer.
Now I'm getting ticked. I stood there, hand outstretched, irritated, assuming that he was just being a jerk; he had to turn around and face me sooner or later. When he finally turned around, I saw that he had a sizable bag of sunflower seeds in his hand. When I asked him again if he could mail my envelope, he reached up to his left ear flipped a switch and then reached over to his right ear and did the same thing. He spoke with mouth of someone who had lost their hearing in childhood.
Why yes, I am an asshole, why do you ask?
It turns out the postman was friendly and greagrious and quite happy to take my envelope.
Then I saw what he was doing, leaving small piles of sunflower seeds on the ground. He explained that during that unbearably snowy winter, he found a squirrel that had starved to death. He is an animal lover and told me about his pet, all shelter animals. He realized that in the deep snow it was difficult for squirrels to get to their buried nuts. Saddened, he began to leave piles of seeds and nuts in little piles along his route, always near trees where squirrels would gather naturally.
I remember one snowy day getting out of my car and seeing how someone had left some nuts and a cut up apple sitting on top of the snow. I wondered who had performed that act of mercy towards the birds and squirrels. I began to occasionally leave a half eaten apple or pear and some of my other neighbors began to do the same.
The told me that there was still a shortage of food so he was still leave nuts for the animals. He also told me that he had spent $500 of his own money buying food to leave around town, including Johnson Park.
Sometimes, grace comes where you least expect it.
