I need to be like Ted

I woke up at 9, to be greeted by Ted the cat at my door. Did he want to be fed? No. Did he want to go outside? Nope. He just wanted me give him loves and to shower me with purrs. Gotta love that.

Afterwards, I went next door to water the lawn. Our next door neighbor (Roy) moved, but is still trying to sell the house. And, he's graciously paid me (in advance) to keep his lawn nice and green. Front, back, and back trees must be watered. So, upon coming around from the back yard, I noticed an elderly gentleman knocking on the door. I called out to him that no one was home, and when he turned around, all I saw was a really sad face.

He asked if Roy was around, and I told him he moved. He seemed pretty shocked when I explained that Roy left two weeks ago. "Roy and I went to breakfast with a group every Saturday," the man mumbled. "We worked together at Rockwell for 15 years, and every Saturday we go to breakfast."

I was quick to tell him that Roy almost got away without anyone in the neighborhood knowing. The only reason Paula & I were able to say goodbye was because we needed him to feed Chevy while we were at the women's retreat. And all Roy said, and rather casually, too, was that he was going to be leaving Sunday night, so if we were going to be gone, Bonnie would have to feed Chevy that night.

I asked the man his name, and instead of answering, he asked, "Did you know Roy's wife, Laura?" I had an initial inkling to repeat my question, but I've learned that sometimes just listening to what's on the mind of our elders is better than the answers of questions that can wait.

I responded with a no, and he began to tell me about Laura's tragic death. It appears that she was at a neighbors house, talking to the man working on the roof. She had been there awhile, when a roofing truck pulled up to the house. Apparently, the driver was looking at the man on the roof, and didn't see Laura Lee standing in the driveway.

Laura Lee was rushed to the hospital, where she was tended to overnight. They sent her home, telling her she should be well in a few days, or a week, tops. Well, instead of getting better, Laura kept getting worse, and Roy took his sweetheart back to the hospital. They ran tests, and found out that Laura Lee had a ruptured spleen. She died shortly thereafter.

After sharing the terrible story with me, Roy's friend says, "Oh, and my name's Al Fischer. It's the German spelling, with a "c" in between the "s" and the letter h."

We spoke for a little while longer, and I ended up giving Roy's new address and phone number. And I reiterated that Roy wasn't snubbing him by leaving without saying goodbye; it was just for Roy to leave, period. Al nodded, and by the story he had told me, I'm certain he understood.

The whole conversation gave me pause, as I wondered about how much I miss by being so talkative and outgoing. I had never really know details of the life of someone I considered to be a great friend. I know I inquired into Roy's life more than the some other neighbors, and simply because of my youth, I could get away with it. I would ask him about his walks with Paula's dog (Chevy), or tell him about my mom (they were in house fellowship together before she moved), and even request prayer for things in my life. It just seems to me that I didn't invest enough time with the kind, compassionate, yet solitary widower next door. Time and being quiet for once would've helped, too. I think Mr. Fischer told me more about who Roy was then I learned from Roy the whole 4 1/2 years I lived next door to him.

I think one of the things (of a few) I'll take away from today's conversation is that I need to be more of like Ted the Cat. I want to spend more time showing the love!