I Don't Need Saving

You know what really grinds mygears?

People assuming you need saving…

Especially when you don’t.

Now, cool your tatter-tots andhear me out before a full-fledged sermon comes flying at me. I’m not talkingabout THAT kind of saving. The kind of saving I’m talking about is when peopleassume you want to be rescued from conversations with individuals who arementally disabled.

Yes, I went there.

And I think it’s about time Idid, considering how often this seems to happen.

Recently, I was sitting in a localcar dealership having some work done to our amazing little car. This is thesame car that was a surprise gift to us before we moved to Hamilton, Ontario afew years ago. Friends had conspired for our benefit. Our old car was quite thebeater; It didn’t havegreat heat, was so loud you could hear it coming from blocks away and couldonly travel short distances— if you went to slow down from highway speed afterdriving an hour the car just die… on the road… for no apparent reason. One day I arrived hometo a car in the driveway. After making the assumption someone was over, I wentinside to find a giant bright orange poster which read ‘JP & Aelea’ on itwith a set of keys. JP got home and we investigated—we opened the car and therewas a card stating that we deserved to have a happy birthday better car! Oppositethe perfect sentiment was a list of friends who dug into their hearts andwallets and contributed funds to purchase a car for us, including the covered cost ofinsurance for a year. Talk about being completely floored by the generosity,love, kindness, and pure servant-hearts of those we are blessed to call friends.We were blown away and, to this day, I get in the car and I smile, lovingly andsecretly naming our Alero, ‘the car that love bought’.

Now that I completely sidetrackedthis post to the story of how we got our car, back to the point…

I had decided to sit in thewaiting area of the dealership while the work was being done. The repair wasn’t going to take long so sitting and waiting seemed to be the rightway to go. Pulling out my phone I settled into an end chair of the perfectlyv-shaped waiting area and began browsing social media.

The Instagram/Facebook photo of the new car!

A young gentleman came up andstarted chatting with me. My husband and a few friends lovingly nicknamed him‘Mach 10’ from how he always rides his bicycle around town and literally doeseverything he can to his bicycle to go as fast as possible. He is a little ‘slow’ as peoplewould say, but I don’t mind—I’m waiting around for my car and I’m totally downto converse! We chatted about the reason for his visit to the dealership (wonderingif perhaps they had a tire that would fit his bike) and then he was going to beon his way. He loves to chat and is one of those guys who can talk forever. Thestory about the bike tire led to another story, which led to another... I enjoyedthe conversation since I really know nothing regarding the woes of bicycleownership when it is your sole mode of transportation. When he attempted toengage with another gentleman in the waiting area, the middle-aged man juststared straight ahead and said nothing.

While the actions of thisgentleman made me feel slightly annoyed, Mach 10 didn’t seem to mind (or reallynotice) so we continued our chat. 20 minutes or so had passed by— we were just two folks hanging out.

During those 20 minutes staff hadasked him if he was doing OK, if he had any other questions, if they could helphim with anything else, etc. He always said he was good and that he was justchatting with a friend’s wife since he knows my husband. Every time they questioned him Ijust smiled, waiting for our discussion to start up again. Then someone decided I needed saving…

A staff member comes out of theiroffice and says they need to ask me a few questions. Assuming it was about mycar I got up, said bye to Mach 10, and walked toward theoffice. Slightly anxious because the knowledge of my car is about zero, Iarrived to find there were no questions, there was no paperwork to sign, my car wasn’tsuddenly ready, and there was no information needed. I walked into the office andwas told a generalized comment of “Oh there’s nothing, just thought you mightwant a way out.”

Excuse me…like… what?

Did I seem distressed?

Was our conversation where I wasasking questions and making comments back to this young gentleman throw you offto the point where you thought I needed you to swoop in and get me out of there?

You are not Thor and I am notJane.

I don’t need you to fly in andsave me from the people of the world.

Did you take my smile and nod of agreement to howMach 10 and I know each other as a subtle cry for help?

I do not need saving.

If professionals, in a businesswhere customer service and caring for the client is a priority, deem some individuals as needing help and others less valuable for their differences, Ican only imagine how others may treat him.

What happened to loving people? I remember hearing a message at church,probably 5 years ago, which encouraged us as Christians to approach every personyou meet with the thought in the front of your mind that this person is someoneChrist loves and died for. They are more valuable than you could ever imagineand so so special. This message impacted me greatly and it’s something Icontinually think about and work to do. God’s love for Mach 10 is greaterthan the speeds on his bike x infinity!!! As a Christian, my job is to try tomake each and every person I come in contact with feel that love and value. Inthis case, chatting with him when no one else would give him the time of daywas being loving and accepting and kind and I don’t think anyone ever needssaving from acting out those basic necessities of life.

What's even more sad is the same situation happened a few days later, but with a different individual. Where do people get off thinking it's OK?

I challenge you to challenge thestatus quo.

Think of everyone you meet assomeone Christ died for and loves with a love more amazing than anything youcould ever imagine. It’s the truth. It’s amazing. It’s life changing.