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April 26, 2005
The Water Seller
OK, I am now officially in big trouble if anyone sees me, because I'm blogging at work. It's a slow, slow day here in Kelly girl-land. Even as I type this, my hand is poised to close this window the second someone rounds the corner to my work area.
The other week at work, the guy who sells (or just brings) us our big bottled water jugs came. My desk faces the entrance but has one of those high counters in front of it, so that if I'm not craning upwards, I can't see who's coming in. I heard the door and looked up to see the water guy struggling with one water jug perched on his shoulder and one in his hand. It wasn't easy for him to open the front door to our office. He came in, took the full jugs around the corner and retrieved the empty ones.
On his second trip in, a client approaching the office opened the door for the water seller. The water seller thanked him. "Every bit helps," he said on his way around the corner. On his way back outside with the empty jugs, he stopped and said to me, "You know, at this one place I go, the guy in front never gets the door for me. He just sits there and makes me walk all the way around to the side entrance." He went back out to his truck for yet more jugs.
There was something about this guy that got to me. Part of it was his open, easy smile. Also his weather-beaten face and lank blond hair. Mostly it was his frank admission of needing help. You could argue that it's his job to carry in the water jugs. It's not my job. But why couldn't I help him anyway? Why was I content to just sit and watch him struggle until he said something? I, who am so sensitive to being the lowest woman on the totem pole in this office. Here was one lower than I, and I just let him hang.
You can bet that when I saw him coming in for the third time, I fell all over myself running get the door for him.
It was one of those moments when I thought, you know, this guy really could be Jesus. The roughened face, the longish hair, the parable of asking for help. And the fact that he was bringing us water. (The water of life?) It all just came together. And I tremble to think how close I came to letting him hang out to dry.
Posted by Lisa at April 26, 2005 10:23 AM
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