Even When You Are Not Looking

 Blind Love

  The passengers on the bus watched sympathetically as the attractive
young woman with the white cane made her way carefully up the steps.
She paid the driver and, using her hands to feel the location of the
seats, walked down the aisle and found the seat he'd told her was
empty. Then she's settled in, placed her briefcase on her lap and
rested her cane against her leg.

It had been a year since Susan, thirty-four, became blind. Due to a
medical misdiagnosis she had been rendered sightless, and she was
suddenly thrown into a world of darkness, anger, frustration and
self-pity.

Once a fiercely independent woman, Susan now felt condemned by this
terrible twist of fate to become a powerless, helpless burden on
everyone around her.  "How could this have happened to me?" she would
plead, her heart knotted with anger.  But no matter how much she cried
or ranted or prayed, she knew the painful truth - her sight was never
going to return.

A cloud of depression hung over Susan's once optimistic spirit.  Just
getting through each day was an exercise in frustration and
exhaustion. And all she  had to cling to was her husband Mark.  Mark
was an Air Force officer and he  loved Susan with all of his heart.
When she first lost her sight, he watched  her sink into despair and
was determined to help his wife gain the strength  and confidence she
needed to become independent again. Mark's military  background had
trained him well to deal with sensitive situations, and yet he knew
this was the most difficult battle he would ever face.

Finally, Susan felt ready to return to her job, but how would she get
there?  She used to take the bus, but was now too frightened to get
around the city  by herself. Mark volunteered to drive her to work
each day, even though they worked at opposite ends of the city. At
first, this comforted Susan and fulfilled Mark's need to protect his
sightless wife who was so insecure about performing the slightest
task.  Soon, however Mark realized that this arrangement wasn't working - it
was hectic, and costly. Susan is going to have to start taking the bus
again, he admitted to himself. But just the thought of mentioning it
to her made him cringe. She was still so fragile, so angry. How would
she react?  Just as Mark predicted, Susan was horrified at the idea of taking the
bus again. "I'm blind!" she responded bitterly. "How am I supposed to
know where I'm going? I feel like you're abandoning me."
Mark's heart broke to hear these words, but he knew what had to be
done. He promised Susan that each morning and evening he would ride
the bus with her, for as long as it took, until she got the hang of
it.

And that is exactly what happened. For two solid weeks, Mark, military
uniform and all, accompanied Susan to and from work each day. He
taught her how to rely on her other senses, specifically  her hearing,
to determine where she was and how to adapt to her new environment. He
helped her befriend the bus drivers who could watch out for her, and
save her a seat. He made her laugh, even on those not-so-good days when she would trip
exiting the bus, or drop her briefcase.  Each morning they made the
journey together,  and Mark would take a cab back to his office.
Although this routine was  even more costly and exhausting than the
previous one, Mark knew it was only a matter of time before Susan
would be able to ride the bus on her own.  He believed in her, in the
Susan he used to know before she'd lost her sight, who wasn't afraid
of any challenge and who would never, ever quit.

Finally, Susan decided that she was ready to try the trip on her own.
Monday morning arrived, and before she left she threw her arms around
Mark, Her temporary bus riding companion, her husband, and her best
friend. Her eyes filled with tears of gratitude for his loyalty, his
patience, his love. She said good-bye, and for the first time, they
went  their separate ways.

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday ... Each day on her own went
perfectly, and Susan had never felt better. She was doing it! She was
going to work all by herself!  On Friday morning, Susan took the bus
to work as usual. As she was paying for her fare to exit the bus, the
driver said, "Boy, I sure envy you."

Susan wasn't sure if the driver was speaking to her or not. After all,
who on earth would ever envy a blind woman who had struggled just to
find the courage to live for the past year?  Curious, she asked the
driver, "Why do you say that you envy me?"  The driver responded, "It
must feel so good to be taken care of and protected like you are."
Susan had no idea what the driver was talking about, and asked again,
"What  do you mean?"

The driver answered, "You know, every morning for the past week, a
fine looking gentleman in a military uniform has been standing across
the corner  watching you when you get off the bus. He makes sure you
cross the street safely and he watches you until you enter your office
building. Then he blows you a kiss, gives you a little salute and
walks away. You are one lucky lady."

Tears of happiness poured down Susan's cheeks. For although she
couldn't physically see him, she had always felt Mark's presence.  She
was  lucky, so lucky, for he had given her a gift more powerful than
sight, a gift  she didn't need to see to believe - the gift of love
that can bring light  where there had been darkness.

God watches over us in just the same way. We may not know He is
present, but He is. We may not be able to see His face, but He is
there nonetheless! Be blessed in this thought. God Loves You - even
when you are not looking.