Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Boilerplate

I’m Harold Dykstra.  I’m retired, but I go to food bank distributions all over Tracy and talk to people that need someone who will listen to their story.  My time is well spent.  A police lieutenant suggested that I write down the conversations that I had with an angel.  I did not know she was an angel at the time.  The angel, for a little over a year, indwelled a life-sized posable action figure my children bought me, so that I would not be perceived as travelling alone.  And in a way, she was training me for what I do while talking to the needy.  She probed my heart to find out what I believed and how I express love for others.  She changed my life.

In her leaving, she said someone would come.  I had thought that was Jesus, in His second coming, but a new Babs, a little older, the model for the posable action figure arrived.  While I had no desire to start over with romance, Morrie helped her move in, thinking she was the other Babs who had returned.

This Week’s Question

One day last week, Babs got a massage and we involved the Handels in a little game of finding Bible verses about “hands.”

This week Babs was playing her favorite puzzle games on her phone.

Babs was sitting at the dining room table while I watched video segments for FHAT (Feeding the Homeless At Tracy).  Mary Jones had edited a wonderful story in video form, but I needed the right words to match the story she portrayed.

Babs was busy on her phone.  She asked, “Harold, do you think I am a sluggard?  ‘Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!’ (Proverbs 6:6).  ‘The way of the sluggard is blocked with thorns, but the path of the upright is a highway.’ (Proverbs 15:19).  ‘A sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he will not even bring it back to his mouth!’ (Proverbs 19:24).”

I paused the video.  “Babs, what are you talking about?  Every Saturday, you are at one food bank or another.  We go to the church to help Tim at our food bank once a month.  And you have added grocery shopping for the homeless food bank.”

Babs sighed, “Not much shopping involved.  Our little team of volunteers goes where Dot Com has a contract with a grocery chain.  We pull the meat out and inspect the packages for freezer burn or damage.  We check the date to ensure it is fresh.  Some of these grocery stores try to give us the meat that has been out for a while.  They get rid of the marginal meat and that is like free money for them if they were about to throw it away.  Every store will slip up, but if there is a pattern, we don’t go back to them.  We do not want to feed the homeless marginally safe food just because no one will miss them.  They deserve a good tasting, safe meal.  And it shouldn’t be a dog’s chew toy.  It needs to be tender, at least for that cut of meat.  I am learning a lot about meat inspection.  Vegetables have their issues also.  I am glad some of the team have experience in soup kitchens and restaurants.  And the mission is running a food bank out of the warehouse for food that can be heated over a camp stove or a fire.”

I nodded, “So, you are not a sluggard.  ‘A sluggard says, “There’s a lion in the road, a fierce lion roaming the streets!” As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed. A sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth. A sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven people who answer discreetly.’ (Proverbs 26:13-16).  You know that the NIV uses ‘sluggard’ 14 times and all of them are in Proverbs.  But Babs, do you fear going outside because you claim there is a lion roaming the neighborhood?”  Babs shook her head and giggled.  “Babs, does a door ever leave its hinges?  So, a sluggard never leaves his bed.”

Babs scrunched her nose, “There was one time that a starlet did not want to leave her bedroom.  Our set guy took the door off the hinges, and we brought the scene into her room.  But I know what you mean.  What I do not understand is this business of burying your hand in the food, and then too lazy to eat it.”

I nodded, “We had some people from India that got us to custom make equipment for them.  I took them to an Indian restaurant once a week while they visited.  They did Chinese buffets or they fixed their own food in their rooms.  We put them up in extended stay places.  Anyway, they would buy a huge stack of Naan.  Then, they would each take a Naan, tear off a piece of the bread, and then bury the bread in what they were eating.  They would twist the bread to get as much sauce on the bread as possible.  Then, they would put that mess in their mouth and break off another hunk of Naan.  They would only use one hand.  You never wanted to shake the other hand.  They do their bathroom business with that hand, and they might not wash it.”

Babs made a face, “Yuck, Harold!”

I snickered, “I am just saying that an engineer’s job is not always as glamorous as your career was.”

Babs frowned, “Ha!  Ha!  Introducing yourself to some smelly stranger that you are about to do nasty things to is not glamorous, Harold.  And half the time you are naked when you meet the guy.”

I groaned, “Yuck, Babs!”

We looked at each other, and she started laughing first.

I said, “And when I awoke early this morning, unable to go back to sleep, you got up and fixed breakfast.  No whining about losing beauty sleep.  And I loved those pieces of toast.  Why did you paint smiley faces on the toast?”

Babs snickered, “I knew you couldn’t go back to sleep, and you might be cranky.  So, I wanted you to see the toast smiling up at you and maybe that would brighten your day.  I just melted some butter and painted the toast before putting it in the air fryer on the toast setting.”

I nodded, “But you took the effort.  I laughed when I saw the toast.  I ate the toast with no jelly on it to preserve the smiles as long as possible.  You made breakfast fun.  So, is that burying your hand in the food and then being too lazy to eat it?  No.  It wasn’t much extra, but it was the thought of doing it and following through.  Sluggards would not think of it, and they would definitely not take the extra effort to do it.”

Babs smiled, “Thank you, Harold, but I have so much free time.  And I fill it with puzzles on my phone.”

I asked, “What kind of puzzles?”

Babs giggled, “Word puzzles, like crossword puzzles or crypto type puzzles.  Then, number puzzles, like sudoku and simple math problems in the form of a crossword puzzle.  Then, logic puzzles, mostly a square divided into smaller squares.  And then these pieces that you put together to make a puzzle.”

I laughed, “The last one is a jigsaw puzzle.  I have a real one in my closet.  My wife and I and the children used to put those together.”

Babs scrunched her nose.  “There are real jigsaw puzzles?  I never saw one before.”

I laughed, “You just haven’t gone down that aisle at the crafting store.  They teach patience, Babs.  You put the pieces together one-by-one.  There are no shortcuts, but when my late wife got tired, she threatened to get some scissors to make a piece fit.  Willie would scream, and Morrie would push his Mom out of the room, this very room.  Of course, that’s what she wanted.”

Babs sighed, “Ah, I know that I am your second wife, but it is nice seeing that look in your eyes.  A memory of when things all fit together.”

I chuckled, “Fit together, like puzzle pieces.  Happy accident?”

Babs groaned, “I guess, I didn’t make the connection until you said that.  But I still have hours of my day with nothing to do.  That is, most days.”

I sighed, “But God has a plan for you, Babs.”

Babs replied, “Sure, after wasting my entire life, He pointed me to you.  I give you comfort in your old age, and you teach me about Jesus.  But what do I do for the rest of the time.”

I smiled, “God has a plan for that, too. ‘For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’ (Jeremiah 29:22).”

Babs asked, “But how will I know what that plan is?”

I smiled, “Babs, God takes care of that, too.  ‘I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.’ (Psalm 32:8).”

Babs huffed, “Harold, what if I cannot read the signs?  My life will still be wasted!”

I laughed, “God finds ways to communicate.  ‘The Lord will vindicate me; your love, Lord, endures forever—do not abandon the works of your hands.’ (Psalm 138:8).”

Babs sighed, “But how do I know what God has prepared me to do?”

I suggested, “Maybe God has already prepared you for what He wants you to do…  ‘For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.’ (Ephesians 2:10).  You have a lot of hidden talents.”

Babs sighed, “Harold, I gave up that life when I accepted Jesus.  That is behind me.”

I laughed, “I don’t know about that.  “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,”.  (Colossians 3:23).”

Babs laughed, “You cannot be saying that if I made adult films, I could make them to the glory of God.  That’s ridiculous.””

I replied, “You are looking at what you produced.  But the skills of filming, film editing, even before that – script writing.  You could make films.”

Babs replied, “But it costs a lot of money to do that.”

I nodded, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.‘ (Genesis 40:20).  You received a large amount of cash that we do not need.  You have already talked to Pink Lady about how she deals with cash that comes from a sinful lifestyle.  But why not invest it.  There are Christian Film Production Companies.  You might talk to them and provide the cash to produce a film.  You did run a production company.  You know some of the process.  But then, you can start small.  You can write a documentary about the homeless.”

Babs sighed, “That’s too important a task.  I do not know enough.  I would hate to try something and then it trivializes the issues.”

I huffed, “Babs, I have watched you each time we have a dinner with them.  While others sit back and pray for the plight of everyone in the crowd, you sit down and talk to just one, or might I say one at a time.  The others see the problem.  You see the person.  Document one person.  Maybe take the lives of two or three people.  Create a composite.  Then get people at the university who will do the acting to portray the character that you created from that composite.  Even smaller.  Use Jemima Yeggs and Mary Jones.  Add in Mitzi.  What’s her last name?”

Babs cackled, “No, Harold, all that I have ever heard is Fitzi Mitzi, but she and Baldy are dating.  She may become Mitzi Baxter soon.”

I laughed, “Regardless of the last name, she and Wilma are roommates, and Wilma is taking classes on directing and film editing.  If you create a small project, we might put it together right here in Tracy.  If it’s good enough, the production companies may provide distribution.”

Babs sighed, “Great ideas, Harold, but if I have learned anything.  I have learned to wait on the Lord and pray.”

I smiled, “Babs, when you do that, you are not wasting time.”

Babs said, “In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.’ (Psalm 5:3).  And then in Psalm 38…  ‘’Lord, I wait for you; you will answer, Lord my God.” (Psalm 38:15).  The big motion picture companies would look down on me, but I like the idea of asking for college assets to make a small independent film.  And you are right.  I spend time getting to know these people.  I know some of their stories, and they might make a good message.  But I want to spend a lot of time in prayer before I even start writing something down.”

There was a knock at the door, but since we had not locked the deadbolt, Willie came in with Jayke and Janella.

Jayke said, “I am starting kindergarten at Lily the Pink, Grabbabs.  But Mom wants Janella to start pre-school next year.”

Willie said, “That was part of my news, but with that out of the way…  Children, go play with Sugar.  I have some things to talk to Pake and Grabbabs about.”

The children ran out the back door and down the steps.

Babs sat next to me, and we offered Willie a seat.

Willie took a minute to catch her breath.  “They had a meeting of the elders at our church.  Gil is falling behind with his pastoral care.  He sees the people in the hospital, but he is falling behind with the people who are shut-ins.  They approved a part-time position, paid for hours worked and per diem to cover driving around.  They offered me the job.”

Babs said, “That’s great!”

Willie nodded, “But three days each week, maybe only two days, I will need a babysitter.”

I smiled, “Babs was just lamenting that she did not have things to do several hours, and most days.”

Willie nodded, “Yes, I was about to ask if your schedule was free for the next year.”

Babs said, “I would love to babysit.  My only all-day job is the food deliveries for the FHAT.  Could you work around those two days each month?”

Willie smiled, “Yes, we are a community church.  There is not a lot of long drives, unless it is to a nursing home or assisted living facility.  And we do not have a lot of those people.  I may only work two days a week, but that may shift depending on when they are available.  I appreciate you volunteering.  Janella could attend pre-school, but I wanted her home with me, especially with the new one coming.  The church elders have already said they would divide up my duties and volunteer to visit the shut-ins and the hospital stay people when the baby comes.  This takes a load off my shoulders.  But Babs, what were you thinking of doing with your spare time?  I do not wish to intrude.”

Babs laughed, “Nothing really.  I need to pray about it, but Harold thinks I can write a documentary on a few of the homeless people in Tracy.  Change the names.  Have an actor portray the person.  Maybe change a detail here or there to avoid embarrassment if the story is too recognizable.  I could jot down ideas while watching Janella.  Like right now, they are perfectly fine outside with Sugar.  Janella is not a handful at all.”

Willie smiled, “The idea of a documentary is a great idea.  You would be great at it.  You know so many people in their community.”

While they were talking, I went to the closet and pulled out the old jigsaw puzzle, a picture of a Nativity scene.  I got the jigsaw puzzle board out and poured the pieces onto it.

Willie said, “Dad, I haven’t seen a jigsaw puzzle since all four of us were putting them together right here on this table.

We laughed and started sorting pieces.  We might start with the border, but with these modern puzzles, you had to have a back-up plan.

After they left and I finished what I was working on.

We decided to shower together.  As I was washing her back, I said, “Babs, do not expect God to answer your prayers that fast in the future.”

Babs laughed, “Yes, dear, but Willie does not know what she has gotten herself into.”

I said, “I think she will be great working with the shut-ins.”

Babs laughed, “No, in having me babysit.  I relive my childhood every time Janella comes over.  I wonder if I will be babysitting her or if she will be babysitting me.”

I mused, “Let’s consider it a mutual babysitting of each other, and after the baby comes, she may welcome having Janella go to pre-school.

Credits

All these conversations remind me of my conversations with my wife.  We would talk about anything and everything.  And most of the time, it sounded like a discussion in a Sunday school class.

And at the time that I was writing this conversation, I have a “mother and child” mosaic jigsaw puzzle, modern cut pieces and with it being a picture of a mosaic, you have a double complexity.  I thought it would be a Christmas in July thing, but I am thinking it might be August or September before I finish.  Really, once I get about halfway done, the other half goes quickly.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.