Anonymous, 10.04.05
A young and successful executive was travelling down a
neighbourhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar.
He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars
and slowed down when he thought he saw something.
As his car passed, no children appeared. Instead, a brick
smashed into the Jag's side door!
He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to the spot
where the brick had been thrown.
The angry driver then jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest
kid and pushed him up against a parked car shouting, "What was
that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you
doing? That's a new car and that brick you threw is going to
cost a lot of money. Why did you do it?"
The young boy was apologetic. "Please, mister...please, I'm
sorry but I didn't know what else to do," He pleaded.
"I threw the brick because no one else would stop." With tears
dripping down his face and off his chin, the youth pointed to a
spot just around a parked car.
"It's my brother," he said. "He rolled off the curb and fell out
of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up."
Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive, "Would you
please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and
he's too heavy for me."
Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly
swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the handicapped
boy back into the wheelchair, then took out a linen handkerchief
and dabbed at the fresh scrapes and cuts. A quick look told him
everything was going to be okay.
"Thank you and may God bless you," the grateful child told the
stranger.
Too shook up for words, the man simply watched the boy push his
wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk towards their home.
It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar.
The damage was very noticeable, but the driver never bothered to
repair the dented side door. He kept the dent there to remind
him of this message:
"Don't go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick
at you to get your attention!"
God whispers in our souls and speaks to our hearts. Sometimes
when we don't have time to listen, he has to throw a brick at
us.
However, only we can make that choice to listen or not.