Serendipity

In the mix of the liveliness of my visiting grandchildren I grasp solitary, private moments. In the distance they played. Beside the lake I walked. Caught among high weeds, a feather of fine lines, splendid in its golden light, became a one-man art show.

Happy 50th in Kingman, AZ.

On Tuesday, Jerry and I drove to Kingman, AZ; after the completion of the errand (of which I will write later), we went into the Cracker Barrel to have lunch. We had been seated long enough so that we had ordered and had been brought our drinks when we heard a group of waitresses lilting out a special rendition of Happy Birthday in which the words had been changed to Happy Anniversary.

I looked toward the pitiful, though obviously sincere sound, and saw the singers were gathered about a quite elderly appearing couple. Sweet, I thought. The waitresses, having finished their cafeteria crooning, had scattered again about the restaurant, and as they went, I heard several of them explaining to the other patrons that it was a 50th wedding anniversary.

Lifting my camera and trying to be discreet, I snapped a couple frames of the anniversary couple, and then I heard something else; something beautiful and pleasing to my ear. I turned toward the sound and saw a gentleman had commandeered a Cracker Barrel microphone and, looking toward the celebration couple, was crooning a most beautiful love song.

Emboldened now as the focus of the entire restaurant was on the anniversary couple, I walked over, congratulated them, and offered to send by email the pictures, that from my perch across the room, I had taken of them. The group was friendly, and when the gentleman laughingly told me he used to build computers, but now did not even use one, a waitress gave me her email address, so I could send the pictures to her.

“The singer?” I asked. “Is he a friend, and how did he happen to sing here today?”

“Are you local?” the waitress asked me.

“No, I live in Lake Havasu.”

“Well, Kingman is a small, close community, and no, I don’t believe this song was planned. The gentleman who sang is a minister, he happened to be here in the restaurant, and just took the opportunity to add his blessing to this occasion.”

The 50-year groom smiled at me and added, “He is the most wonderful Christian you could ever hope to meet.”

I again congratulated the couple, told them they would be hearing from me, and walked back to my table where Jerry’s food and mine was now ready.

It was a chance encounter at the Kingman Cracker Barrel a few days ago; it was serendipity. I happened on a beautiful couple whose name I do not know, and whose tale I cannot fathom except that almost certainly they have experienced the extremes of life; both joy and sorrow, health and sickness, prosperity and neediness.

I wish them well…wish them God’s blessings.

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My devotional blog is here.