An Angel Without Wings.

I debated blogging about this, but well, Christmas isn’t merry for everyone, and it’s MY blog, and maybe my story will help someone somewhere who may happen across it.

Remember “It’s A Wonderful Life”? Of course you do. Silly question. But so many of us forget that George was actually standing on that bridge during the whole movie.
Standing there, waiting to jump, while his life was being shown to him and us, play by play.

And still, for over 2 hours, he stood there.

Last night Jon & I went to Radford to visit the Pediatric nurses in the hospital who took such great care of Seven when he was admitted there for a while last year. We visit them as often as we can, and his favorite nurse, Tina, even came to his birthday party. After our visit, even though it was getting into Seven’s bedtime, we went to the Applebee’s for dinner. It is right above the river, next to the Memorial Bridge. Why do I mention this?

Because. During our dinner, a man poised himself on that bridge to jump. From the restaurant, I had plain view of him. The police, all 5 cars of them, did what they could to talk him down all during our meal. When we were walking to our cars to leave, a small crowd of college students and staff stood at the fence in back of the restaurant, watching the commotion. As I buckled Seven in his carseat, I heard a yell. And then the gasp of the crowd.

He jumped.

I guess none of us thought he really would.

Today it has been really getting to me. I keep hearing the commotion. I keep seeing him there, looking over the edge. I wonder if he saw me? I wonder what it took, what finally forced him out on that freezing cold bridge. I wonder, did he think first? Did he purposely decide to jump from the bridge onto solid ground a hundred feet below instead of the river? Did he think at all? I wonder, does he have a family? Did he lose his job? Fail out of the university and couldn’t face his parents? What, if anything, is so dire that the best resort is a bridge in the middle of the coldest night of the year?

I guess what I wonder most, is where was his angel? Was he there? Did he not show him the good things he had done, how the world was a better place with him in it? Or, did the angel just not succeed? Maybe there was no angel…maybe this man was somehow overlooked. I really just can’t make sense of it at all.

What I hope this post will do is remind you of your life. The good things you have to be thankful for.
When your newborn is crying all night, be thankful he has good, healthy lungs. Be thankful you have a son at all. When you notice you put on a few pounds, be thankful you have enough to eat. When you get a late notice on your credit card bill, be thankful that you may some day pay it off. When you get too hot in the middle of the night because your heat pump is working overtime due to the cold, be thankful you have heat at all. When your husband only wants a hug, but you are in the kitchen blogging, get up and hug him. He may not always be there. Today, there is one less person in the world to hug. Maybe that’s all he really needed. Who knows.

So, be thankful for all you have this holiday season. I am.