Last night a lady who is probably in her early 60's checked into Gulftreat. Her son dropped her off. She is from Bay St. Louis and her apartment complex is completely gone. At dinner tonight I started talking with her and we had a pleasant conversation. It was like talking to one of my grandmother's friends. I learned that she used to be a medical transcriptionists, but she got bored of that life and decided to become a casino dealer. She has spent the last 10 years of her life as a dealer or pit boss in a variety of games. We talked about how all that worked and I learned some interesting information about gambling.
As the conversation progressed we began to talk about her family. I learned that she had a son and two daughters. The son and his family were staying at another shelter down the beach but that shelter didn't have room for a single woman so they sent her to us. One of her daughters was in a shelter in Destin. Her other daughter was not in a shelter. Instead she was staying in her vacation home right here in Panama City Beach. I wanted to say 'Why aren't you staying at the beachhouse with your daughter?' but the answer to my question came pretty quickly. She proceeded to tell me that she hadn't even talked to that daughter yet which was no surprise since they hadn't spoken in several years.
My heart hit the floor. Here is an older woman who has lost everything and she is staying in a shelter less than 10 minutes away from where her own daughter is living comfortably in a vacation home. My family isn't perfect, but I don't think anyone's family is, but I immediately was thankful for my family. Tonight, I am praying for this lady and her family and giving thanks for my family.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
As painful and troubling as it sounds...by my definition, this woman's daughter isn't her "family."
This is one of those moments when I remember what a patchwork quilt my family is...adoptions, marriages, divorces, re-marriages, scandals...half-sisters, great-step grandmothers, and red-headed step-children. We aren't related by blood, we don't look alike, we don't have the same last names, there's really no reason for us to care for one another at all. What is family anyway? Is it blood types and last names? Or is it what I have always known it to be....simply, a circle of people who care for one another?
Post a Comment