The jet engine hummed and I shifted in my seat, trying to make myself as small as possible. Why did I always get a middle seat on these trips?
Cold air from the vent above me combined with an internal stress I couldn’t shake and my whole body gave way to an involuntary, violent shiver.
An elderly woman, with skin the color of dark chocolate sat next to the window, but she seemed more concerned with me than what was going on outside.
“Are you cold? You can share my blanket.”
Without waiting for my consent, she placed a corner of her blanket over my arm and shoulder.
“Thank you,” I murmured, not willing to say the shiver really had little to do with the temperature.
“Where are you headed?”
The kind gesture and gently spoken words wrecked my defenses.
“To Rochester. My mother has cancer and is unresponsive. I am going to help my sister care for her until she dies.”
Then, huddled together under the soft, shawl-like cover, we spoke of life and death, of joy and sorrow, and the God who reigns over all of it. She’d already traveled the road I was on, and her perspective brought comfort and peace to my tattered emotions.
By the time we descended through the miles of clouds and reconnected with the earth below, the burden I’d carried onto the plane had lightened significantly.
I entered the busy airport terminal, ready now for the last leg of the journey; ready to meet the challenge that lay ahead of me.
Smiling, I reached up and felt the warmth of the blanket across my shoulders.
It was still covering me, even though she had packed it up and taken it with her to North Dakota or California or some other distant place.
***
Four years have passed since that blanket was placed over my shoulder. The kindness of the woman who shared it is not lost on me, even today.
And it begs the question…
Has God given each of us a blanket that He expects us to use?
If so, what does my blanket look like?
What about yours?
How do we know when to use them?
I guess there’s no need to worry about it or try to figure it out ahead of time.
When the Spirit moves you to cover someone with your blanket, you will know.
Or when we see them shiver.