http://www.madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=4631&view=post&articleid=66265&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Wednesday, April 28, 2010 • Randy Kilgore • Active faith
The whole world stopped, or so it seemed in that instant, to watch this woman throwing things at me in the grocery store. She screamed and cursed and cried as she vented in rage, and nothing I said sank in or slowed down the torrent. Eventually she did stop throwing things, but the yelling continued. She was telling everyone-at the top of her lungs-how I'd just fired her husband at Christmas and now she couldn't even buy groceries for her children.
http://www.madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=4631&view=post&articleid=58012&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Wednesday, June 24, 2009 • • Patience
I stepped from the sidewalk to the crosswalk before I heard the roar of the van approaching the intersection. The driver had a stop sign, but it was clear he wasn't going to be able to stop before he hit me.
Unless, of course, I jumped back out of the way, which, of course I did. I gave the driver my best glare.
The van driver did slow down enough to make it look like he thought about a "rolling stop", but then he quickly wheeled a right turn and sped away. Muttering to myself, I watched with some satisfaction as the van pulled up to the sidewalk about a block and a half ahead.
Like a Wild West gunslinger headed for a high-noon shootout, I picked up my pace to arrive at the same time he'd be getting out of his van. Alas, his driving wasn't the only near-miss in this encounter.
http://www.madetomatter.org/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=4631&view=post&articleid=50922&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Wednesday, October 29, 2008 • • Humility
I knew he had the knife. He knew I knew he had the knife; but the rules of our encounter in that moment included both of us pretending neither of us knew those things. He was in serious trouble, and my job in that moment was to try to limit how much trouble he was in. Staring at the handle of that knife, I was also hoping to limit the amount of trouble I was in.