THE WATCHFUL FATHER

Hullo Precious!

The day was hot and I had to travel when the blazing sun was at its absolute peak. I stepped onto a bus and looked around and every single seat was taken. For the next few minutes, I would have to hang on to the hope that someone would get off soon, much like how I was hanging onto that stiff piece of cracked metal that gave off the irking scent of iron on my palate.

Bus rides have always given me a sense of independence. They develop your physical and mental skills all at once. The art of balancing yourself with heavy baggage whilst your mind stays on high alert, as though mini ninjas could come charging from every angle. Partly grateful to all those cautionary thoughts installed in us right from childhood. The soft lull of the big vehicle always invites you to observe the small worlds that each person is quietly living inside their own head. How these minds work so exuberantly unique has always rivetted me the most. Observing them, weaving a small storyline for each and praying for them was my ritual as I plugged into my playlist.

To my left sat a family of four. They looked like their usual transport had ditched them and this was perhaps their first bus ride together as a family. The children were looking at everything with wide eyed joy and fascination. The sun, as established, was having a great time spreading its hot wings everywhere and all the windows were pulled open to catch whatever air, however warm, was passing through.

"If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!"

Matthew 7:11

Amen

Precious lil child, I pray that you cling onto your father in heaven who has bin waiting for you all this while. May you crush your guilt and go to Him with whatever you have, however broken or scattered. Let your heart be reminded that He does not weigh, He does not compare and you always are His beloved. Call unto him today for he is always waiting for that one call from you. He will come running toward you to sweep you up in His arms. It’s time to turn your life around with the fullness of His blessings. Do not let the guilt weigh you down!

The window where this particular family was seated would not stay up. They were arranged in this order, one child by the window, the mother beside him with the younger one on her lap and the father on the aisle side. The father tried everything to keep the window propped open. But with every thunderous lurch of the bus, it slid right back down. A few minutes into this quiet battle, he slipped off his watch and wedged the metal fastener of its strap into the gap and the window held.

I went into a small bewilderment followed by a smile and I mumbled to myself - Father!

That watch would have cost him something. But at that moment, it did not matter. What mattered was his family getting air on a hot afternoon. He did not hesitate. He did not flinch. He did not wait for his wife or the children to crib or complain. He simply read the situation, knew he could change it and did his best, quietly, without a word. They might not even remember it. Or perhaps they would, because this was simply his usual way of keeping his family safe and content in every which way. From then on, it has always been a single road for me. I keep sending petition after petition, no matter the instance, no matter the hour, the one-way road has always been toward heaven.

This happened during my undergrad years and yet I can still close my eyes and see that scene perfectly. Whenever I reminisce about these scenes, I mumble to myself: If an earthly father can do so much, how much more would my Heavenly Father do? And I remind myself of this verse: