Have you ever had one of those days right from the outset where you knew it was going to be unusual one? 

I had one of those days recently.   We were in Richmond to lend support to Jackie’s sister, Buttons, who had major surgery earlier this week.  We stayed at a hotel a short distance from the hospital.

It was time to return home and the plan for the day was to visit Buttons for a short while in the morning, then travel north to Pennsylvania in time to make an evening commitment at our church.

I had taken my shower and packed my bags.  I decided to take them to the car while Jackie showered.

When I returned to the room I noticed a man sleeping in the hallway outside of the room next to ours.

I startled him and asked, “Are you OK? Can I help you?”

He said, “No, my woman threw me out of the room.”

He looked up at my 6’5” frame from his horizontal position on the floor and said,

“[Expletive-Expletive] you sure are big and strong looking.  Damn, are you a centurion or a crusader?” 

For a brief moment I pondered my response and then replied, “Both” and then entered our room.

It’s not every day a question like that gets posed to you, especially first thing in the morning!  It kind of made me feel, what can I say, powerful.

Trying to exploit the moment, I made sure to let Jackie know she was married to “Da Man” as I momentarily got caught up in my new identity.

Jackie wondered what all the commotion was about.   A short time passed and we left the room to check out of the hotel.

The sleeping hallway guy was nowhere to be found.  We stopped by the front desk, handed in the key cards, and made our way to the car only to find my new friend pacing in front of our van.

I interacted with him again as he sprinkled imaginary pixie dust into the air and aimed his imaginary weaponry at the hedges in front of him in an attempt to ward off enemy assailants, I presume.

These days, one can never be too careful.

Fast forward eleven hours to our arrival back home and our commitment at the church after traveling a majority of the day.  We are co-leading Dave Ramsey’s DVD class, Financial Peace University, for several couples and the initial class was that evening.

I arrived early to find the DVD player on my new laptop not working.  Prior to this time there was no indication of a malfunction.  We scrambled to come up with Plan B, a working laptop.  A temporary solution was found and class began.

About thirty minutes into the class I was asked to step into the hallway by a friend with a concerned look on his face.  He apologized for interrupting.

There was a woman asking for me by name who never before visited our church.  I asked my friend what she wanted and then briefly agreed to see her.  Upon introducing myself to her I asked how I could be of assistance.  She told me several times, with tears in her eyes, “I am not sure why I am here”.

She tried to convey some information to me and I attempted to connect the dots, but none of it made sense.  Wanting not to be insensitive to her needs, I simply cut the conversation short and said that I had to get back to my class.  The interaction did not wig me out, but I do admit that it was somewhat out of the norm.

The earlier instance with the man sleeping in the hallway and this instance with lady asking for me at church were the slices of bread to my day.

Sandwiched in between the above events was a peanut butter and jelly experience while we waited in the Cardio Vascular Intensive Care Unit (CVICU) waiting room at St. Mary’s Bon Secours Hospital.  It is an experience that I will not forget.

The following is a brief historical note found on the hospital’s website:

“In 1824, in Paris, amidst the devastation following the French Revolution, a group of 12 women came together to form the congregation of the Sisters of Bon Secours, French for “Good Help.”  The Sisters’ purpose was to nurse the sick and dying in their homes.”

“Good Help” is exactly what we found!

We were waiting on the hospital staff to attend to their morning protocols before we had permission to enter the CVICU and to see Buttons before we left for home.

In addition to us there was an elderly woman, Donna, sitting in the waiting room.  I had the pleasure to meet and pray with Donna the day before.  He husband of fifty-six years was admitted to intensive care and the family had been gathered as they were not sure if he was going to make it through the day.

As we waited, a member of the custodial staff entered the room to empty the trash cans.  He was an African-American man, with a full grey beard, an infectious smile, and wearing a Ben Hogan style cap with a brown and white checkerboard design.

He began to whistle a familiar tune. This was not the type of whistling one would do to beckon a friend across a large room or on a playground.

This was symphony quality whistling.  Perfect-pitch whistling.  Heavenly whistling.  

Echoing through the halls was the beautiful sound of “Great is Thy Faithfulness”.

The music was so captivating that the words to the song began to form in my mind and emerged through my lips:

• “Great is Thy Faithfulness”
• “morning by morning new mercies I seek”
• “all I have need of Thy hand has provided”

As the man, Kevin, went about his duties he continued to whistle.  He left the room, went across the hall, and collected the trash in the men’s and women’s restrooms.  The whistling stopped and the singing began.

If the whistling was symphonic, the singing was Josh Groban-like.  He began to sing the words to the hymn.  I glanced over at Donna, eyes closed, drinking it in as a brief respite to the concerns now facing her.

Jackie and I were simply blessed by the gift of hearing this unexpected concert.  It moved us to tears.

More importantly, Kevin did it while he was working.  Think about that statement for a moment.

Kevin re-entered the room and I stated to him:

“I know you are not one of the seven dwarfs, whistling while you work.  Thank you for sharing your gift with us.  It was a blessing beyond words.”

We continued the conversation and Kevin gave me a brief synopsis of his work history.

“I was in construction for several years.  I was also in retail as well. However, I thank God for planting my feet here at this hospital.  It is such a blessing. You would not believe the miracles that have taken place here.”

I mentioned to him that with his permission, I would like to write about this experience.  We exchanged information.  His business card states the following:

Anointed Music / There is Liberty in His Presence / Kevin – Psalmist

Kevin’s job does not evoke images of grandeur, he performs custodial duties.  They have to be performed by someone, especially in a hospital setting.

However, how Kevin went about those duties was entirely different.  It was with excellence and a cheerful spirit.  He performed his compensated responsibility with integrity and he got his job done well.

While doing his job he also fulfills his calling, allowing his music to be expressed and deposited into the hearts, minds, and spirits of the unsuspecting listener.

Thank you, Kevin, for your gift and sharing your art with us.  It was a bright spot in the day, nicely sandwiched between the other two experiences mentioned.

 

How can you go about you daily routine in such a way as to “whistle while you work” and perhaps add to someone else’s day?