It is always a great day when one can spend lunch with a friend who they have not seen in quite some time, to have great conversation over a Chick-fil-A meal. I got to enjoy both of those things one particular weekday. It was so nice catching up, and Chick-fil-A is one of my favorites!
Lunch was over way too quickly, so I thought I would ride the high that comes from an all-around excellent conversation-plus-meal combo. I topped off my lemonade and ordered a coffee to-go. I headed back to the office with both of my drinks and was pretty proud of my decision to both sweeten and caffeinate the remainder of the afternoon.
My desk was on the third floor, and I always took the stairs. That particular day was no different. I was carrying my lemonade in one hand, and my coffee in the other. I held them proudly like trophies because I knew they were going to deliciously fuel the remainder of my afternoon.
I headed up the first flight of stairs like I normally did. Then came the second flight. My purse was over one shoulder, and hands were tied up, so I couldn’t hold the railing like I normally would.
Have you ever walked up the stairs and suddenly felt like you were about to fall for absolutely no reason?
I had that feeling just then. Halfway up the second flight of stairs. I didn’t slip or even trip. There was no reason for that almost-falling feeling. Then all was well. I gained my balance back and fully recovered. Not a second after I got my confidence back, it was gone…
I completely lost it. My purse slipped off my shoulder, bumping my coffee. I couldn’t grab the banister for balance, so I gripped my drinks. Hard. I hoped that would help to save them. Perhaps they would even help me get my balance back. That just made it worse.
My Chick-fil-A lemonade came in a Styrofoam cup. When I went to grip my drinks, my thumb punctured a hole in the cup of lemonade—the lemonade I had topped off at the restaurant. When the newly-installed thumb hole burst open, a fresh fountain of ice-cold, sweet liquid started gushing out of the Styrofoam cup and all over the stairs. Next came the Sonic-style ice. So slippery!
At this point, I was failing in my attempt to gain back my balance. It was of no use. I began to trip, then slipped on the ice-and-lemonade combo that I just created. There was now a decent pool of lemonade on multiple stair steps. It was flowing from side to side and down the steps, and the ice was floating in it. It was a hilariously horrifying sight. Eventually, the cup of lemonade had emptied.
My coffee faired a bit better than the lemonade, thankfully. (It was semi-safe in a clear, plastic cup, so my other thumb was no match for that material.) Of the two beverages, I’m glad it survived because caffeine was going to be much more effective than sugar, especially after this little escapade.
I did not sustain any injuries, but I wasn’t sure what my next move should be after things had calmed down a bit. I was thankful it wasn’t a high-trafficked area at the moment since most of my teammates were back at their desks working by then.
Now I had a dilemma. I had made quite a mess and had nothing on-hand that could be used to clean up the scene. If I left and someone used that stairwell, they would surely slip and injure themselves. If I stayed, I could warn others, but the mess would remain. And I would be late to my upcoming meeting.
What to do?
I learned an extremely valuable lesson just then. While it was an embarrassing predicament I was in, the way God typically teaches me lessons is by giving me no “out,” no other options. I must comply. I am extremely stubborn, so He knows what works!
I could not possibly resolve this issue on my own. God chose that moment to teach me this lesson. I needed to ask for help. I was 100% not in control. Helpless. My least favorite place to be.
At that moment, I heard footsteps. They were coming up the stairs. And it was someone I knew! My former team leader and friend. “HELP!” He was rushing to a meeting, but had just enough time to grab some paper towels for me. I started making some progress, but still couldn’t finish the job nor leave the scene.
Then came more footsteps. It was a couple new teammates who I had literally met for the first time a couple of days earlier. “HELP!” And that they did. One went to grab more paper towel, and the other did not leave my side until the stairs were in better condition than before my drinks had found them. She also made sure I was ok. I was fine. Only my pride was injured.
There are two essential ingredients in life, which I discovered that afternoon:
We need each other.
Remember when we were all quarantined during the Covid outbreak? Humans are not meant to be isolated. We crave and need connection. There are some individuals who function fine alone, but that is the exception. And none of us is our best version without each other. For someone who tries to be as self-sufficient as possible, I needed that reminder.
We must be willing to accept help.
The dilemma I just described is one I could not solve alone. When I shifted my focus to others—mainly, how I could keep everyone else from slipping and getting hurt—the solution just showed up. Crazy how that worked, and it works that way all the time!
When you are tempted to take on choices, difficulties, dilemmas alone, don’t do it. It is easier with the support of others, and they want to do so! (And if it helps, just picture a river of lemonade and Sonic ice flowing down a flight of stairs with no clean-up supplies in range.)
Don’t let that be you!
☕️ Journal Java
- If you try to be self-sufficient (like me!), where does that come from?
- When do you find it most difficult to ask for help?
- Who is someone you trust to help you and why?