I met an interesting young lady at my book discussion yesterday. She hadn't come to the library to attend my event. To be honest, I'm not sure sure why she was at the library. Regardless of her reasons for coming, her presence at my event made it all worthwhile. This young woman was invited into the meeting room by my mother who was dutifully standing at the library's entrance to greet visitors as they entered the building. She cheerfully encouraged every person who passed by to sit in on a book discussion by a "new, very talented, local author" (thanks Mom!!).
As the young woman made her way down the short hallway to our meeting room, I caught up with her and introduced myself. I went on to tell her a little bit about my book and the various community resources that were available along the tables that lined the back of the room. "I have autism, but nobody believes me when I tell them that I do... not even my mother", she confided. She began to tell me about her fears and feelings. She told me all about the coping mechanisms that she'd developed over her lifetime to help her to deal with the sensory overload that she often experiences. I took to her right away, deeply touched by her childlike innocence and her willingness to share her most intimate thoughts and feeling with me. Though hesitant about taking a seat and staying for the book discussion at first, she decided to stay when I told her it would be perfectly fine for her to have as many glazed doughnuts as she wanted. "They're my favorite!", she shrieked with excitement and she scopped three of them up in her napkin. Satisfied, she began to make her way to the seats near the front of the room.
I began the book discussion and soon found that my new friend was very articulate and eager to learn as much as she could about autism. She asked questions about the book as I went along and seemed satisfied when I gave my answers. The second part of my presentation was more of a hands on activity for those in attendance. As I spoke to them about maintaining a positive outlook in the face of chronic illness or disability, every person seemed genuinely interested. As I talked them through the activity, explaining the significance of each prop that I'd provided, I posed a question to the entire group. I asked them about the things in their lives that seemed or felt most unpleasant. "I feel isolated", the young woman said firmly, almost angrily. My heart went out to her because I understood what she meant. She said that she really didn't have anyone to talk to who understood her and that her being in that meeting yesterday was "a gift from God".
As it turned out, there were several people who stopped in to chat with us yesterday and pick up information from our resource tables. Each person, it seemed, felt that they were supposed to be there, though they hadn't had any prior knowledge of our meeting, me, or my book! I was humbled by the entire experience and grateful that God had used me and my co-presenter to meet the needs of those He'd purposed to come into our midst. It was nice to sell a few books, but it was fantastic to be used of God to serve others in the process.
Yes, His timing is always perfect! Amen!
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