Beyond The Zipper

Embracing the Profound Teachings of Small Moments

On a freezing Indiana night in mid-February, I stepped out of my warm car and hurried into the homeless shelter for my nightly volunteer shift. Seeking respite in the lobby, a young woman, temporarily staying at the shelter, sized me up and whispered, "You're fly."

In case you're unfamiliar with urban slang, it essentially means, "You're hot."

Naturally, I was taken aback and somewhat embarrassed by her forwardness, particularly since I wore a wedding ring and had never met her before. However, I managed a smile, searching for my composure by gazing at the floor before shyly replying, "Thank you, I suppose."

Despite my evident awkwardness, she persisted, this time whispering a bit louder, "You're fly."

My face, concealed by a graying beard, turned crimson. Any remnants of the cold outside dissipated, replaced by a sweat-inducing warmth. Did they crank up the heat in here? I wondered. Even more uncomfortably, I responded, "Um, alright. Hey, thanks."

My gaze fixated on the floor once more, hiding like a child beneath a blanket, hoping to evade attention. The floor was my blanket—if I continued staring at it, maybe she wouldn’t see me.

But she continued to stare. And had one more thing to say.

Now, I must humbly admit, when someone speaks to you, it's impossible to distinguish between the words "you're" and "your."

I looked up one final time, and in slow motion, her arm extended, finger zeroing in on my midsection.

"Your fly."

Only this time, it wasn't a whisper.

An Artic draft pierced through the exposed gap.

Oh no.

My fly.

I felt like I might die from embarrassment.

To be honest, it was a fitting end to my day. Earlier in the afternoon, I had called my work partner, inquiring about how the day was progressing. She casually mentioned sleeping in and running errands, neglecting to inform me that she had taken the day off. Naturally, her response left me bewildered.

After a few silent moments, I mustered a hesitant utterance, "What?"

To which she eagerly replied, a bit too gleefully, "I'm just enjoying our company holiday today."

Yep. I was the lone soul in the entire company working on President's Day.

Woof.

It was a tough day, but I learned something profound- the most seemingly insignificant moments can hold immense transformative power, serving as valuable teachers in our lives. Instead of dismissing them as mere mishaps, they can become gifts that foster growth and impart wisdom. In my case, two humbling realizations reminded me of the importance of humility. You may think I am thinking way too much about these small moments, but I believe that it is the embracing of these small moments as gifts that allow us to receive their lessons and experience transformative growth.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in his book Life Together, writes that, “We pray for the big things and forget to give thanks for the ordinary, small (and yet really not small) gifts.”

He is exactly right. The truth is that the small things are always the key to the big things.

Question

1. Have you ever experienced a seemingly insignificant moment that ended up teaching you a profound lesson or catalyzing personal growth?

Peace,

Brandon

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Check out the latest teaser trailer for Brandon’s new book And So By Fire- A Novel. The sequel to What Can’t Be Hidden will be in bookstores and everywhere online on August 15th. You can also add And So By Fire to your Goodreads Bookshelf today!