A lost license and a lost Love.

I had went out last Thursday to a local sports bar to watch the Mavs play the Thunder. Usually when there's any sporting event, especially the playoffs, there's a large group of people out and about. Instead of taking names down like normal restaurants do, this particular place made you trade your ID for a buzzer. As I went to exchange the buzzer back for my ID, the hostess had a hard time finding it. Long story short, they lost it.

I shouldn't have been drinking that night anyway, so I took it as a sign and avoided going to get a new license until Monday. As they called my number, I rounded the corner and was greeted by a middle aged blonde woman. She went through the basic routine and somewhere in between scanning my thumbs and taking a new picture, she got to telling me about her life. Her late husband had passed a few months ago and there was a certain pain in her eyes. He was her first love, and really all she knew. Her first experiences prior to that consisted of her being sexually abused as an adolescent. When they got together things were great in the beginning, then the abuse came and soon after rape. She said it was all she knew, so when men were nice to her she "ran like hell". It was weird to her. Weird to be treated with respect. She said since he's passed she's found herself a real man, who treats her and her children with respect, and she couldn't be any happier. A part of her was still bitter about the past, but I could see she was trying to move forward. I'm not sure what compelled her to open up to me, but I took a great lesson from it.

Out of the many people we encounter on a daily basis, you don't know what people may be going through. Respect any and everyone, smile every chance you get, and remember the bad day you're having.. someone out there may have it worse.

I think we were destined to be in each other's life that particular Monday. She needed a listening ear and I was her confidant. Simply 2 strangers who had no idea that we'd be leaving that conversation with more than what we began with.. A rare but beautiful accident.