Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up.” – Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
At the end of January while taking a service trip with Wilmington College students and Chip Murdock, I had the privilege of experiencing, “Beloved Community.” We were there to work at the Greater Chicago Food Distribution as well as serve at a food pantry in the area. It was wonderful to see these students experience an opportunity of a service project of this magnitude.
We worked in community with people we did not know — yet we worked with such efficiency it made me proud to be a part of this little group from a jewel of a college in the heart of Wilmington, Ohio. On these service trips, Chip likes to broaden students’ experiences by going to museums, galleries, etc. The night before our departure we visited such a place and it was like walking into a kaleidoscope of colors. I was so mesmerized by this lighting experience that I took a misstep right off the bottom step, cracked my head and found myself stunned and on the floor.
Two strangers were immediately at my side calling for assistance for me. They somehow found Chip Murdock and three of the college students traveling with me. There, I was in Chicago with a small group of people assessing me an awkward situation, (which could have been much worse,) giving aid and taking care of me. I must admit when an older person with white hair has just experienced a minor head injury that is bleeding, it can give people cause for concern, and I understood the expressions on people’s faces that night – yet I tried to remain calm.
The young female director of the center swept me away to a well-lit and private room where Wilmington College students joined me. They cleaned me up, examined my head, with deliberate and loving care guiding me to the next steps. I was vulnerable and I was in their care. At a small neighborhood hospital, we were greeted with the same tenderness and efficiency, from the security officers to the check-in agents and the lively nursing staff.
One of the students traveled with me all the way through the hospital, and when they were preparing to staple my head, she looked at me and said, “Do you want to hold my hand?” To which I said, yes and our hands clasped in an unfamiliar hospital in a very big city, called Chicago.
Community can be what we make of everywhere we go. What kind of community do you help create wherever you go? I was fortunate while in Chicago to experience a loving expanded community. And like the student’s hand that reached out to me, I ask myself, “How am I reaching out to others?”
Blessings and love, Nancy McCormick, Springfield Friends, Chester Friends, Wilmington College Campus Ministry.
