“Nearly a year after I got to know Dixie, something changed and for no apparent reason she started to come to my home every Sunday to spend a few hours. I remember thinking, ‘I don't know why she is doing this, as she isn't 'assigned' to me.’ Our church creates assignments for women to visit, check on, and support other women in the congregation. The same holds true for men in our church. Dixie wasn't assigned to me and I wasn't assigned to her. Her increase in visits puzzled me, as I could see no reason for it.
“This visiting went on for three months until one day I realized that she had suddenly stopped talking; she simply stopped telling me stories about her life. She was silent. This change seemed to create a vacuum that forced me to do more talking. It was the change that nudged me into a whole new direction with this wonderful woman whom I would later call my ‘Dixie Mom.’
“At one point, while Dixie was at my home, I was standing at my upstairs bedroom window watching my husband drive away from the house. Seeing my body language change dramatically into a more relaxed state after he was gone, Dixie allowed me a moment to settle into a more comfortable feeling, and then asked, ‘Are you two still sleeping together?’”
“I was absolutely shocked at her abrupt question, and especially because I had not spoken directly about my marital problems. I could only surmise that she was beginning to see what was really happening in my household. I also realized that she was observing my moods and body language. Thinking she might judge me by my answer, I said sheepishly, ‘Well . . . no, we're not.’ Her response was equally shocking, yet comforting and without judgment. ‘That's good,’ she said, ‘I don't know how you could be working on your problems if you were still sleeping together.’
“Dixie's frankness brought about a change in our relationship. I would come to learn that Dixie would broach any subject and that with her, everything was ‘out on the table.’” (My Tears Fall Inside, pages 76-77.)
During holiday seasons many people suffer with extreme loneliness, sadness and depression. Sometimes people look “just fine” on the outside but are suffering deep pain on the inside. None of us can help everyone but is there someone God wants us to reach out to?
“This visiting went on for three months until one day I realized that she had suddenly stopped talking; she simply stopped telling me stories about her life. She was silent. This change seemed to create a vacuum that forced me to do more talking. It was the change that nudged me into a whole new direction with this wonderful woman whom I would later call my ‘Dixie Mom.’
“At one point, while Dixie was at my home, I was standing at my upstairs bedroom window watching my husband drive away from the house. Seeing my body language change dramatically into a more relaxed state after he was gone, Dixie allowed me a moment to settle into a more comfortable feeling, and then asked, ‘Are you two still sleeping together?’”
“I was absolutely shocked at her abrupt question, and especially because I had not spoken directly about my marital problems. I could only surmise that she was beginning to see what was really happening in my household. I also realized that she was observing my moods and body language. Thinking she might judge me by my answer, I said sheepishly, ‘Well . . . no, we're not.’ Her response was equally shocking, yet comforting and without judgment. ‘That's good,’ she said, ‘I don't know how you could be working on your problems if you were still sleeping together.’
“Dixie's frankness brought about a change in our relationship. I would come to learn that Dixie would broach any subject and that with her, everything was ‘out on the table.’” (My Tears Fall Inside, pages 76-77.)
During holiday seasons many people suffer with extreme loneliness, sadness and depression. Sometimes people look “just fine” on the outside but are suffering deep pain on the inside. None of us can help everyone but is there someone God wants us to reach out to?
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