day thirty-seven: serendipity

A pleasant surprise. A happy accident. One person put it this way: "to look for a needle in a haystack and come out of it with the farmer's daughter." Or maybe going to a vending machine and finding that it's "preloaded" with money.

That was our gift today. The vending machines at St. Francis Eastside Hospital are in a small break room, so I went in, pumped dollar bills in all five machines, took a couple of pictures with my phone, and walked out. The lady eating her sandwich in there must have thought I was crazy.

Today's was a gift of serendipity - finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for; making fortunate discoveries by accident. (The technological equivalent is StumbleUpon.)

I don't know who will get their free Coke or candy bar. I hope it will be a pleasant surprise for someone whose family member is facing a medical crisis. Or maybe it will be a happy accident for a new father who just experienced the birth of a different kind of happy accident. Or perhaps it will be a nurse, tired after a long day, who discovers her Mountain Dew isn't going to cost her $1.25 tonight.

This Lenten journey has been serendipitous for me. I've discovered so much by way of happy accidents and pleasant surprises, even amidst the fatigue, frustrations, and failures. To me, that sounds a lot like God's work in my life and in this world - serendipitous grace.

Then again, could grace be anything other than surprising and still be grace?