Two Sides Of The Counter

I have three rings that I wear all the time.
One is my wedding band.
One is my mother’s ring, which has all the birthstones of my children.
One is an anniversary, today, tomorrow, and always, ring my husband gave me one anniversary.

Twice a year, those rings have to be inspected.
The paperwork is dated and initialed by the jeweler after the inspection.
Twice a year, the rings are looked at under a magnifying glass for cracks or signs of damage.
Covid prevented me from getting my rings inspected last year.

I called the jeweler to make an appointment.
The date and time was set.
I drove to the jewelers and knew that I would have to follow safety protocol.
I got there ten minutes early.

I had to wait to be brought inside.
A woman stepped from behind the counter to help me.
She was wearing a long skirt, a long blouse, and a head covering.
With her mask, I could only see her eyes.

She went to work right away.
I had to remove my rings and put them in a small plastic basket.
My rings were sprayed with a solution to sanitize them before she touched them.
She put latex gloves on her hands and removed my rings from the basket.

She took out her small magnifying glass and inspected my rings this way and that.
She put them into the machine that cleans them thoroughly.
She took out the paperwork that I brought with me.
She dated and initialed her inspection.

As we waited for the rings to be cleaned, we began to talk.
It has been a difficult year, I said after some small talk.
It has, she said, but I have to give credit where credit is due.
Things begun in the last administration are helping us today, she stated.

You can’t dismiss the good that was done, she went on.
I may not have liked the man, but I have to give credit where credit is due, she said again.
People are shocked when they hear me talk like that, she admitted.
She searched my eyes to see if I was shocked.

You wouldn’t think I was conservative, would you? She asked, expecting an answer.
Before I could answer, she continued.
I am Hispanic, African, and Muslim, she told me.
People check off all the boxes and make up their mind about me, she stated.

They think, because they see this, she said pointing to her head covering, that I am violent.
That’s terrible, I said looking at her eyes; they don’t even know you.
It doesn’t matter, she said sadly.
It even happens here, she exclaimed and I assumed she meant in her workplace.

She looked into my eyes as she folded my paperwork.
We need to treat each other with respect and dignity, I said emphatically, meaning every word.
We are made in the image of God, I began.
For that reason alone, we must love each other as He loves us, I stressed, praying for this woman.

I am a Christian, I continued.
I want to love others simply because God loves them.
I know Jesus, she said.
He’s all over the Koran.

He’s a prophet.
He was born of Mary.
The first man and woman were Adam and Eve.
We are children of Adam, she said without taking a breath.

I prayed for wisdom.
She had knowledge but not saving knowledge.
I could not stand there and go point by point with her.
I did not believe that is what God would have me do.

I looked at her.
Jesus is my Lord, I told her.
Everything I do, I do for Him alone.
I prayed that my response would linger in the woman’s mind and heart.

So how do we fix it? I asked her wondering how she would respond to my question.
We do just what we’re doing here, she said pointing to herself and to me.
Open dialogue.
We have to talk to each other, she said stressing every word.

She got my rings and handed them to me.
Thank you for sharing your heart with me, I said.
I reached across the counter and touched her hand.
She put her hand on top of mine and patted it.

I wish I could see your smile, I said, though I saw the smile in her eyes.
She took off her mask and let it hang on one ear.
I did the same.
We both smiled sweetly, sincerely, and joyfully before replacing our mask.

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice:

All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God,  saying:

One response to “Two Sides Of The Counter”

1. Your love for the Lord has produced such a winsome concern for others to know him also. I will pray with you also that that woman finds salvation in Jesus alone

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