your heart will dance, sing, and make art inside of you...

have you ever had a random conversation with a complete stranger? one that gave you insight into the life of that stranger and maybe made you think about things from a new perspective?

i am not taking about a "hi, beautiful weather we're having" kind of conversation.

i am referring to something a little more in depth. a conversation that you walk away from with a sense of greater understanding. a total stranger has just shared a part of themselves with you and maybe you gave a part of yourself in return. it is about vulnerability, and honesty, and ultimately a NEED to share your story with someone who will listen.

i had one of those conversations yesterday while i was waiting for the bus. a little old lady was sitting beside me at the bus stop and she was staring at my grocery bags. she was tiny and fragile but looked very strong willed and had snowy white hair and bright pink lipstick. she was wearing a pretty purple dress and a scarf to keep the wind from blowing her hair into a mess. she was beautiful.

i pulled out the dried mango i had bought at the grocery store and offered her a piece. (I am not sure why i did this... i don't usually offer food to strangers - especially dried mango - but she was staring at it so i felt guilty just keeping it all to myself) she declined my offer and instead started talking to me. what she told me was a story...

i won't tell you all of our conversation because i feel as though it was private information shared between us. i will tell you that it was all about her life between the ages of 19 and 25. she talked about family, life, love and growing into a young woman. mostly though, she told me stories about boys, courting, and her first love. i teased her saying that she must have had all the boys chasing after her, and that she was very beautiful. she laughed at this and blushed. (by this time we had missed our bus and were waiting for the next one to come along. she didn't seem to mind so i didn't say anything and just kept listening) she said i was a delightful girl and then later gave me some advice...... she told me i was sweet and lovely, and that lots of boys would come calling, but i shouldn't settle for just any one... i should wait to find the right boy to give my heart to.

(i thought that this was really cute and was happy to be reminded that there were still some true romantics living in the world) so i asked her how i would know when i had found the right one. this is what she said; "My dear, there may be boys that make your heart sway, but when you meet that one special boy, the one that you are meant to be with forever, your heart will dance, sing, and make art inside of you ... and you will know without a doubt that he is the one for you." (these are fairly close to her exact words because i wrote them down as soon as i got on the bus.)

in between telling me her story, she asked me a few questions about school and my life. she shared so much with me that i felt like i should give something in return. i thanked her and she said; "no, thank you, this world has gotten much too fast for me and it is nice to find a young lady who still has the time to sit and listen to an old woman." i told her that i would gladly listen to her stories anytime. and then we parted. it turned out that she wasn't even waiting for the bus. she was just taking a rest on the bench in between her daily walk around the block.