Where is my brain?

Sometimes I don't believe how dense I am. I could be hit over the head, and still not get it.

True friends don't grow on trees, do you agree?

I have a friend who is good to all.  It so happens she has severe arthritis. She walks with a cane and is often in severe pain.

Since I don't have a car right now, she happily drives me anywhere I want to go. She doesn't make a casual offer like: "Let me know when you need a ride."  No, she calls me often and asks, "Where do you want to go?"

I don't take my friend up on her offer every time, but I have to tell you that she is so gracious that I can even feel good to call her and know she will say Yes. She is never too busy (she says) or in the middle of something or in such great pain that she won't say Yes and say, "What time?"

Furthermore, if I'm grocery-shopping, she often waits in the car and never is impatient. She really doesn't mind how long I take.

And please don't think that my friend doesn't have other engagements and plenty to do. And you have to know that, whereas most of us can just hop into our cars, it's not a hop, skip, and jump for her.

Her goodness makes me think of all the times I could have offered someone a ride and didn't or didn't even think of it.

And then something else dawned on me this morning. It took me long enough.

My friend lives in a duplex. The apartment next to hers is vacant, and an older gentleman will be moving in. She mentioned that she hoped he would take out her trash for her. She would gladly cook a meal for him in exchange. I listened, and I was sympathetic. I truly felt how difficult it must be to carry trash out to the curb when you're walking with a cane.

And yet my mind was blank. I didn't make any connections.

This morning it dawned on me: "For Heaven's sakes,  I CAN TAKE OUT MY FRIEND'S TRASH!!"

Do you see what I mean when I ask: "Where is my brain? Where did it go? Where has it been?"

Opportunity was right in front of me, and I didn't see it.