A PICKUP THAT DIDN’T GO WELL

“NOT AT FIRST”

Do you ever have days when everything just seems Blah?  Your inner voice and motivation are essentially “Zero. Zip. Nada.” You try to talk to yourself to, “Get your act together!”  

I saw a cute cartoon which describes this day.  It read: 

“If you see me talking to myself, not to worry. 

I’m self-employed and we’re having a staff meeting.”

My husband and I had moved into a home that was, shall we say, neglected beyond belief, both inside and out.  In Real Estate parlance, such a home is often referred to as a “Real Fixer-Upper.”  My attempts at clearing the outside extended well beyond what I anticipated.  After one particularly trying day, after I had just finished bagging 48 large disposable waste bags of leaves, yard clippings, and tree trimmings, my patience was at an extremely low point, and when converted to temperature, it was likely about minus 10 degrees.  I had completed the yard clearing and piled everything neatly – ready for pick up for the garbage collector.  Exhaustion oozed from my body.

Being new to this neighborhood, I had inquired from a neighbor about how these bags and contents of the waste bin would be picked up by the city.  The neighbor told me that the city would pick up three or four of these yard waste bags each week if they were placed next to the large waste bin provided.  

Monday morning found four of these bags hugging the large waste container.  Our little dog began to bark consistently in anticipation of the arrival of the city’s Sanitation Engineer assigned to our area.

Yep, there he was, complete with a truck making loud mechanical noises while lifting the bins and moving forward from house to house.  Since I’ve always shared goodies with our “garbage guys” to show appreciation for their efforts and efficiency in trash removal, I thought I should do so with this fellow.  This would be our first meeting “at the can location,” and I was so pleased with myself at my orderly arrangement of all the bags, sure that the young man would also be duly impressed with heap of trash – ready for pick up.

I was armed with a big smile, anticipating a congenial introduction, but things did not go exactly as planned.  The young man’s face did not exude joy.  In fact, he was perturbed, and immediately invoked a corrective action to me on his route.

My placement of the rubbish bags was too close to the large bin; and because of COVID, I was informed that the city was not picking up the paper garbage bags.  My anticipated friendly relationship with My Garbage Guy began to disappear like a mist while I received a curt discourse on “trash rules and regulations” from a generally unhappy city employee.

To add insult to injury, as he was picking up the waste bin with the arms of his truck and in so doing, ripped a gash in a bag of tree limbs and leaves.  You can picture that all of this was spewing out of the bag.  He released the bin and pulled away, all the while giving me a rather smug look.  I found his attitude and actions very hurtful.

My neighbor saw what occurred and came over to encourage me.  Once I related my details of the event, she returned home.  About an hour later this same truck appeared again to remove the rubbish from the other side of the street.  

My “defense-lawyer” (my neighbor) was waiting for the driver.  She spent about ten minutes in “trash conversation” with this garbage collector, the content of which she shared with me later.  I would have avoided her “chosen wordage,” but I wasn’t in charge of her sermonete.  She said that she told the driver how inconsiderate he was to me, especially since I was new to the area and was only trying to follow the rules.

Needless-to-say, this wasn’t a good morning for me.  My feelings were hurt, and my “pleasant introduction” turned into a fiasco.  Humanly speaking, he was about to be crossed off my “treats for the garbage guy list.”  Now it was time to have a chat with the Lord about the verbal confrontation.

Yes, I received my “Divine instructions” and the pathway to mending was plain and simple.  Only put out the appropriate bin and hold off on those 48 bags of yard waste for a few months.

A week had passed and I was “ready and waiting” for the sound of his approach.  To be honest here, my tummy was churning, but I was going to pour out the “kindness barrel” as best I could.  I hadn’t premeditated what I was going to say, but just trusted that if my heart was in the right place, God would fill my mouth with the right words that needed to be delivered. 

The noise from the truck announced his arrival!  I approached the driveway, where the bin was placed, and as he pulled up, I said, “Did I put everything out okay this time?”  My jaw dropped as I viewed a smile that appeared on his face.  “Yep, you did it right.”  Then he proceeded to tell me why he couldn’t pick up the yard waste in the thick paper bags for a few months.

I thanked him and I thought that would be the wrap up of our conversation.  He paused and said, that he would soon return to empty the garbage on the opposite side of the street.  If I could handle it, he told me to empty one of those paper bags into my bin and roll it across the street and he would empty it for me. 

Those bags can be very heavy.  I was informed that I needed to load the yard waste into the bin myself since he was never allowed to touch a bag, but only use the truck’s pick-up mechanism to collect any trash.

What???  I couldn’t believe what came out of his mouth.  About an hour had passed and I perched myself outside in anticipation of his arrival in the big blue truck.  Sure enough, an hour later, he appeared.  This time I was ready with a can of Pepsi in my hand.  His arrival was more pleasant this time.  Perhaps he saw the Pepsi can in my hand as he made his way around the corner of the street.  As he pulled into position, I handed him the can of refreshment as his eyes sparkled and a great big grin appeared on his face.

As he took hold of the Pepsi can as I was attempting to place the second bag of yard waste into the bin when the bin tipped over and all the yard waste went all over the street.  It was just too heavy to get a firm grip on it.

So, what would any woman do at this point?  I politely told him that he could just move on to the neighbor’s bin, and that I would spend the next few minutes “cleaning the street” from my yard waste.  I knew this would be my next assignment as he had to remain in his truck … per the City’s bylaws. 

At this point, I almost began to cry, but that wouldn’t solve anything.  So, I quickly began the clean-up operation.  To my shock and surprise, the door to his cab opened and out he popped.  He began helping me tidy up the street from all the tree clippings that had been stored in this supposedly heavy-duty bag.  

I offered many heartfelt “thank-yous.”  He just smiled and said, “Don’t tell anyone I’m doing this, as I’m not supposed to touch the trash.”

Within about two minutes, the street was cleared, and in the bin and up and over into his truck it went.  He knew I was grateful, and a huge smile from him appeared in the rear-view mirror as he drove off.

So, if you’re wondering if God is interested and desires to be involved in our “tiny trials.”  The answer is a resounding “Yes!” He longs that we see Him at work in our daily duties and regular routines.

I serve a BIG GOD … who cares to be involved in every aspect of my life and in yours.  However, we need to give Him the opportunity.

And yes, my Sanitation Engineer will become part of my “baking routine each week.”  I want to let him know that in our busy, often impersonal world, his occupation is important, and he is not just scenery on those days –and that his work makes a difference in the lives of many people.

Is your “garbage guy” or your personal “sanitation engineer” aware of your appreciation for his or her efforts?