Ellis sat alone during his lunch
break, silently watching the fourteen other people in his office effortlessly
interact, chat, and laugh with one another. If he was to be brutally honest
with himself, he knew he was not the most sociable person, the most friendly
person, or one who put in effort to connect with others. He thought back over
his childhood, his high school years, and his years in university, to recognize
that his personality had been the same throughout all this time.
Thankful
for the Reuben sandwich that graced his plate, the sweet tea, and the side
order of onion rings, a warm, tangy, and delightful meal that had been
delivered a mere five minutes before his lunch hour began. He finished his
beautiful meal, rose from his seat, disposed of his trash, slipped out to the
restroom, and washed his hands, appalled at the greasy residue left upon his
fingers.
He
started to return to the lunchroom to then pause, recollect his thoughts, and
change his trajectory to the stairwell that led to the outdoor garden that
graced the roof of their office building. Standing at least four floors higher
than all other buildings in the vicinity, he drifted through the hundreds of
flowers, plants, and small bushes that created a wonderful Eden-like setting.
He
approached the edge of the roof, looked out across the city to catch a distant
glance of a park a mere six blocks away. “Something needs to change,” he
muttered to himself. “Honestly, I am a pleasant person, a thoughtful person,
and one who genuinely cares for the wellbeing of others. I guess this will
force me out of my comfortable personal bubble.”
The
last few hours of Friday passed, he expressed good wishes upon his co-workers
before taking the elevator to the main floor. He escaped to the sidewalk, found
the stairwell to the Tube, rode in the midst of hundreds of strangers until he
emerged only one block from his flat at the Aldgate stop. As he slipped above
ground, he walked past “The Guild Church of St. Katherine Cree”, its gray bricks
hinting at its century’s old history, an impressive tower that he could see
from his bedroom window.
Ellis
was not one who was ever particularly religious, and the thought of connecting
with the Anglican priest at the church surfaced in his mind, with the hope of
receiving some sort of direction and help as to how to better interact with
people. He ascended the stairs to his flat, looked across the open space at the
impressive visage of the church. He then searched for the church website in
hopes of finding their hours for the coming Sunday, with a plan in mind to
arrive early, interact with the priest and hopefully receive some direction and
wisdom.
As
the dinner hour arrived, he walked a few blocks to a local pub to order fish and
chips, a Guinness, and chat a bit with the waitress who previously had seemed
sweet on him. He finished his dinner, ordered a second Guinness, and maintained
a steady course home, working hard not to look overly touched by the volume of
dark beer he had just consumed. He smiled and waved at everyone he saw on the
street, worked his way up his stairs, took a shower and watched a movie until
nearly midnight.
Before
collapsing into bed, he set his alarm for Sunday morning two hours before the
Anglican service began. “Let’s make Saturday a day of rest, relaxation, and
maybe a walk to the park. Maybe I’ll call Maggie and see if she wants to join
me on a visit to the park, and a light lunch afterward.”
His
Saturday passed in a lovely way, enjoying his time with Maggie, a wonderful
lunch, and plenty of relaxation time until nighttime fell upon the city. The
clanging of the alarm pulled him from sleep on Sunday morning, confused, he sat
up, tried to remember why his alarm was sounding, remembered his plans for the Friday
before, took a shower, and toddled to the church less than a block away.
As
he entered the nearly empty sanctuary, he motioned for the priest, and the two
of them engaged in a pleasant conversation, with Ellis explaining his social
conundrum, asking for help as to how to overcome his social ineptitude. “Thank
you for reaching out, Ellis,” the priest said. “Social interaction and friendship
are very important aspects of one’s life. I want you to think about the kind of
people with whom you like to spend your time. Please share your thoughts.”
“Oh,
yeah, that makes a lot of sense,” he said. “I usually find people who are humorous
and bring joy into my life as good people with whom to associate.”
“Well,
there you go,” he said. “If that is what you like, it’s probably safe to say
that other people would have the same feelings and ideas.”
“Thank
you for your time, Father,” he said. “I’m not a religious person so I will
probably not stay for the service. I appreciate your guidance and wisdom.”
Ellis
returned to his flat, took off his shoes, sat down at his dining room table,
and began taking notes, documenting what the priest had told him. He found a
light breakfast in his refrigerator, relaxed around his flat, and decided to wander
around through the local shops with the hopes of finding several people with
whom to chat, to laugh with and hopefully positively influence.
Feeling
jovial, filled with breakfast and inspired from the words from the priest, he
made his way downtown to find several open shops filled with people. He challenged
himself to interact with at least four or five people in each shop, finding
that being friendly, talkative, and humorous brought out the best in others.
His plan was a smashing success as he made several new friends, new contacts,
and exchanged phone numbers with at least a dozen people.
After
enjoying a long afternoon with new friends, he finally returned home to make
himself dinner and enjoy a movie. The next week of work was radically different
than normal, as he continued to exercise his effort of friendly interaction.
Friday came around and he repeated the activity from the previous Friday. He
relaxed around his flat, strolled to the local pub, continued to practice his
friendly interaction, and reconnected with the waitress.
Once
again setting his alarm for the Sunday morning service at St. Katherine’s Guild
Church, he entered the comfortably full sanctuary, took a seat in the middle,
and made a special point to watch those around him. After a short time, he
found all of the others in attendance were very friendly and was invited to
stay for lunch after the service. This became his new routine for Sunday
morning. Months passed, then years passed, and Ellis became the one to whom people
went when they needed to be encouraged and filled with joy.
Upon
reaching his seventieth year, he began to make friends with a young man who
suddenly appeared out of nowhere and connected with the parish. Ellis shared
his story with the young man, encouraged him to continue the work of being the
source of joy for those around him, for he knew that he did not have too many
years left.
It
was with great joy that he watched the young man put in great effort to be more
friendly, more interactive, which allowed Ellis to in a practical sense, hand
over the role of bringer of joy to his new friend, Thomas. It was on his
eightieth birthday that Ellis slowly slumped to his side as he sat upon the wooden
pew, still filled with joy, and he felt himself beginning to grow cold.
All
sound, all smells, and all activity suddenly ceased as he drifted off into
eternity. Ellis had no family and chose to leave all of his financial wellbeing
to the parish, setting aside an abundant amount of money for the young man who thankfully
took over his role as bringer of joy. Even though he was not cognitively
present, Ellis’ funeral was well attended, with many kind words from the
thousands of people he had filled with joy and loved in his many years at the
parish.
Thomas,
the young man who took on Ellis’ role as bringer of joy, was the last one to
speak, communicating all that Ellis had shared with him, and the incredible joy
he had infused into him, teaching him to be the one who people loved to be
with, interact with, and be loved by. As
he spoke, he said, “I have one more thing to share with you all. Ellis told me
to make the bringing of joy into people’s lives my main goal and not to allow
this responsibility to die with me and like him, and to find a successor to
take over when I too would grow old. Ellis was truly a blessing for all of us. Thank
you all for attending and saying goodbye to our beautiful friend Ellis.”