At six o’clock every morning now, I’m dropping Mark off at the Park and Ride to catch the corporate bus that takes him into South San Francisco.  It’s a great option with wi-fi to catch up on emails and a relaxing, comfortable ride without having to fight  traffic.  Genentech actually pays their employees to ride the bus into the city.  It’s a pretty sweet deal.

The first day I dropped Mark reminded me of my kids’ first day of kindergarten.  He got out of the car and walked to the bus line,  backpack in tow.  It was a quick goodbye, with no looking back and I stayed to make sure he got on the bus okay.  It was like deja vu all over again :-).

But each day that we return to that drop off place in the parking lot, the view is exactly the same.  About 8-10 men in a row, same order, a safe distance apart from each other.  Some looking at their cell phones, some staring off into space, some adjusting their pocket protectors.  But not a single interaction between any of them.  Waiting for a spot on this bus is, apparently, serious business.  According to Mark, each of them has a particular seat that they sit in and there are no negotiations.  I think it should be called the Park and HIDE.

Both Mark and I think that there could be a hilarious sitcom made about this scenario.  But, of course, it would all have to be done with little thought bubbles protruding from these people’s heads because no one says a word.  Which leaves MUCH to the imagination!  Could be so much fun…sigh…

I’m sure there are many reasons why there is such silence at the bus stop every morning.  It is early.  They are, for the most part, men and probably don’t see the need for idle chatter.  They are in the zone for beginning their work day.  They are each in their own brilliant little world, preoccupied with their own genius, highly educated thoughts.

For all intents and purposes, they may as well be on that bus alone, because while the bus is packed, they have shut themselves off from experiencing any real human contact.

It’s easier that way.  More efficient.  Safer.  Less frustrating.  More focused.  Less messy.

It’s funny to watch, but it’s also a little sad.  Because in reality, it’s a microcosm of what we can all tend to do.  With drive thru this and technology that, we can survive on very little human interaction, practically speaking.  We can get things done faster and with less headache if we just skip the people and stick to the task.  It’s so much easier sometimes to just go at things solo.

It’s safer, too.  People are complex.  They require time and energy and effort.  There are no guarantees on their responses.  They create drama and difficulty.  Investing in them is always a gamble.

But while people might not always fit our calendars or our time sheets or our to-do lists, they always have been and always will be God’s priority.  And He has called us to also make them ours.

And while they won’t always make our lives easier, people will always make our lives richer.

Serving others will always give our lives purpose.

Interacting will always give us deeper insights.

Listening will always give us more compassionate hearts.

Loving them will always make our souls more full and beautiful.

Everything in me wants to go stand in that line at the Park and Ride and shake things up a bit.  Start a conversation.  Give someone a hug.  Tell a joke.  Dance.

And maybe one day I will.

But for today I will start in my own neighborhood, with the people who cross my path.  I will stretch past my own comfort.  Reach past my own schedule and agenda.  And maybe, just maybe, I will grow a little because I gave a little.

1 John 4:7-8 – Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

John 13:34-35 – A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

Hebrews 13:1-2 –  Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.