The Intimacy of an Unexpected Moment

Chance encounters happen each day. And they can offer a moment of wonder.

Billboard in Times Square honoring Bretagne the dog and her handler, Denise Corliss. Photo by BarkPost.

When I finish a blog I send it on to a colleague I’ve only met face-to-face once. But that hasn’t gotten in the way of our friendship. You see, Melissa Roberson is the first person to read what I’ve written before she uploads it to our Guideposts sites. She always corrects my mistakes, lets me know when the blog goes live, and if the spirit moves her, she sends a personal note.

My last blog was about a chance encounter that made my day. And this is why Melissa and I are friends:

“Enjoyed this,” Melissa wrote in a quick email. “I love unexpected moments like that. Mine today was with John, the man who delivers and picks up my dry cleaning. He’s a tender-hearted soul who loves animals. (I know because I’ve had a lot of things dry cleaned over the years.) Today, he was confused about why the last 9/11 rescue dog was put to sleep. ‘She wasn’t sick,’ he said, looking at me with troubled brown eyes. ‘Surely there was a reason,’ I said, wanting to help him make sense of the situation.

Read More: Remembering the Last 9/11 Search and Rescue Dog

“So I put my laptop up on the kitchen counter, and we looked at a story for clues as to why she was put down. There was an embedded video of the dog being saluted by the honor guard on her last trip to vet. And I looked over at John. His chin was quivering, tears in his eyes. I’d never seen him look so vulnerable. I handed him a tissue. Then I started to tear up. We cried a little together. Then he left with the dry cleaning. What a moment.”

Melissa claims to be no angel. I beg to differ, my friend. And both of us would love to read about the unexpected moment that made your day.

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