She stood there, wondering what life would bring her, pretending to look thoughtful so that she wouldn’t be disturbed. Truth be told, she wasn’t much of a socialite. Everyone else in the youth group clicked, except her. She grew out if it after a while, not wanting to have any relationships that would disappoint her. She stayed away from people like that, which meant everybody. The wind blew cold, and she pulled her jacket closer to her little figure. She wasn’t much of an eater, either. You see, she was an orphan since birth, but whenever she tried to tell people, it would be too late because they had already judged her wrongly. Who had that right, anyway? She wondered whether she should or shouldn’t enter the church building. Everybody would think I’m a freak, anyway. I don’t talk to anyone, but they don’t seem to understand why. If only they gave me a few minutes. I could explain my life story and they wouldn’t be so judgmental. In fact, they would probably eat their words. If only they knew. If only they’d listen. If only they would give me a chance. If only they would see the real me. If only. If only. Just then, people started spilling out of the church. It was too late to go in now, anyway. People, as usual, ignored her as they walked by, not bothering to wave what more say hi. They just didn’t understand. That’s what she told herself a lot. As almost everybody had left, a young guy came out to the foyer, where she was standing. For the fist time in a long while, someone made her feel good. Just his presence made such a difference to her thoughts. I wonder if he’d understand.
“Hi. I’m new here. I hear you’re not much of a talker. “You know, don’t have to answer me”, he said, when he realized she wasn’t going to say anything. “Just hear me out, okay?” She nodded, and he told her about how he was an orphan since birth, and how people had left him out all the time. It sounded a lot like her story, to be frank. But, one thing she didn’t know was that he was blind. Yes, blind. They walked home together when they found out they lived in the same neighbourhood. They talked and talked all the way. Then, he silently thought to himself, If only she knew what a beautiful person God has made her to be. I didn’t see that. Well, I can’t. I could sense her beauty and her grace. If only she knew how great she was in God’s eyes. If only she knew. If only.